Hard Cider First Try, no fermentation...

[FMcCreary]

I used my own apple trees to boil a 5 gallon batch of sweet cider. I used only this for my first batch of hard cider, and EC-1118 wine yeast (did not add sugar - I used this guide). I took an initial reading of 1004, which I have only now discovered is definitely not high enough. The final reading was 1002, so obviously there was no fermentation - even though there was a LOT of action and bubbling in the primary for the week I left it there.

Still, I racked it after a week into a secondary and have let it sit for two weeks hoping there would be more fermentation...which of course there was not.

My question is, can I add sugar now and do a second ferment? It has sat at room temperature for three weeks, is it possible that the juice has just gone bad now and I should toss it for safety's sake?

 

[meatcleaver]

you have apple trees? I'm jealous!
how did you obtain your juice/cider?
usually apple juice has a specific gravity around 1.040-1.060, depending on how sweet it is.
if it foamed it fermented. is it possible you had an og of 1.040 & fg of 1.002? that would probably be about right for that yeast & would give you about a 5℅ ABV.

 

[JGF]

Not sure what units you're using for measurements but I assume specific gravity which simply doesn't seem right. 1.004 would be exceedingly low for an apple cider. 1.004 is not far from the gravity of pure water. I'm thinking that your initial measurement is off. If it were 1.040 to start, it would put you around 5% ABV, near right (but a bit low) for an unfermented cider.

How did you process the apples? Were they ground first, then pressed?

Have you tasted it? Does it taste like there is alcohol there? If there was vigorous bubbling and action, I assume that there was plenty of fermentation. You don't go from 1.004 to 1.002 with a lot of action and bubbling.

In things other than beer (i.e. ciders, meads, and wines) where malts provide most all of the enzymes and micronutrients needed, I add some sort of yeast nutrient.

 

[FMcCreary]

I have two overgrown MacIntosh apple trees, and this year was a very good year! I just chopped the apples, added water, and simmered for about 3 hours, then strained with a cheesecloth. Time consuming but the result tasted very sweet so I wanted to try fermenting without anything added.

I did taste it, I don't get any alcohol and it tastes like very sour apple juice.

I have pictures of the initial gravity:

And here's one of the first day of action:

And now that I see it again my memory was off by a few points but it's still very low to start, and ended up at 1002.

I'm thinking boil it again to kill anything unwanted, then add sugar and ferment again from a better specific gravity. Is that even possible or am I just wasting time?

 

[ten80]

... I just chopped the apples, added water, and simmered for about 3 hours, then strained with a cheesecloth. ...

I have pictures of the initial gravity:
... ended up at 1002.

... Is that even possible or am I just wasting time?

Well, I think you tried to extract sugars from the apples in a manner that wasn't efficient at all, so you ended up with apple-flavored water instead of apple juice and the sugar content was very low. Looks like near 1.010 OG to me. Straight apple juice should be 1.045 to 1.070 OG, depending on the variety of apples.

You had a tough time extracting sugars from the chopped apples because they don't act like malt in traditional beer mash- you have less sugar to start with and the simmering will kill any enzymes that would help release any sugars (not that apples have much enzymes compared to malt).

I hate to say it, but I don't see any options to rescue what you have fermented. Adding sugar will only leave you with alcoholic, slightly apple-tasting, but super-dry water.

 

[FMcCreary]

Well, I think you tried to extract sugars from the apples in a manner that wasn't efficient at all, so you ended up with apple-flavored water instead of apple juice and the sugar content was very low. Looks like near 1.010 OG to me. Straight apple juice should be 1.045 to 1.070 OG, depending on the variety of apples.

You had a tough time extracting sugars from the chopped apples because they don't act like malt in traditional beer mash- you have less sugar to start with and there simmering will kill any enzymes that would help release any sugars.

I hate to say it, but I don't see any options to rescue what you have fermented. Adding sugar will only leave you with alcoholic, slightly apple-tasting, but super-dry water.

Thank you for your honesty and wisdom! That makes a lot of sense. I was cooking the cider because the apples are organic and there were lots of bugs in one of the trees so I was playing it safe. I will have to find the original sweet cider post and comment, in case anyone else is trying to make hard cider from their recipe. There's always next year, I guess, and an apple press might be on my Christmas list now...

Thank you everyone for your input. Cheers!!

 

[ten80]

Hey, there's a big learning curve to making good cider, I know all about it! My first time making cider consisted of spending 10+ hours picking, cleaning, and pressing apples only to make a bland, infected, and undrinkable 5 gallons of cider.

Here's a tip for next year: go ahead and press apples that have worms or other bugs in them, the bugs won't make it into the juice because the apple pomace (mashed apples) will filter them out during pressing. Apples are fine to press unless they are completely mushy and/or have mold spots. The juice can be sanitized by adding sodium metabisulfite (Campden) tablets and letting the juice sit for 24-30 hours before adding yeast.

Do consider that MacIntosh apples probably will make very bland, nondescript cider on their own because they are "eating apples" that are likely low in tannins and malic acid. You should find some tart, more acidic apples (such as crabapples) to blend in to add some depth to the cider. My caution with crabapples is that they are best after a good frost which kick-starts the conversion of stored starches to sugars.

The MacIntosh apples probably will make a good amount of juice with an OG around 1.045-1.055 and ripe crabapples can have a little bit higher OG around 1.050-1.065. A 50-50 blend of both types should land you right around 1.055 ish for a final ABV of around 7%.

 

[Greghark]

Fresh pressed cider is basically ready to have yeast pitched into it without doing anything else. Definitely do not boil it. If your going to boil it you might as well start with store bought cheap apple juice.

As was mentioned a few bugs won't matter much. Try to avoid the drops. Cut out any major bruised or rotting spots on the apples as you mash them. Use a cloth filter when you press and the finished raw cider will be fantastic and delicious. Pitch the yeast now and it will be unlikely you'll have any problems. If you wanted to restrain any wild yeasts you can use campden tablets or metaK (produces SO2 which inhibits yeast growth), give it 24 hours then pitch yeast. But most commercially available brewing yeasts are strong enough to dominate the fermentation process.