JonClayton
Well-Known Member
I've been making ciders off and on for sometime using store bought juice and a variety of dry wine yeast. I am completely aware of rhino farts and expect them with my ciders. But this is the first time the ciders have really tasted of sulfur. Background:
Recently I obtained 50+ gallons of day old fresh pressed apple cider and started working with it. I fortified the juice from a SG of 1.052 to up to 1.068 using table sugar dissolved in a bit of boiled juice. I placed 20 gallons into my large fermenter and the rest broken into carboys numbered 1-6. Since the cider was fresh with no pasteurization I started by adding potassium metabisulfite in the recommended dosage to each fermentation vessel. I then waited 2 days and pitched the yeast plus pectic enzyme. Carboys 1-3 received D47, 4-6 EC-118, and T58 for the 20 gallon. Let me tell you.. I've smelled rhino farts before - but nothing like 50 gallons at once. The entire house smelled but it's a good thing that my wife loves me and enjoys cider as well
3 weeks later all carboys finished at between .998 and 1.001. The t58 finished at 1.007. I racked all carboys into secondary maintaining the original carboy numbers and split the 20 gallon into 4 more carboys #7-10. All ciders still smelled and tasted of sulfur.
I am now at week 5 and the ciders have all cleared very nicely but still maintain sulfur aroma and taste strongly of sulfur. Is there anything else I should be doing other than waiting? I thought of trying to degas one using my drill mounted wine degassing tool just to see what happens? I've had ciders in the past do similar things and the answer has been time. I am usually in no hurry and it's not unusual for me to bulk age cider 4-6 months before I keg it. But since this project is so large, and it's my first time working with fresh juice I'd love some reassurance to RDWHAHB for the next 4 months or so
I plan to rack one more time as even though the cider has cleared there is still a little visible trub in the secondary. Once the ciders loose the sulfur taste I plan to add various fruits to some carboys, others will be oaked with a variety of oaks, some will be dosed with sorbate and backsweetened, and I may even pull out a gallon or two to attempt a dry hopped cider with some Galaxy or a C-hop. For now I think I need to wait before doing anything, am I on the right track?
Recently I obtained 50+ gallons of day old fresh pressed apple cider and started working with it. I fortified the juice from a SG of 1.052 to up to 1.068 using table sugar dissolved in a bit of boiled juice. I placed 20 gallons into my large fermenter and the rest broken into carboys numbered 1-6. Since the cider was fresh with no pasteurization I started by adding potassium metabisulfite in the recommended dosage to each fermentation vessel. I then waited 2 days and pitched the yeast plus pectic enzyme. Carboys 1-3 received D47, 4-6 EC-118, and T58 for the 20 gallon. Let me tell you.. I've smelled rhino farts before - but nothing like 50 gallons at once. The entire house smelled but it's a good thing that my wife loves me and enjoys cider as well
3 weeks later all carboys finished at between .998 and 1.001. The t58 finished at 1.007. I racked all carboys into secondary maintaining the original carboy numbers and split the 20 gallon into 4 more carboys #7-10. All ciders still smelled and tasted of sulfur.
I am now at week 5 and the ciders have all cleared very nicely but still maintain sulfur aroma and taste strongly of sulfur. Is there anything else I should be doing other than waiting? I thought of trying to degas one using my drill mounted wine degassing tool just to see what happens? I've had ciders in the past do similar things and the answer has been time. I am usually in no hurry and it's not unusual for me to bulk age cider 4-6 months before I keg it. But since this project is so large, and it's my first time working with fresh juice I'd love some reassurance to RDWHAHB for the next 4 months or so
I plan to rack one more time as even though the cider has cleared there is still a little visible trub in the secondary. Once the ciders loose the sulfur taste I plan to add various fruits to some carboys, others will be oaked with a variety of oaks, some will be dosed with sorbate and backsweetened, and I may even pull out a gallon or two to attempt a dry hopped cider with some Galaxy or a C-hop. For now I think I need to wait before doing anything, am I on the right track?
