Brett Eating Cider Chunks?

[bmoritzasu]

All,

This is my first attempt at a cider. Purchased 3 gallons of pasteurized cider from store and 32 oz of candi syrup (clear). Boiled the syrup with 1/2 gallon of cider plus nutrient. Cooled to room temp and then placed in 3 gallon carboy with the other 2.5 gallons of cider. The OG was 1.074. Pitched US-05 and Brett trois and placed at 65F (30 Oct 2014).

Checked gravity today and its at 0.996 and there's STILL activity in the airlock. I can also see CO2 bubbles inside the carboy. My question is, could the Brett be eating the sediment in the bottom from the cider? There a good amount (~ 1 quart) of sediment, and the volume in the carboy has decreased about a quart as well (CH3CH2OH = 0.789 g/ml).

Should I just rack to secondary with some apple juice (to accommodate the decrease in head space) and let it ferment out? I'm surprised that after three weeks there's still activity and over 100% attenuation. Any thoughts? Thanks.

 

[schwiz]

Could possibly be a malolactic fermentation, bacteria that convert malic acid to lactic acid. This usually occurs after the yeast fermentation and mellows out the tart acid flavor to a more nutty buttery one, typically viewed as a good infection in cider making. Although, if your cider was heat pasteurized then I'm not sure how the bacteria would have found their way in your cider, they survive uv pasteurization.

 

[WVMJ]

Your yeast isnt done eating the sugars yet. Why in the world did you boil the cider? You could have just stirred the sugar into the cider without heating up the cider. WVMJ

 

[Mr_fleabite]

My guesses would be it's not done fermenting and/or it's going though Malolactic fermentation (they can happen concurrently or independently).
Curious why you added brett? going for a sour cider?

 

[bmoritzasu]

Guess I should clarify. I didn't boil the cider I pasteurized it with the syrup and yeast nutrient. The solution was brought to 180 degrees to sanitize the nutrient and syrup. I only used 1 quart of cider not 1/2 gallon.

 

[bmoritzasu]

My guesses would be it's not done fermenting and/or it's going though Malolactic fermentation (they can happen concurrently or independently).
Curious why you added brett? going for a sour cider?

Had some Brett given to me that was "older" so I figured what the hay. Might as well try it out see what happens.

 

[brwagur]

Curious why you added brett? going for a sour cider?

Brett doesn't necessarily make a cider or beer sour but it does produce different flavors than normal yeast. Pitching only brett can achieve a variety of flavors from fruity to funky; specific tasting notes from one person's experiment are available here.

 

[Yooper]

The cider isn't done, as it could go to .990 with just the saccharyomyces. I don't know much about brett, but it seems like fermentation isn't finished yet.

As far as attenuation, it's not "apparent attenuation" to look at. It's real attenuation. Simple sugars, like in wine and cider, will commonly go to .990.