What is my best path forward?

[Graham Vodden]

Hi All,
I have read the pinned threads and those were really helpful during my first batch, but I have tried a few different things with my second, and am not sure what my best path forward is...

For reference: My last batch (my first ever) was the same juice, more honey and a champagne yeast. I did it all in the carboy, back sweetened with Xylitol and added sugar/honey for bottle conditioning (and it was beautiful).

Here is the experiment so far:
July 16:
-18 liters of sunrype pure apple juice (100% juice - NOT from concentrate - proven base)
- 1/4 lb honey
- 1cup demerara sugar
- 1 packet SafCider AB-1 yeast
Spec Grav (about 2 days later) was 1.024

July 21:
- airlock stopped bubbling
- Added 2lb fresh cherries in a juicing bag (crushed into bucket)
- Airlock picked up for a couple days

Aug 5 (today)
- Racked to carboy
- Hydrometer at about 0.995 (calc shows about 3.5%?)
- No apparent carbonation
- Definitely needs sweetening
- Added 750ml of sunrype apple juice (what I had on hand, but I know I need to add more sugar/honey/food...)

I don't have any control over the temp right now, and it is about 70F in my basement (+/-4 degrees)

I like my cider dry with some carbonation, but I believe it is too dry right now as I have likely not given it enough sugar in the primary.

At this point, my thought is to feed it some more honey, top up the carboy with some more juice (it is about 4 liters shy of being full, and I want to minimize the airspace), and then leave it alone for a while but part of me thinks I should just let it be and see what develops.

I am looking for more experienced brewers' opinions...
What would you do in my situation?

 

[Graham Vodden]

With no feedback received I decided on the following path forward:
I added four more liters of apple juice and 1/2 KG of liquid honey (dissolved into some juice and cooled first).
the carboy is now happily bubbling away again, and is filled to just above where the glass begins to narrow.

Essentially I believe I starved out the yeast, and so adding the juice and honey has given it a good restart.
I am hoping that the lees that were discarded in the primary bucket did not contain anything that the cider still needs to ferment and mature.
I guess I will find out in 4 to 6 weeks .

 

[CKuhns]

I would let this finish. The yeast your using will likely consume all the sugars you added. It will still be a bit dry.

Two options.
1. Stabilize with those chemicals folks use at about 1.006 to 1.010. Sorbate and metabisulfite.
2. Wait for it to finish, clarify, cold crash add frozen apple juice concentrate to your target sweetness. Immediately bottle and pasteurize "still" (See Papers sticky at the top.)

Good luck, let us know how it turns out.

 

[Graham Vodden]

Thanks CKuhns!
Happily with the apple juice I am using, I don't usually need to clarify & crash (the last batch only has the lees in the bottom of the carboy to avoid when bottling). It is a bit of cheating, but for a total newbie, I am happier for it. That said, with the addition of the cherries, this may be a bit cloudy (which I am also alright with).

With the last batch, when the ferment was done, I back-sweetened with xylitol, and added some honey to bottle condition (bottled in 1 liter snap-top bottles). this resulted in a really nice level of carbonation, and a very palatable cider. With this batch I will likely do the same, but add a bit more sweetener, depending on how dry this yeast leaves me.

Hopefully when I get to my third or fourth batch I will try some 'straight from the orchard' pressed juice, and then I'll hve to do the full process

 

[CKuhns]

Xylitol or other non-fermentable sugar substitute do work. I rarely recommend them.

Some folks are sensitive to Xylitol and in larger quantities i have heard and read gives folks lower intestinal trouble. My experience with these types of sweeteners is they at times can cause an "off" flavor kind of chemical like. Could be again due to using a bit too much.

 

[lumpher]

To backsweeten (and get more flavor in) I'll stabilize with k-meta and k-sorbate, let it sit for a few days to do it's magic, and then backsweeten with some juice. For cider I'll add another 1/2 gallon of apple juice, for hard lemonade I'll use 1 container of frozen concentrate, for wine I might use pure grape juice. Because it's been stabilized, the sugars and flavor in the added juice will not ferment out, but will stay there good and strong.

 

[Graham Vodden]

Xylitol or other non-fermentable sugar substitute do work. I rarely recommend them.

Some folks are sensitive to Xylitol and in larger quantities i have heard and read gives folks lower intestinal trouble. My experience with these types of sweeteners is they at times can cause an "off" flavor kind of chemical like. Could be again due to using a bit too much.

Yeah, many of the sweeteners ending in tol (malitol, sorbitol, etc.) can definitely have a disruptive effect down under (my kid ate a whole package of candy, and found out once).
I used it last time because we have it on hand in the pantry, but I will look into the other options for sure.

 

[Graham Vodden]

Update: The added juice and honey definitely got things moving again.
Bubbles have almost stopped and the airlock bottomed out (old style, not the S bend type). likely because the temps have dropped again after a heat wave.
Carboy is reading 74F.

Hydrometer reading has not changed since before the juice and honey went in a couple weeks ago though (I find this really odd, but I did add almost 5 liters of non-fermented liquid...) According to the calculators, it site just below 4%...
Plan going forward is to chill and taste my sample (can't let it go to waste), let it ride for a while in the carboy, and see how it is in another month.