Apple Juice and Apple Chunks/parts/mush?

[Nubiwan]

As threatened in a separate thread, I am gonna make a cider batch on my ale trub. Got 24 liters of 100% apple juice, and I also have a few pounds of apples that I was gonna toss in for a little "authenticity"

Should I mince up them apples or just throw in chunks. Does the skin stay or go? Do I need to wash, or boil them? Or, should I leave them out alltogether.

Just thinking the apples might introduce some infection themselves. Is that a concern?

EDIT - just read another post which suggested introducung apples (crushed or otherwise) into a secondary. Bit like dry hopping them.

 

[Blacksmith1]

I did one with apple slices in primary, since it is in secondary now I can't say if it was a good idea. I did it because the wife's pie filling started a wild ferment in the fridge.

 

[Nubiwan]

Wondering if I add to a secondary if it will want to ferment all over again....... Perhaps should just chuck some apple guts in the primary and have done with.

Apple Juice SG of 1.044 so it goes real dry might get a decent ABV from it. Or should I bung a couple pounds of sugars in there? Dextrose?

 

[Blacksmith1]

It will ferment some due to the new sugars but it won't be like the first one.

 

[ten80]

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 clarifying, if needed. If your primary is too full to add apples, then you can put them into a secondary and rack on top of them, but it might be a little challenging to rack off clear cider to a keg.

A lot of the sugar in apples is bound up in cellulose (fiber), so you'll not get a fermentation as vigorous as if you added straight juice and sugars will be left behind in the trub and lees.

 

[Blacksmith1]

Agreed, but I would just rinse them and let the wild yeasts do what they will.

 

[MarkKF]

If you gotta scratter rinse apples in Starsan. You can slice & core if you want then chop & add to juice. I think I’m gonna try that with FAJC and Granny Smith apples next week.

 

[S-Met]

I posted these replies in another earlier this week.

Read up on traditional wine making. Skin and seed contact times play a big part in so many ways. Tannins, flavor and color are big, but not just contact. When (fermended vs juice) and how long also affect the end product.

Great question.
These articles on wine might help explain.
https://www.google.com/amp/s/winefolly.com/review/winemakers-red-wine-secret-extended-maceration/

https://winemakermag.com/technique/1282-white-wine-skin-contact

Keep in mind these are grapes. Some things will be relevant, others wont. I did two lemon wines one year. 1/2 sat on zests for two weeks before fermentation and two weeks before transferring to secondary off of the zest while the other wine was onl juice.
The wine with the zest had a deep yellow hue and a much more depth of flavor. The juice only wine was simple and flat in flavor. Not nearly as enjoyable.

 

[madscientist451]

I'd leave them out. It takes 40-50 lbs of apples to make 2.5-3 gallons of juice, so a few pounds of apples isn't going to contribute much of anything to your beverage and the floating chunks will be a place for mold to grow on.

 

[Maylar]

I'd leave them out. It takes 40-50 lbs of apples to make 2.5-3 gallons of juice, so a few pounds of apples isn't going to contribute much of anything to your beverage and the floating chunks will be a place for mold to grow on.

That's what I would think too. If you don't juice them it's a waste of time.

 

[ten80]

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 be juiced.

As a corollary, I have be experimenting with aging ciders on gross lees (fine apple pomace bits that pass through my press cloth) and have found that the gross lees add substantial tannins and some oak-like complexity to ciders.

"...a waste of time" is only defined by what you want to do, not what others think.