Will this turn into rocket fuel? Temp question

[calmingapple]

Hey everyone,

I must say you've all been an *amazing help* So thanks for all the guidance thus far!!! Couldn't have gotten this far without the help

I have one more question to ask and then I promise I am good for awhile. (yah right I hear myself saying haha). I'm the type who loves to ask a billion questions.

So I purchased a crystal strip thermometer to place on the side of my first batch of apple wine.

From what I understand it takes the fermentation temp primarily? I would presume ambient temp plays a role - but this is mainly considered the tempt of the fermentation? Am I correct?

Well we use Celsius over here but I will do my best with the Fahrenheit equivalent.

The temperature from day one was 78.8 F (26 degrees C). The next day it went up to 82.4 F (28 degrees C) and has since returned to the previous number.

I can move the carboy into the bedroom where it is cooler and my air conditioner is telling me the temp in that room is roughly 69 F (21 degrees C). But it will have to return to the closet overnight when we are sleeping.

Is this just a recipe for disaster? I.e. rocket fuel? Okay, well I will drink that rocket fuel but no-one else will!

Next month should be cooler around here. Our Summer is just ending.

 

[Yooper]

It depends on the strain, but wine yeast is pretty tolerant of high temperatures. Is it not possible to keep the carboy in one place for the whole time? I mean, if you move it to your bedroom can't it just stay there? It doesn't take up much room.

 

[calmingapple]

Hi Yooper!

It can stay there, I don't know what I was thinking... slight fizzing noise perhaps?

I guess I am thinking of once I place the airlock on.

I also used Cotes de Blanc wine yeast this first try as it's what I had on hand.

It depends on the strain, but wine yeast is pretty tolerant of high temperatures. Is it not possible to keep the carboy in one place for the whole time? I mean, if you move it to your bedroom can't it just stay there? It doesn't take up much room.

 

[Yooper]

Hi Yooper!

It can stay there, I don't know what I was thinking... slight fizzing noise perhaps?

I guess I am thinking of once I place the airlock on.

I also used Cotes de Blanc wine yeast this first try as it's what I had on hand.

Should be ok- that yeast strain does ok at higher temperatures. You might notice "bloop bloop", and if you're a very light sleeper you may hear it I guess. I was thinking if the air was on, or a fan, you'd never hear a sound!

 

[MindenMan]

Even if early on, there is a "harsh" alcohol warmth, it will usually subside over time. Probably not go away completely though. I make Apple Jack out of my hard ciders now, and there is a lot of noticeable alcohol heat when it is young. I need to say, I now leave my ciders with a little sweetness before I freeze concentrate it. I just recently opened an 11 month old bottle of Apple Jack, and my wife and I were just blown away with the flavor and mouth feel. It wasn't sweet per se, it was absolutely apple, and there was no noticeable alcohol burn either. It was definitely so much better than we even thought possible, I wish I would have made a gallon instead of a pint. If all else fails, you may want to turn your first batch of Apfelwein into Apfel jack instead.

 

[calmingapple]

Thanks for the replies Yooper & MindenMan!
I must remember a lot of this is trial & error and let the final result tell me what I need to know. I'm sure one have even have some happy accidents! ;-) A harsh alcohol taste might even suit some people! Well, I wanted wine but perhaps I will get something slightly askew from that. And that is A-OK with me!

The good news is I was able to crack the closet just enough to drop the temp down to 22 degrees C / 71 F

I was worried the temp would plummet too far but it did not, so this is working out quite well. No need to move it into the bedroom, yet

Happy Labor Day weekend!

 

[bernardsmith]

I think what happens to apple cider or apple wine is that over time (9 months to a year ) there are enough bacteria in the wine to transform the harsher malic acids into more gentle lactic acids and the taste takes on a new dimension. In my experience this occurs even if you do not deliberately introduce the bacteria that do this work because (I think) they are already in the apple juice but they do not do their work until after the yeast has more or less been removed. Now, I may be completely wrong about this and their presence may be a happy accident but the one down side is that if you intend to wait for this process to take place (and it can be measured with relatively inexpensive test equipment) you should not stabilize your cider as sorbates in the presence of malo-lactic fermentation can produce off flavors

 

[Yooper]

I think what happens to apple cider or apple wine is that over time (9 months to a year ) there are enough bacteria in the wine to transform the harsher malic acids into more gentle lactic acids and the taste takes on a new dimension. In my experience this occurs even if you do not deliberately introduce the bacteria that do this work because (I think) they are already in the apple juice but they do not do their work until after the yeast has more or less been removed. Now, I may be completely wrong about this and their presence may be a happy accident but the one down side is that if you intend to wait for this process to take place (and it can be measured with relatively inexpensive test equipment) you should not stabilize your cider as sorbates in the presence of malo-lactic fermentation can produce off flavors

I don't think it is an issue at all with purchased bottled juices, which are pasteurized. The MLF bacteria would not survive that.

I don't do MLF on my apple wines or ciders, as I like the malic acid "bite" it gives. But I know that some folks do.

 

[bernardsmith]

I don't think it is an issue at all with purchased bottled juices, which are pasteurized. The MLF bacteria would not survive that.

I don't do MLF on my apple wines or ciders, as I like the malic acid "bite" it gives. But I know that some folks do.

Thanks Yooper, Good point. Living upstate NY, I get almost all my apple juice from a local orchard. They pasteurize their pressed apples using UV only. Not sure if that makes any difference but certainly after 9 months or so the cider or the wine takes on a completely different character.