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I just backsweetened a cider and one cyser using honey. For the cyser, I racked with sodium metabisulfite and potassium sorbate twice, then racked onto 1.5 lbs of honey and let the cider sit for three weeks till the honey dissolved. No re-fermentation occurred, so I added SuperKlear, then racked...

I usually put spruce tips (Sitka Spruce) in at 5 minutes and 0 minutes for whirlpooling, generally 500 grams per addition for a 5-gal batch. I once used spruce tips in the mash (they contain a fair bit of carbohydrates) and then added my usual additions, but I definitely overdid it and the...

Fermentation temperature, as the elevated temperature will drive out CO2 from the fermentation and you will not gain CO2 upon cold crashing. Once you cold crash, the residual CO2 concentration from fermentation will still be higher than atmospheric CO2 concentrations, so you will not gain any CO2.

I don't think the Venturi effect applies when there is an open end on the condenser (i.e., no hose nipple), because the steam is condensing in a pipe of equal diameter to the inlet pipe for the steam and the velocity is decreasing, not increasing as you would see with a Venturi effect. Put...

if you want a slight clean bitterness like an unripe banana, then try changing up the hops. I think what you describe can be achieved by adding about 25 IBU of Magnum at 60 minutes and maybe 5 IBU of a "C" hop such as cascade , centennial, or comet at 20 minutes for a little "green" aroma and...

Same here. Option 3 is the way to go to avoid water and condensate returning to the kettle. The McMaster spray nozzles have a wide enough spray pattern that I wouldn't worry about the Option 3 nozzle positioning causing an issue condensing steam in 2" or larger piping as long as you have several...

I fail to see anything inherently "sucky" about Beano, it's just a capsule containing alpha-D-galactosidase. I see Beano as just another enzyme "tool" that works fine when used appropriately. Beano will attenuate beer moreso than adding generic "amylase" enzyme, but less so than adding...

My point may not have been clear. I was explaining that the DME may have contributed to his higher-than-expected FG, not suggesting that he should add DME.

Huh. I've brewed multiple beers using enzymes in the fermentor and they didn't "suck." One failed beer that you tried to save doesn't make a very good data point to represent all possible uses of enzyme. Tasty beers I've brewed, intentionally designing the recipe to use Sebamyl GL in the...

DME will also add non-fermentable dextrins that will bump your FG up a little, counteracting some of the FG drop from enzyme in the mash

The flow capacity of a pipe increases by a squared factor with an increasing diameter, so I would expect that 2.5" or 3" would suffice. Anecdotally, I've seen a few photos of small (maybe 5 barrel) commercial systems with what looked like comparatively diminutive 3-4" boil condenser piping. I...

I agree completely with S-Met about aging on skins and fruit. I think this is an interesting idea and I have been contemplating racking some sour beers and meads onto apple pomace recently. Obviously, the goal is not to extract the maximum amount of sugar out of the apples, otherwise they would...

Yep, steam is my favorite tool as it strips less flavor from the barrel then does filling the barrel with hot water. I use a pressure cooker with silicone tubing slipped over the stem where the weight normally sits. The steam comes out of the 3ft long hose at around 201F and I was able to get a...

I had a good laugh at the use of "apple guts," but the term for mashed or crushed apples is "pomace" I'd rinse the apples with Starsan solution, then chop them finely, and put in primary once fermentation is about 2/3 done. You'll get a re-fermentation, then you can rack to secondary for...

Yes and no. But in the case of cider and honey, the yeast can easily ferment out either the fructose in apples or the fructose, glucose, and other simple sugars in honey. In that regard, cider and honey are very similar. The main difference in fermentation profiles comes down to nutrient...

I've been struggling with my cysers attenuating to 1.004 or lower, too dry to retain much honey character. I've done gravities up to about 1.110. Any higher gravity with honey and the apple flavor can be overpowered by the honey sweetness. It's a delicate balance.

These sound like Martinelli "cider" or Lindemans Lambic-type bottles, are they green glass and about 650 grams? If so, I've done up to 4 volumes without issue. The punt IS SUPER IMPORTANT to the strength of champagne bottles as it prevents the bottom of the bottle from blowing out at >4...

71B tasted fine, but rather bland in my trials as compared to R4600 and QA23, or D47 aged on lees. Otherwise, I have no issues with it and it does work well for ice ciders with high acidity (concentrated acids from freezing). As for titratable acidity, I think that there is no "goal," rather...

It's not clear what you're asking. Filtering will not simulate the mellowing of flavors and increased complexity imparted by aging. However, filtering will make a cider clear faster. So is it that you want to clear your cider faster, or do you want to age your cider to alter the flavor? I use...

No reason why not. I prefer D47 over 71B as well. A tad more flavor and it is also good for extended sur lees aging to build complexity.