CallyBrewster
Member
Howdy,
I've been making cider for 45 years now. My recipe is similar to what you guys call the Edwort Apfelwein, except I don't add sugar and I use ale yeasts. As happy as I am with my NotBroke-Don'tFix cider, I wanted to try a fresher product.
Last weekend I went up to Placerville, CA and bought 5 gal apple cider direct from the orchard. ($7 or $8 a gallon, I can't remember. They have a bulk price if you bring your carboy). Since they'd already had their press run for the day I just bought their pre-packed gallon jugs.
For reasons that don't matter, I wasn't able to deal with them until a week had gone by. Today I popped the lids on the jugs:
1 gallon smelled fine, it's getting my standard cider treatment, no problem.
2 gallons were obviously already fermenting. These I'll call a wild yeast experiment. I pitched some ale yeast just to see what happens with 2+ competing strains. Could be awesome, could be terrible. Time will tell.
2 gallons smell like vinegar, one faintly, the other smells more strongly like vinegar.
Can campden tablets save these two jugs?
Should I just ferment them (I presume some fermentation has already occurred) and then try to convert to ACV? If yes, is there a better yeast than ale yeast?
Would like to try to salvage them somehow.
Thanks for your time & suggestions!
I've been making cider for 45 years now. My recipe is similar to what you guys call the Edwort Apfelwein, except I don't add sugar and I use ale yeasts. As happy as I am with my NotBroke-Don'tFix cider, I wanted to try a fresher product.
Last weekend I went up to Placerville, CA and bought 5 gal apple cider direct from the orchard. ($7 or $8 a gallon, I can't remember. They have a bulk price if you bring your carboy). Since they'd already had their press run for the day I just bought their pre-packed gallon jugs.
For reasons that don't matter, I wasn't able to deal with them until a week had gone by. Today I popped the lids on the jugs:
1 gallon smelled fine, it's getting my standard cider treatment, no problem.
2 gallons were obviously already fermenting. These I'll call a wild yeast experiment. I pitched some ale yeast just to see what happens with 2+ competing strains. Could be awesome, could be terrible. Time will tell.
2 gallons smell like vinegar, one faintly, the other smells more strongly like vinegar.
Can campden tablets save these two jugs?
Should I just ferment them (I presume some fermentation has already occurred) and then try to convert to ACV? If yes, is there a better yeast than ale yeast?
Would like to try to salvage them somehow.
Thanks for your time & suggestions!
