Short-term fermentation

[MikeyMike929]

New cider-maker here. As a kid I remember having apple cider in the Fall (back when it was legal to sell unpasteurized cider) that would sit on the counter for a few days and get a little tangy and sour. It was delicious. That memory made me wonder is it possible to mix apple juice with yeast and let it ferment just for a few days rather than the customary 2-4 weeks? I imagine it would still taste sweet, but also have some fizz. Am I totally off base?

 

[bernardsmith]

Not off-base but you need to be sure that your juice has no added preservatives. Pasteurizing simply kills indigenous bacteria and mold spores and so ensures that apples that had dropped from the trees and were contaminated with animal waste will not have listeria or e-coli among other pathogens. Juice that has had added preservatives will prevent yeast from budding (reproducing ) and so there may not be a large enough colony to do any viable fermenting. BUT note: when apple juice naturally fermented, the number of yeast cells would likely to be tiny. You are adding a colony of billions and billions of cells, so the fermentation is likely to be faster (and resulting in a higher ABV than you remembered).

 

[SoCalPlumber]

New cider-maker here. As a kid I remember having apple cider in the Fall (back when it was legal to sell unpasteurized cider) that would sit on the counter for a few days and get a little tangy and sour. It was delicious. That memory made me wonder is it possible to mix apple juice with yeast and let it ferment just for a few days rather than the customary 2-4 weeks? I imagine it would still taste sweet, but also have some fizz. Am I totally off base?

This is what I am currently doing and it's working beyond my wildest fantasies. Actually fermenting 12 days before cold crash and enjoying 3 days after.

I've heard cider gets better with age but beginning to doubt I'll ever find out

And why just apple cider? How about grape and all the berries? Then there's the stone fruits. Cider isn't just for apple