help cider turning?

[brewster13]

So I got my cider about a week ago and have not got to using it. I see today that the jugs are expanding and there is a foam forming. Is it still usable? And what should I do.

 

[KevinM]

I'm guessing wild fermentation, was the cider pasturized or was it unpasturized? You'll could toss on an airlock and cross your fingers. It's possible that adding a strong yeast could overcome the wild yeast but I wouldn't guarantee that.

 

[brewster13]

yes unpasturized and no preservatives.

 

[brewster13]

I put it in a fermenter should I add yeast, sugars and what temp should it be at? And for how long?

 

[KevinM]

Ok, from the timing and the unpasturized part, it does sound like the yeasts that were from the apples originally took effect. Check out CvilleKevin's sticky where he's used some wild yeasts. I can't recall if he's added any sugar to those, but it's possible even now to add sugar. Same thing for the temperature, he's mentioned that he's kept it at his basement temperatures, I think somewhere between 50 and 70 degrees F. I'm using purchased yeast and am keeping mine at about 63F ambient temperature.

If you do have natural wild yeast going, it might be worthwhile to let at least one of those gallons keep going to compare, and use another gallon to add the yeast to. Notice too that for a sweet cider, CvilleKevin talks about cold crashing the cider at certain gravities.

 

[oldmate]

Also, I would add the sugar already dissolved unless you want a big foaming mess!

 

[McKinley]

It sounds like you have a great experiment going. A lot of people get great ciders from wild ferments, although its real unpredictable.

I've tried this with beer without any luck.

Either way, you're doing it old-school now. I'd throw an airlock on that stuff and see where it takes you. You could still throw in some cultured yeast for a "blended" flavor.

 

[brewster13]

Ok I guess I will experiment with the wild yeast. This was not my plan but I will roll with it. Where do I go from here? How long should I let it go in primary? I don't care about clarity. I have heard that it will turn vinegary?

 

[KevinM]

I checked through the sticky, it seems that early on at least, it was recommended to force stop fermentation at around 1.020 gravity for wild yeast and it seems that it can range anywhere from one to 3 weeks in the primary. Lower than that, sometimes seemed to have created off flavors. I can't say for sure since I've not done that. And I've only heard about vinegary when there's some sort of other infection, like with the ...brett...something that turns the alcohol into vinegar. You might be referring to the different flavors that some people have found when it drops below 1.020ish.
I've just done a yeast one that went a bit short, (Personally, I think I mismeasured my gravity.) And that was a week and a half for primary, week and a half for secondary before bottling. It didn't taste too bad on the sample, but because I potentially mismeasured, I'm going to try to drink them a bit sooner than normal.

 

[brewster13]

ok forgive me for being completely lost but how do you force stop? COld crash in the fridge? And what is a sticky?

 

[kc_in_wv]

ok forgive me for being completely lost but how do you force stop? COld crash in the fridge? And what is a sticky?

Some of you questions are the same as mine.

I can help with the "Sticky"
That is a post at the top of the forum that always stays on top,

 

[oldmate]

ok forgive me for being completely lost but how do you force stop? COld crash in the fridge? And what is a sticky?

You have a few options, k-meta + potassium sorbate or cold crashing, or pasteurising. Obviously each method would depend on how much you've made as well as what step in the fermentation you want to stop at. I would have a look into k-meta + potassium sorbate, it sounds the best for what you want, otherwise you could bottle and pasteurise..

 

[KevinM]

In these forums (or any forum) you'll notice the topics at the top. They usually have the word "sticky" by them meaning that the forum moderators (and everyone else) has deemed them important enough to be up at front view. Most of the time, they're frequently asked questions and other really handy information. Have you read through them? One of them talks about how he's making cider and what yeast he's used and the steps and how he's stopped their fermentation when he thought they reached the right balance of alcohol and sweetness, he explains how to cold crash in a fridge.

The other also does the same but shows how they stopped it by heating the bottles.

I wish I could help more, but I've not done any of these yet, I'm just trying to answer what I can, The best I can do is point you towards the information.