Backsweetening Apfelwein with Splenda Sugar Blend

[Beernip]

Has anyone tried to use the Splenda Sugar Blend to back sweeten and bottle carb Apfelwein? The SWMBO would like it carb'd and a little sweeter. We have a box of this sitting in the cupboard.

SPLENDA® Brand Sweetener - Welcome to a World of Sweetness

It is a premix sugar and splenda mix package. Was thinking about using this in the recommended 4 oz ratio/5 gallon. It doesn't give the exact ratio of splenda to sugar mixture but appears to be roughly ~ 1/2 cup sugar + Splenda = sweetness of 1 cup of sugar. So maybe a little less then 1/2 cup of fermentable sugar for priming and splenda for sweetness?

Would 2/3 cup of the blend for 5 gallons be too much sugar? Not enough sweetness?

Looking for other opinions.

 

[nebben]

We went 4 different routes on our first batch. Splenda carbed, non-carbed, dry-carbed, and sweet-flat. So far SWMBO prefers non-carbed+sugar sweetening, then dry-carbed. To both of us, the flavor of Splenda came through in the cider, which neither of us really enjoyed.

 

[yeastluvr]

I thought I wanted sweetened carbonated cider on my first batch too. I made 2 gallons worth and left several bottles unsweetened and carbonated, several bottles sweetened and still "flat", and a couple more sweetened and carbonated. I used lactose sugar on some and splenda on the others. When I first tasted it out of ferment, I really thought it needed sweetened. I wish I would have left all of them unsweetened and carbonated as the sweetness and flavor seemed to come back after a month in the bottles at room temp. The ones I added splenda to I do not care for that much, it does have a not-so-natural taste and now it tastes to sweet. I only added a small spoonfull to each liter bottle. I would recomend that if you sweeten a sample and it tastes right to you, back off the sweetner a bit then bottle, It may taste good then, but imagine drinking several glasses of it that sweet. Just a suggestion, do what you think tastes good to you.

 

[llazy_llama]

If I'm not mistaken, Splenda is non-fermentable. That being the case, it won't carbonate your apfelwein. I have used Splenda for backsweetening a carbed batch, and had success. I racked the apfelwein to the bottling bucket, then added a bit of splenda and tasted. I continued adding splenda and sampling until I reached the exact level of sweetness I wanted, then added my priming sugar and bottled. Came out great!

 

[JarrodH]

If I'm not mistaken, Splenda is non-fermentable. That being the case, it won't carbonate your apfelwein. I have used Splenda for backsweetening a carbed batch, and had success. I racked the apfelwein to the bottling bucket, then added a bit of splenda and tasted. I continued adding splenda and sampling until I reached the exact level of sweetness I wanted, then added my priming sugar and bottled. Came out great!

The link points to a sugar splenda blend.

"Bake with Half the Sugar
SPLENDA® Sugar Blend is a mix of SPLENDA® Brand Sweetener and pure sugar and provides only 1/2 the calories and carbohydrates of pure sugar. It helps you reduce the sugar in your home baking, while keeping the great sugar taste your family loves! "

 

[llazy_llama]

Ohhh....

Yeah, no idea about that stuff. Sorry.

 

[Bobby_M]

It's still going to taste like Splenda. My advice is to leave it dry and drink a few pints. If you think it's too dry now, just wait, you'll learn to love it. Once you put Splenda in, you can't take it out. You can also back sweeten per pour, 1/2 teaspoon in the glass.

 

[toularat]

When sweetening by the glass, I mix up a 2 to 1 ratio of sugar water. I keep it in the fridge and add it when I want to so it's sweet enough for me but dry for hubby.

Also, you can use your hydrometer when you sweeten. If you taste a wine you like, take a reading to see what level of sweetness you prefer and then you can sweeten to that reading. Keeping in mind the temperature thing. I find it hard to backsweeten young wine and get it right because the taste of young wine throws me. It's probably just me.

 

[Nomadic_Joel]

Not sure if I am being anal......but I just wanted to mention there are many negative environmental and health effects of Splenda.

Not to mention

Where it took a 17 year old to figure out that spenda does NOT break down...even after going through a water filtration plant...

Just a thought as there are so many better alternatives...

J

 

[Beernip]

I ended trying a 2oz of the Splenda Blend and 2oz of sugar to carb a 4.5 gallon batch.

We will see how well it carb's up. I actually like it flat/dry but the SWMBO has been adding diet 7-up to get it to get it sweetened & carbed.

 

[EoinMag]

Have to agree on aspartame it's nasty stuff. It was found accidentally when they were trying to make an inseciticide, if you want to put that in your body? personally I'll take refined sugar any day.

 

[Tusch]

The fact that it was discovered while looking for insecticide has no effect on me. Tons of great discoveries have been by accident and just because it was insecticide doesn't mean it will kill bugs with a sweet flavor.

Now if you don't like the flavor, then I understand that. Plenty of people just don't like the fake sugar sweetness.

 

[ClutchDude]

If you do decide to backsweeten with real sugars, you'll need to use potassium sorbate and potassium sulfite to prevent refermenting. The sorbate works better in the presence of the sulfur.

 

[EoinMag]

Well it's also the suggestion that the FDA passed it in very dubious circumstances and that it would normally have the classification of a chemical weapon that bothers me, oh and it tastes crap.
That's me, but I find all chemical sweeteners a rather poor substitute for sugar, apart from the health implications involved.

 

[Beernip]

Would love to sweeten without using splenda but I want it carbed too. The only way I know to do this is with a kegging system (which I don't have... yet). Has someone invented a way to force carb bottles that doesn't cost thousands.

 

[EoinMag]

Isn't lactose an unfermentable sugar? Why not try that, it might not be what you want flavour wise but at least it won't be nasty nasty crap?