Stopping Fermentation to have sweet cider

So im brewing a hard cider which is currently fermenting with d-47 yeast. I want to have some residual sweetness, but that means i need to stop the fermentation, otherwise the yeast will continue to eat until there is no sugar left and it leaves a dry cider, which is good but im going for a sweet one this time. I was planning on, once i see that the fermentation has SLOWED down to a bubble (in the airlock) per 15 seconds, that I would rack it to a secondary, measure with the hydrometer and if i liked the number, i would stop the fermentation by placing the secondary with the cider there in my tub for about 15 minutes at a high enough temperature that will KILL the yeast for it to stop fermenting and leave the cider the way it is. WILL THIS WORK? i ask because it makes complete sense to me but it is rarely mentioned in forums. everyone keeps talking about sulfates and campden tablets and people keep saying those only put them to sleep, plus i do not want any additives in my cider.

PS: I dont want to backsweeten with anything, i find it will affect the original and authentic taste of my completely natural 100% apple cider.

 

Unfortunately if you heat the cider hot enough to kill the yeast you start to boil off the alcohol too.
So you need to bottle it first. And yes, it works.

 

What about metabisulfite ?

 

no, you wouldnt because alcohol boils off at 173 Farenheit and you can kill yeast at 130 F, so i wouldnt be boiling off anything

 

I wouldn't trust airlock activity to show how much fermentation is left in my cider. You really should use a hydrometer.

 

My steps
1. primary to fridge (measure hydrometer to determine alcohol content and you can taste test then, too)
2. fridge to secondary (transfer only after yeast settles)
3. secondary on airlock (measure hydrometer to determine alcohol content and you can taste test then, too)
4. secondary back in fridge (wait for residual yeast to settle)
5. rack again into bottles
6. toss back into fridge to avoid over carbonating

My #5 step was transferring into a growler and adding a bit of apple juice to sweet it back up...I let it run too long. I bottled at about 6.25% which left some sugars and apple flavors. You will likely need to add sugar at the start to bump up alcohol content though.

 

doesnt help me at all.

 

Por que no?

 

Yes it will work, but if you would also like some slight or even full carbonation I would recommend doing this. http://www.homebrewtalk.com/showthread.php?t=193295

You could also bottle right away and use the above method for no carb.

 

Airlock activity is not a good indicator of fermentation progress, especially at the end since there will be a fair amount of CO2 dissolved that can come out of solution and bubble the airlock even if fermentation is totally done. You really want to check the gravity with a hydrometer.

 

If only someone had said that same thing yesterday...

 

solid, yea I know about the airlock, i plan on measuring. And i plan on force carbing with my keg system. So i will measure it, and if i like it i will transfer it to a secondary and submerge it in just hot enough water to kill the yeast and have a cider stuck at that gravity reading and then let it sit till the yeast falls off and then rack to my keg and carb... this sounds about right? im surprised this method isnt talked about in forums, i guess people just back sweeten and dont rlly care bout not adding exogenous substances

 

Heh yeah, I did actually read the thread before posting . I was agreeing / elaborating.

 

Yep. I'm on the "don't give a tihs" train. If you're putting fermented apples and billions dead microorganisms in your body, what's a little lactose or stevia?

And since when is an apple or yeast cell not exogenous?

 

that will work, but if your force carbing in a fridge I wouldn't bother heating to kill the yeast. After a 2 week force carb most of the yeast should have fallen out and will be drawn out of the keg with the first couple pulls of liquid.