Apfelwein Fermenting Question

[BMWMK2]

made a batch oh apfelwein about a week ago and it has been in my basement which is about 58-61 degs. i was using a brew belt that whole week and everything seems ok, (cloudy, bubbling, rino farts).
how long should i use the belt, the directions say dont use it for over 8 days. plus shouldnt the initial fermentation period be done? is it ok to let it sit at the 58-61 deg temps to finish out fermenting, or should i just keep using the brew belt?
thanks

 

[lowlife]

I made some once without any added nutrients. It bubbled for a month or two (cant remember exactly)

 

[BlueSunshine]

I made my first batch of Apfelwein about a month ago and it's still bubbling. Also, what exactly is a brew belt?

 

[robertvrabel]

Isn't a brew belt used for moving the carboy? Not sure how the length of having that on, would effect anything.

I made my first apfelwein about 3 weeks ago. Its still "bubbling" and you can actively see it moving around through my carboy. The wine yeast has a lot of work to do, it will take awhile... I think its recommend to leave it for atleast 2-3 months before bottling. Obviously you'll need to take a hydrometer test to make sure its reached its FG before bottling.

 

[BMWMK2]

a brew belt is a heating belt it keeps the temp up to about 70 degs

 

[wyzazz]

Leave it on until you're done seeing those little bubbles, then just let it sit as long as you can stand it to have it age.

 

[rcreveli]

Mine is going strong after 2 weeks. It's on the landing going to our basement. Temp is about 63 F. The bubbling has slowed to 24 BPM down from a whole heck of a lot more.

 

[mr_bell]

Montrachet is good from 59 - 95 degrees, so you should be ok without the belt, at the low end of normal. I wonder if there might be any negative effect due to resultant temp change if you removed the belt?

As to why they recommend no more than 8 days for the brew belt, I'm wondering if that's specific to beer, or is there some safety issue with using it for a longer period of time?

My experience with Apfelwein (3 batches) has been 4-6 weeks to really clear. I left the last batch in for 8 weeks unintentionally, and it seemed better than those prior, in the sense that it tasted better out of the carboy and did not need as long to bottle condition.

 

[dracus]

Only your hydrometer can tell you its done. Bubbles don't mean anything.

 

[wyzazz]

Only your hydrometer can tell you its done. Bubbles don't mean anything.

Not the bubbles in the airlock, the little tiny bubbles in the Apfelwein. Once those slow down your "active fermentation" is done and the yeasties just need to clean up and settle at the bottom. It isn't done fermenting completely by any means, but it won't need that extra heat anymore.

If you really wanted you could take that brew belt off now, but it would take a couple month for the active fermentation to finish.