Easy Stove-Top Pasteurizing - With Pics

[Sippin37]

I have a question that I hope was not already answered (couldn't get through all +800 posts). Why do you have to do a water bath to do the pausterization? Couldn't you use dry heat, i.e., just put the bottles into the oven at 160-190 degrees?

I have heard of people doing this with success. The thing you need to make sure of though is that the temp of your cider in the bottles reaches 140+ for the required minimum time for pasteurization to truly occur. By doing this with liquid instead of the oven your cider will hit that pasteurization temp much quicker. Transfer of heat works a lot quicker with liquid than air. Hope that answers your question.

 

[Jacinthebox]

Any thoughts on placing bottles in a cooler, then adding 190 degree water, close lid, remove from cooler after 10 min?

 

[fizgig]

That should work fine assuming your cooler doesn't melt. I have done this with about 200 bottles now and actually had one explode after being out of the bath and on a wooden cutting board on the counter for around 3 minutes. The glass looked extremely thin, I think I am going to start weighing bottles before filling with things that need to be pasteurized, anything far below average will not get used. The bottle was in too small of pieces to even figure out what shape/brand it was (e.g. new belgium vs. bell's or something similar) .

 

[BadgerBrigade]

When I was quite-a-bit younger, my mother used a large stovetop pressure cooker and I used to be pretty leary of that thing (esp. now in light of what happened in Boston, yet).

She would heat up the cooker with her canned glass jars of pickles, applesauce, whatever inside, but the difference was that there was a rack of some kind on the inside of the cooker, so the jars didn't come into contact with the bottom of the cooker.

Badger -- glad you didn't get any glass in your eye! I've never yet had a bottle break (knock on wood), but I grab my safety glasses anyway!

Scott

Badgers Stovetop pasteurization best friends:
• My leather motorcycle jacket
• My paintball mask

After I had that thing go off and send a glass shard of shrapnel into my stomach I decided that I will get the pot up to 180 and then take it outside to the back of my truck and drop the bottles in it outside.

The girlfriend doesn't even like to get near my homebrewed bottles now because she was home when one of them went off... Lol

 

[Jacinthebox]

All bottled up...now to carb up, then a hot water bath

 

[UncaMarc]

I use beer bottles from the local wine and beer supplier. I let an unpasteurized bottle sit too long and when I put it in the fridge it hit something and exploded. Had the door not blocked the shrapnel, I think I would have been seriously injured. A large piece of the bottle with the cap attached traveled 16 feet and dented the wooden wall.

I wonder if just putting them in the fridge will cool off the fermentation and make them safe. I'm still a bit leery of this process.

Thoughts?

 

[Pappers_]

I wonder if just putting them in the fridge will cool off the fermentation and make them safe.

If the bottles are already overcarbbed, no, putting them in the fridge won't help, they are still dangerous. If they are not overcarbbed, then putting them in the fridge should stop the yeast (if you used ale yeast).

 

[UncaMarc]

Thanks Pappers. They are properly carved and in the hot water now. I use Nottingham for my recipe. Thanks for all the feat advice. CHEERS!

 

[UncaMarc]

Stupid auto correct. Properly 'carbed'. 'Great' advice. Sheesh.

 

[Jacinthebox]

doing this now...
Water going in at 190, settling down to about 145....letting it sit in the 145 for 20min...I should be ok to kill the yeasts?

 

[Jacinthebox]

One bottle down lol...must have been a weak stella bottle...
It was in a cooler with the lid closed...so I heard it, didn't feel it

 

[UncaMarc]

Did your process on a case of cider this weekend and the flavor profile was enhanced if not exactly the same as before pasteurization. Great thread Pappers, thanks.

 

[gingerman]

Has anyone tried this with the EZ Top (Grolsh style) bottles? Those tolerate pressure changes much better than capped tops in my experience. Most are 1/2 liter and not 12 oz though, so I imagine it would take a bit longer.

Also, in case it hasn't already been pointed out, you can use a single PET bottle (say, a used Dr. Pepper bottle) as a test bottle to get a feel for carbonation in the glass. I never bottle even to the EZ Top bottles without at least one plastic bottle to serve as a pressure indicator.

Great post, btw Pappers. I may try this method on some of my latest batch this weekend.

 

[Thanks_Yeasties]

3 days and 83 pages later I made it through this thread! I feel obligated to post now. Started a batch yesterday according to your recipe pappers (used S-04 though) and Im ready to give this thing a shot!

 

[Thaumatourge]

I did this with 1 grolsh bottle and did not have an issue. But it was also the first bottle I drank. So I don't know about longevity.

 

[millsbrew]

Has anyone tried this with the EZ Top (Grolsh style) bottles? Those tolerate pressure changes much better than capped tops in my experience. Most are 1/2 liter and not 12 oz though, so I imagine it would take a bit longer.

Also, in case it hasn't already been pointed out, you can use a single PET bottle (say, a used Dr. Pepper bottle) as a test bottle to get a feel for carbonation in the glass. I never bottle even to the EZ Top bottles without at least one plastic bottle to serve as a pressure indicator.

Great post, btw Pappers. I may try this method on some of my latest batch this weekend.

I just did 18 pint sized Grolsh bottles (3 sets of 6) because they wouldn't fit in my fridge. I didn't have any issues. That being said, I have yet to drink any of them since it has only been 2 days and I have 18 more in the fridge. Hope they last long enough for fridge space to open up. I'll report back this weekend once they get opened.

 

[gingerman]

I just did 18 pint sized Grolsh bottles (3 sets of 6) because they wouldn't fit in my fridge. I didn't have any issues. That being said, I have yet to drink any of them since it has only been 2 days and I have 18 more in the fridge. Hope they last long enough for fridge space to open up. I'll report back this weekend once they get opened.

Thanks for the reply. Great to hear. Yeah I figured the EZ Tops would burp before bursting, but wasn't sure if the rubber seal would hold as well at that temp. Glad to hear you've had success in at least getting through without explosions. Let us know how they turn out!

 

[mfinken]

Thank you Pappers, I will be using this method again. I've been waiting to reply to this for a while since I started my cranberry cider and now its finally done! Pasteurizing worked liked a charm. I left a few bottles in the water a little longer than I should have, and had 2 'fizzers'. Aside from that all the bottles have pasteurized successfully. I cold crashed a few bottles to compare with the pasteurized bottles, and neither my friends or I can tell a difference in taste after a week of aging (didn't try any in the week after pasteurizing).

I was really surprised the thickness of the head on the cider. I'm disappointed with the cranberry flavor and color that the cider had. Next time I will at least double, perhaps triple the cranberry. Ever since the Neil House Brewery went out of business I haven't seen any Cranberry Ciders available in Columbus, OH.

Here's the recipe from my notes in case anyone's interested:

Cranberry Hard Cider
OG: 1.052
FG: 1.002 (before backsweetening)
FG: ~1.022-1.030 (after backsweetening)
Brewed: 5/29/13
Bottled: 7/4/13
Pasteurized: 7/9/13

Ingredients:
• 4 gallons unfiltered Kirkland apple juice (not from concentrate)
• 1 gallon Mott’s apple juice (from concentrate + extra vitamin C)
• 1 can Old Orchard cranberry blend concentrate
• 64 oz. Just Cranberry unsweetened pure cranberry juice
• Brown sugar (gravity booster)
• 3 tsp. pectic enzyme
• 2 tsp yeast nutrient
• 4 cans apple juice concentrate*** (for backsweetening)
• Brown sugar simple syrup*** (for backsweetening)

***added just before bottling

Notes:
Added all ingredients into primary fermenter 5/29/13. Allowed fermentation to begin at ~75 degrees F until airlock rattled many times a second, then moved fermenter to basement ~60 degrees F. Racked to secondary fermenter after a week or so. Backsweetened with 4 cans apple juice concentrate and a simple sugar syrup (easier to dissolve) and bottled on 7/4/13. Opened a bottle a day until carbonation was at a good level, then pasteurized using Papper’s method on 7/9/13 (https://www.homebrewtalk.com/f32/easy-stove-top-pasteurizing-pics-193295/). Appear to have successfully pasteurized all the bottles, with 2 ‘fizzers’. I actually cold crashed a few bottles instead of pasteurizing and compared the two – no differences.​

Hope this info helps someone as much as Pappers helped me!

 

[bcboyz86]

With cold crashing it, would a ice chest full of ice water work for the cold crash? Just leave it in there for a while I'm guessing 20-30min or so. But won't this just slow the yeast down, not kill it like heating it would? I would rather cold crash cuz we just got a new fridge for the garage and I have the space, but I would rather have bottles I can take outa the fridge and not worry about more.

 

[Sippin37]

With cold crashing it, would a ice chest full of ice water work for the cold crash? Just leave it in there for a while I'm guessing 20-30min or so. But won't this just slow the yeast down, not kill it like heating it would? I would rather cold crash cuz we just got a new fridge for the garage and I have the space, but I would rather have bottles I can take outa the fridge and not worry about more.

Cold crashing just puts the yeasties to sleep while they are at those cold temps. Pasteurizing is what kills them for good.

 

[ArthurDigbySellers]

Just pasteurized a case of my first ever cider. I was a little gun-shy after reading all of the horror stories but I had no issues at all. I probably erred on the side of too little carbonation but I had no idea what 2 cans of FAJC and about a can of regular apple juice would give me carbonation-wise. I've only brewed beer before this cider.

My wife thought the samples I've been checking/drinking each day were carbonated enough for her so I went ahead and pasteurized. Are you guys checking a bottle every now and then just to make sure some of the yeast didn't survive? I've got a 6 pack in the fridge but I am going to store the rest and refrigerate as needed. I don't want to come home to a rubbermaid container full of broken glass and wasted cider!

 

[Pappers_]

Just pasteurized a case of my first ever cider. I was a little gun-shy after reading all of the horror stories but I had no issues at all. I probably erred on the side of too little carbonation but I had no idea what 2 cans of FAJC and about a can of regular apple juice would give me carbonation-wise. I've only brewed beer before this cider.

My wife thought the samples I've been checking/drinking each day were carbonated enough for her so I went ahead and pasteurized. Are you guys checking a bottle every now and then just to make sure some of the yeast didn't survive? I've got a 6 pack in the fridge but I am going to store the rest and refrigerate as needed. I don't want to come home to a rubbermaid container full of broken glass and wasted cider!

Congrats on your first cider! FWIW, I've never had a bottle bomb post-pastuerizing, but usually the bottles are consumed within two or three months.

 

[ArthurDigbySellers]

Congrats on your first cider! FWIW, I've never had a bottle bomb post-pastuerizing, but usually the bottles are consumed within two or three months.

Thanks! I only made 2.5 gallons so I doubt this batch will last even 2 months. I do need to remember to stick my soda bottle tester in the fridge when I get home...

 

[jaydog2314]

I have been reading and reading and reading but I can’t get thru all 80+ pages in this thread. So I’m hoping cider king Pappers or some other helpful posters can lend me some advice. I plan on making my first cider this week and following some recipes found here on HBT I have settled on the following:

5 gallons apple juice/cider
2 lbs light brown sugar
Yeast Nutrient
Either US-04 or US-05 dry yeast

I’m thinking about using some cinnamon sticks in the secondary for a few days before bottling and I was also thinking using either more apple juice concentrate or a different juice concentrate at bottling as my priming sugar. Might just stick with apple for the first one to keep it simple.

SO if I go the juice concentrate route as priming sugar would I still following the same rules of checking every few days for carbonation levels then pasteurize? I was reading some other threads where it was suggested if you back sweeten with juice concentrate to pasteurize right away? Am I over thinking it and should just add cinnamon sticks if I want and use corn sugar for priming giving me a cinnamon apple draft style cider?

Any thoughts or advice would be great.

Thanks!

 

[Sippin37]

Yes, priming with apple juice will be just like corn sugar. Check the carbonation levels every few days until it is where you want it and then pasteurize. You can fill a soda bottle as well, although for me that thing always gets hard as a rock before any of my glass bottles are where I want them to be for carbonation. Cheers!

 

[BadgerBrigade]

I have been reading and reading and reading but I can’t get thru all 80+ pages in this thread. So I’m hoping cider king Pappers or some other helpful posters can lend me some advice. I plan on making my first cider this week and following some recipes found here on HBT I have settled on the following:

5 gallons apple juice/cider
2 lbs light brown sugar
Yeast Nutrient
Either US-04 or US-05 dry yeast

I’m thinking about using some cinnamon sticks in the secondary for a few days before bottling and I was also thinking using either more apple juice concentrate or a different juice concentrate at bottling as my priming sugar. Might just stick with apple for the first one to keep it simple.

SO if I go the juice concentrate route as priming sugar would I still following the same rules of checking every few days for carbonation levels then pasteurize? I was reading some other threads where it was suggested if you back sweeten with juice concentrate to pasteurize right away? Am I over thinking it and should just add cinnamon sticks if I want and use corn sugar for priming giving me a cinnamon apple draft style cider?

Any thoughts or advice would be great.

Thanks!

Lots of ideas for you, but why in the pasteurization threat?

 

[jaydog2314]

I wasn't sure if pastuerizeing was possible with using concentrate as priming sugar. Or what the time frame was I read a few threads that said to do ASAP some said not at all. Figures 80 pages of people pastuerizeing someone had an answer.

 

[UncaMarc]

I have been reading and reading and reading but I can’t get thru all 80+ pages in this thread. So I’m hoping cider king Pappers or some other helpful posters can lend me some advice. I plan on making my first cider this week and following some recipes found here on HBT I have settled on the following:

5 gallons apple juice/cider
2 lbs light brown sugar
Yeast Nutrient
Either US-04 or US-05 dry yeast

I’m thinking about using some cinnamon sticks in the secondary for a few days before bottling and I was also thinking using either more apple juice concentrate or a different juice concentrate at bottling as my priming sugar. Might just stick with apple for the first one to keep it simple.

SO if I go the juice concentrate route as priming sugar would I still following the same rules of checking every few days for carbonation levels then pasteurize? I was reading some other threads where it was suggested if you back sweeten with juice concentrate to pasteurize right away? Am I over thinking it and should just add cinnamon sticks if I want and use corn sugar for priming giving me a cinnamon apple draft style cider?

Any thoughts or advice would be great.

Thanks!

I've had good luck letting my juice, yeast and nutrient ferment at 75-85 degrees for 14 days, then back sweetening with concentrate and bottling immediately. I also fill a plastic water bottle at the same time and check it everyday. When it gets plenty hard enough I open it up to release some of the CO2 and then check one of my glass bottles for fizz. Usually I have to let the bottles condition for a day or two longer after the plastic bottle gets pretty hard. Then I check again and pasteurize.

I'm on my 8th batch this way and the results have been very satisfying.

Oh, by the way, I like Nottingham yeast. Nice result.

 

[dog]

Can you pasteurize flip-top bottles? I think my tops are some kind of hard plastic, not ceramic.

 

[scottycope]

Hi everyone,

I made it about 20 pages into the thread, but didn't see anything that would answer my question. Anyway, I am in the process right now of letting my cider bottle-carbonate after using FAJC. I plan on using this pasteurization method once my plastic soda bottle test tells me it's time (i'm checking this thing almost every hour).

My question is - once I pasteurize my bottles do I need to keep them cold? I would assume the answer is no since the yeasties would be dead, but I wasn't sure.

If refrigeration is required - i guess I better start downing the bottles since I don't have the space for 2 cases of cider in my fridge.

Thanks in advance!
Scott