Easy Stove-Top Pasteurizing - With Pics

[ditchbanker]

Like BelMamba said, by using a target SG instead of taste, I was able to avoid back sweetening (a little luck with timing helped). It saved me a little bit of effort in the tranfering from primary to bottling buckets (which, in my case were exactly identical except contents). The time saved transfering was kind of nice, the fact that I didn't have to clean the extra equipment was even nicer.

(PS, I think my wife would have preferred I backsweetened with a little AJ concentrate to get her a little more apple flavor/sweetness... The good news is that now I have an excuse to make another batch as soon as we get the available bottles.)

 

[lroset]

Do they need to be placed in the fridge afterwards or can they just be left at room temperature to age?

 

[BelMamba]

Do they need to be placed in the fridge afterwards or can they just be left at room temperature to age?

I have them stored at basement temperature (65F or so) for the last 4 weeks after pasteurization and no bottle exploded and the carbonation did not increase over the 4 weeks ... in other words, the bottle pasteurization following Pappers method seems to stop all activity and cold storage is not needed.

 

[BelMamba]

Hi,

after three batches of following Pappers directions but pasteurizing with active fermentation, I thought I'll collect some notes on his method:

- Pappers recommends switching off the heat under the bottles before inserting them. This means that the cold bottles will lower the temperature of the water. I measured with a digital temp and the temperature goes down from the 190 to about 165-170 if you insert 6-7 12oz bottles in a large pot. I could cram in about 9 or so but that would drop the temperature lower. Given that the actual in-bottle temperature you need is about 160 for a minute or so, I was careful not to give in to the temptation to cram in more.

- Even with the switched off heat, I added a little grid in the pot so the bottles don't touch the pot's base. There are some indications that touching the base might put more stress on the bottle ...

- As said before, i used it during active fermentation and it seems to work well but you have to watch the bottles carefully after bottling since it could be just days until enough carbonation builds up. I like my cider with a low carbonation level ("moussez") and bottled after 3-5 days. I would guess another two days or so would have resulted in a regular level carbonation. So be prepared to pasteurize on a whim ...

Just my two cents ..

 

[lroset]

Very helpful notes BelMamba! thanks for the reply too.

 

[ditchbanker]

I used the "be ready to pasteurize on a whim" note and was able to semi plan around time that wouldn't work. I had a very active fermentation when I bottled and then an 11.5 hour work day. I didn't want to come home to mess and sorrow, so left the bottles in the cold garage while I was at work. Came home and it appeared none of my PET bottles were firmer than they had been. Brought them into the house last night and this morning they are a decent amount firmer. I have the day off so I might open one up with lunch today and test to see if it's ready for a nice hot bath.

 

[MMBB]

I am trying this with wine bottles right now and guess what. The corks can't hold back the pressure of the head space and they all popped out! Should I add campden tabs tomorrow when the home brew store is open?

 

[Pappers_]

I am trying this with wine bottles right now and guess what. The corks can't hold back the pressure of the head space and they all popped out! Should I add campden tabs tomorrow when the home brew store is open?

Are you using regular wine bottles or sparkling (champagne) bottles? The latter are made to hold a carbonated beverage, but regular wine bottles are not.

 

[MMBB]

Yeah regular wine bottles and corks. No carbonation though as this is an uncarbonated Wassail. The wassail ended up coming up the neck to within 3/4" of the top of the bottle. A surprising amount of expansion given there was 3/4" of space in the neck between the fluid level and the bottom of the cork before heating. We'll see how this goes. None of the corks have started inching out due to fermentation and it's been 12+hrs. I ended up leaving the bottles in there for 20mins and letting them cool (with sanitized foil over the tops) before re-corking.

 

[MasterColin]

So I've read through the last few pages and I have a question that has been answered.

I want to use a bottle bigger than 12oz. So I'm thinking of using Screw Top Wine bottles? Any thoughts on this?

Or if this is not possible then I will use 22oz bomber bottles.

How would the cook time change for this? I'm currently Fermented from 1.07 to 1.00 so I am thinking of doing a kind of step sweeting system.

ie: Bottle some Dry/stil
Bottle some Dry/sparkling.
Bottle some semi sweet with carb
Bottle some sweet with carb

Any suggestions for sugar adds for these steps?

 

[Pappers_]

So I've read through the last few pages and I have a question that has been answered.

I want to use a bottle bigger than 12oz. So I'm thinking of using Screw Top Wine bottles? Any thoughts on this?

Or if this is not possible then I will use 22oz bomber bottles.

How would the cook time change for this? I'm currently Fermented from 1.07 to 1.00 so I am thinking of doing a kind of step sweeting system.

ie: Bottle some Dry/stil
Bottle some Dry/sparkling.
Bottle some semi sweet with carb
Bottle some sweet with carb

Any suggestions for sugar adds for these steps?

Regular wine bottles aren't made to hold sparkling or carbonated beverages. I wouldn't use them for anything other than still. You can use sparkling or champagne bottles for carbonated cider, though.

 

[ditchbanker]

So I've read through the last few pages and I have a question that has been answered.

I want to use a bottle bigger than 12oz. So I'm thinking of using Screw Top Wine bottles? Any thoughts on this?

I WOULD NOT DO THIS.

It could be done for non pasteurized, still cider with NO chance of beginning fermentation again (completely dry). I'd still be cautious if you don't know if malolactic fermentation has completed. I've heard of those bottles injuring wine makers just trying to cork them. They are not made to have any pressure at all on the neck. I would use them very cautiously. Personally, the few times I've gotten wine with screw necks I've tossed the bottles. No value to me at the possible risk.

If you want to do wine bottles, buy a corker and regular bottles for wine with no carbonation. Wouldn't be that tough. At least with regular bottles, worse case is popped cork and a mess, not injury.

 

[mcshaw16]

Hi all,

I have my first batch of cider fermenting, been giong 8 days now. I started with 5 gallons of fresh uv pastuerized cider, 1.5lb of brown sugar, O.G. was right around 1.070, pitched champagne yeast. Currently, it is right around 1.025. It tastes very good, still somewhat sweet. I would like to stop it early and end up with a semi sweet sparking cider, somewhere between 6-7% ABV. So I was thinking I would let it go to about 1.020 (which will be there tomorrow), cold crash for couple days (hoping there will be some yeast remaining to bo bottle carb), then bottle and let carb for a couple days and then pastuerize using this Pappers stove top method.

I guess I just want to know of this plan is flawed at all. I noticed many of you use ale yeast, can I still bottle pastuerize with champagne yeast? And is it a waste of my time to cold crash? I just want to slow down fermentation and let it clear a bit.

Also not sure if I should prime before bottling or not? I was thinking where it is still pretty sweet, I could skip the primer and end up with the semi sweet that I am looking for. Any input would be helpful.

Thanks,
Shawn

 

[mcnewcp]

I'm just going to comment so I can easily find this again.

 

[divi2323]

Doing my first Pappers' style right now as we speak. I'm using 22oz bottles for half my batch though because I ran out. gone through 10 of them so far using 12 minute batches. Thing is, the bath time isnt what takes forever. It's the reheating of the water to 190.

I'm starting at 190, then adding 6x 22oz bottles. ending bath is somewhere in the 155 range. Takes 20 minutes to heat that much water back up to 190.

I'm thinking this is much better served with large batches by getting two containers going. Reheating one while the bottles bathe in the other.

 

[Pappers_]

Doing my first Pappers' style right now as we speak. I'm using 22oz bottles for half my batch though because I ran out. gone through 10 of them so far using 12 minute batches. Thing is, the bath time isnt what takes forever. It's the reheating of the water to 190.

I'm starting at 190, then adding 6x 22oz bottles. ending bath is somewhere in the 155 range. Takes 20 minutes to heat that much water back up to 190.

I'm thinking this is much better served with large batches by getting two containers going. Reheating one while the bottles bathe in the other.

According to my 20 and 17 year olds, "Pappers style" got stuck somewhere in 1988 . . .

You're right about the time it takes, that's the compromise I make for the simplicity of this method. I tend to do this in the evening and do other household tasks at the same time.

 

[BelMamba]

Doing my first Pappers' style right now as we speak. I'm using 22oz bottles for half my batch though because I ran out. gone through 10 of them so far using 12 minute batches. Thing is, the bath time isnt what takes forever. It's the reheating of the water to 190.

I'm starting at 190, then adding 6x 22oz bottles. ending bath is somewhere in the 155 range. Takes 20 minutes to heat that much water back up to 190.

I'm thinking this is much better served with large batches by getting two containers going. Reheating one while the bottles bathe in the other.

You have to a bit careful with variations on the method: I think most bottle pasteurization approaches go back to research done at Cornell (abstract) which basically says even 5 minutes in 74 C water (= 165 F) is enough to pasteurize. However, in absence of an experimental set-up description (does somebody have the full paper?) I would assume the researchers kept the water temperature constant.

In contrast Papper's recipe is to start with a higher temperature but switch off the heat and have the water cool down by inserting the bottles. Thus, the actual pasteurization temperature in this method depends on the amount/size of bottles and the amount of water.

So you should watch your final temperature. The Cornell paper claims that directly heated cider even if just heated to 60 C (= 140 F) for 3 minutes is already hot enough to stop things. So if you assume heat transfer to be significant in the 12 minutes you have them in there, you might still be in the clear but I would watch the final temperature and not drop it much more ...

Now that I do have a nice grid on the bottom of the pot and the bottles are no longer touching the pot, I do wonder whether I should change the method to go to 165-170 F but keep the temperature constant instead of letting it cool down. That would get rid of the reheat times in between ...

 

[divi2323]

According to my 20 and 17 year olds, "Pappers style" got stuck somewhere in 1988 . . .

You're right about the time it takes, that's the compromise I make for the simplicity of this method. I tend to do this in the evening and do other household tasks at the same time.

Pappers, you've earned the right to make your own style as far as i'm concerned. It's rare to see a sticky on any forum get as much attention and provide this level of knowledge all in one thread.

I'm perfectly fine with the trade of time for simplicity. Just wish I didnt notice my bottles were ready to give birth after a night of drinking with the boys over Sunday Night Football... paying for it this morning too, cant let those 'test bottles' go to waste

 

[smyrnaquince]

You have to a bit careful with variations on the method: I think most bottle pasteurization approaches go back to research done at Cornell (abstract) which basically says even 5 minutes in 74 C water (= 165 F) is enough to pasteurize. However, in absence of an experimental set-up description (does somebody have the full paper?) I would assume the researchers kept the water temperature constant.

Note that this research was for 10-ounce bottles. If you increase the bottle size, you've increased the mass of liquid in the bottles that needs to come up to temperature, so the time required will be longer.

 

[CoffeeSnob]

Has anyone tried this using a large cooler? I'm not sure what the softening temp of plastic from a cooler is but if you go for a lower temp and longer time it might work. Maybe ~165 degrees but then let the bottles stay in there for a long time?

A cooler would let me do many more (than the current 4 I can fit in the pot) at a time as well as a nice enclosure for safety......

Thoughts? Do I need to be the first to make the attempt?

 

[swolfe]

Has anyone tried this using a large cooler? I'm not sure what the softening temp of plastic from a cooler is but if you go for a lower temp and longer time it might work. Maybe ~165 degrees but then let the bottles stay in there for a long time?

A cooler would let me do many more (than the current 4 I can fit in the pot) at a time as well as a nice enclosure for safety......

Thoughts? Do I need to be the first to make the attempt?

This seems like a good idea.....I could use my mash tun and put hot water in it.

It would also increase safety as I could cap it off.....

Do it and report back!

 

[Tw0fish]

Combed the thread and (hopefully) didn't miss where/if this was asked -

Anybody do this for swingtop (= grolsch style) bottles? I trust it'd work fine, but - figured I'd ask!

 

[Pappers_]

Yes, Dinnerstick has. Check back about five pages ago or so, or go to his profile and scroll through his posts. I remember him saying that he used swing top bottles and they worked fine for him, but I don't remember any more detail than that.

 

[CoffeeSnob]

Combed the thread and (hopefully) didn't miss where/if this was asked -

Anybody do this for swingtop (= grolsch style) bottles? I trust it'd work fine, but - figured I'd ask!

I use swing top bottles and have had no problem (with the exception of a few that are too loose and don't hold much pressure).

On a side note, ALWAYS check carbonation before proceeding. I bottled a gallon batch on Saturday (1.075 down to 1.015). Turns out it was still VERY active. Two days later I popped a swing top to check and shot cider all over the kitchen. I opened the rest of the bottles outside and had 4' geysers. I lost a lot of cider that night..... I can't imagine what would have happened if I pasteurized them!!!

 

[ColbyJack]

Just thought I would chime back in with great news... My second batch of swing-top bottles pasteurized great!!! Out of 46 bottles, only two had bulged seals that required drinking that day.
Big hit around my place for the holiday. Thanks so much for this thread!

Colby Jack

 

[dinnerstick]

On a side note, ALWAYS check carbonation before proceeding. I bottled a gallon batch on Saturday (1.075 down to 1.015). Turns out it was still VERY active. Two days later I popped a swing top to check and shot cider all over the kitchen. I opened the rest of the bottles outside and had 4' geysers. I lost a lot of cider that night..... I can't imagine what would have happened if I pasteurized them!!!

hi i posted this in the same thread a few months back so forgive the repeat, but you can salvage those bottles if you have enough time by taking chilled swing-top bottles and gently pressing the rubber seal with your thumbnail until it breaks the seal open a tiny bit and releases gas (or un-hitch the latch halfway while holding the cap firmly in place, then releasing pressure until you just start to hear it hiss), do this very slowly until the cider foams up to the top, put it down to rest and do the next bottle, and so on. after some large number (can be more than 20) mini-releases from each bottle you will have got rid of enough pressure to prevent geysers, and the cider won't be contaminated since the airflow is 1-way. give them a white to chill and equilibrate and try one. repeat the release as necessary. royal pain in the backside but can be worth it to salvage a great cider. only attempt this while watching sports on tv

 

[CoffeeSnob]

hi i posted this in the same thread a few months back so forgive the repeat, but you can salvage those bottles if you have enough time by taking chilled swing-top bottles and gently pressing the rubber seal with your thumbnail until it breaks the seal open a tiny bit and releases gas (or un-hitch the latch halfway while holding the cap firmly in place, then releasing pressure until you just start to hear it hiss), do this very slowly until the cider foams up to the top, put it down to rest and do the next bottle, and so on. after some large number (can be more than 20) mini-releases from each bottle you will have got rid of enough pressure to prevent geysers, and the cider won't be contaminated since the airflow is 1-way. give them a white to chill and equilibrate and try one. repeat the release as necessary. royal pain in the backside but can be worth it to salvage a great cider. only attempt this while watching sports on tv

I'll keep that in mind next time!!! Out of eight bottles I ended up with about 4 with 1/4 left, two with 3/4 left and two nearly empty. I had one the other night and it was REALLY good. Tasted similar to Crispins Honey Crisp Cloudy Cider that I pick up here occasionally.

 

[LeBreton]

Thanks for posting these instructions.

Just pasteurized about 3 cases of various ciders using this method on Friday. Took a couple of hours but the hardest part was finding a pot that would fit my 750ml champagne bottles!

 

[BarlimanButterbur]

So I successfully pasteurized a batch yesterday. No leaking, hissing, bursting. Nothing like that.

I have only a small complaint. When the bottles came out of the pot, the level of the cider was higher up the neck than it is when they're cool. As a result, my ciders have little sediment/yeast rings around their necks, a few millimeters above the ciderline, as it were.

Anyone else? They don't seem to soak off when I tip a bottle upside down.

 

[zmad2000]

I tried this technique and lost a gallon of my first cider. I dont think it was the techniques fault but mine since it was slightly under pressure. I then kept on reading some other techniques and remembering the time i worked at a brewery and saw their pasteurization steam room. Here is what i did. I put the bottles i wanted to pasteurize in my empty sink and started to run water over the bottles. When the hot water from my tap got around 160-170. I closed the drain and let my sink fill up so the bottles were submerged. The overall temperature was around 160. I then let them be for about 10 min watching to see how they were doing. For the still screw top wine bottles i saw some bubbling but let them be. For the Carbed swing cap there were some surprises. The gasket on some had been forced/stretched so that some of them were REALLY bubbling. I let the pressure out of those and almost lost some cider to the kitchen ceiling. After that i refilled the sink with hot water from the tap and just let the bottles sit in there and went shopping..... for a few needed homebrew supplies. Came back a few hours later and the sink water was at room temp and the bottles were fine. Put them in the fridge to help them settle.

So far non of them have started to re-ferment.