Man, I love Apfelwein

[bleme]

In my very limited experience, my favorite has been the TreeTop 3 Apple Blend, which is Granny Smith, Red Delicious, and Golden Delicious. I’d expect GS and Winesap would go great together.

 

[MilesBFree]

A few questions on my batch, which is about ready for bottling:

1. It has kind of a flat taste; I may be expecting more of an alcohol bite and more acid as other fruits wines I have made have had.

I can't remember if I added acid blend but think I followed EdWort's recipe fairly closely.

In any event, i pulled a bit out of the carboy with a wine thief and added some acid blend and sugar and it tastes better but still not great. I am wondering if the airlock wasn't air-tight and it has gotten a bit oxygenated?

2. Why dextrose instead of plain ol' white sugar? I used white sugar since it was what I had on hand. Could that have resulted in the flat flavor?

3. Has anyone made it with more sugar to get the alcohol level up (in case I am just missing that bite...)?

4. Or do I just need to bottle it and wait a year? Is the initial flavor usually meh and it gets a LOT better over time?

 

[Miraculix]

4. Yes.

 

[MilesBFree]

Thanks @Miraculix, I will bottle it and let it ride.

 

[Miraculix]

Thanks @Miraculix, I will bottle it and let it ride.

It's just how it is... These things don't taste right when they are coming out of the fermenter.

 

[MilesBFree]

Yep. I know they get better with age. But this one seemed worse than most of the other ones I have made. e.g., I bottled a chokecherry and a rhubarb (separate ones) today as well, and the chokecherry was nearly drinkable now and the rhubarb you can se what it will become. The appfelwine was just blah compared to those.

But I added some acid blend and sugar after bottling (along with K-sorbate) and the appfelwine is tasting better, more like I can see it getting with the program after a year

Thanks again.

 

[Miraculix]

Yep. I know they get better with age. But this one seemed worse than most of the other ones I have made. e.g., I bottled a chokecherry and a rhubarb (separate ones) today as well, and the chokecherry was nearly drinkable now and the rhubarb you can se what it will become. The appfelwine was just blah compared to those.

But I added some acid blend and sugar after bottling (along with K-sorbate) and the appfelwine is tasting better, more like I can see it getting with the program after a year

Thanks again.

You probably shouldn't have done that actually.... At least some bottles without the additions would have been nice to have a direct comparison in eight months.

 

[Beermeister32]

I always ago out ciders 90 days. They really improve in flavor.

 

[balrog]

Question for the others here who have made this, as I have, many many times.
I love the upstate NY Beak & Skiff Cranberry 1911 cider.
I'm thinking I could do something fairly close with ApfelWein and cranberry juice.

Anybody ever put cranberry in their ApfelWein? How much? How tart?

 

[MilesBFree]

You probably shouldn't have done that actually.... At least some bottles without the additions would have been nice to have a direct comparison in eight months.

Good idea - I should have saved at least one so I would know.

 

[GrogNerd]

Question for the others here who have made this, as I have, many many times.
I love the upstate NY Beak & Skiff Cranberry 1911 cider.
I'm thinking I could do something fairly close with ApfelWein and cranberry juice.

Anybody ever put cranberry in their ApfelWein? How much? How tart?

I would try mixing your apple cider & cranberry juice together non-fermented first. Figure out the mixture you like best, THEN ferment that, adjust as you see fit

 

[bearpaw8491]

Apfelwein newbie here - just found this thread this morning and would like to give this a try but have a couple of questions if anyone has time:

1. Does dextrose add a particular element to the Apfelwein or can ordinary table sugar be used?
2. Would like to bottle in 750 ml wine bottles and age for a year or more. Would the lower (than wine) ABV allow bottle storage for this length of time?

Imagine these questions have been asked b/4 but haven’t been able to find answers.

Thanks in advance for the advice.

 

[Miraculix]

Apfelwein newbie here - just found this thread this morning and would like to give this a try but have a couple of questions if anyone has time:

1. Does dextrose add a particular element to the Apfelwein or can ordinary table sugar be used?
2. Would like to bottle in 750 ml wine bottles and age for a year or more. Would the lower (than wine) ABV allow bottle storage for this length of time?

Imagine these questions have been asked b/4 but haven’t been able to find answers.

Thanks in advance for the advice.

Dextrose is easier to digest for the yeast and some people say that you can taste table sugar as "cidery" after a certain threshold has been reached.... So in this case, table sugar should be fine.

However, I would stay with Apple Juice only, that's how it's done here in Germany no sugar and no carbonation.

Aging for a year is a good idea. Make sure to limit the head space to the minimum. About half a centimetre of air is enough. More air can damage the cider over time.

 

[bearpaw8491]

Thanks Miraculix for the fast reply . Headed to Costco early this week to pick up a few things and will grab 5 gals of the Motts Apple juice - seems to be what a lot of folks are using. I was wondering if the dextrose contributed anything other than facilitating yeast activity/feeding that a simple invert sugar would not but at this point will go with the dextrose for first run since that's the standard.
Been a winemaker longer than I care to remember and normally leave about an inch of space between wine and cork. Think I'll be able to achieve the 1/2 cm headspace but will be tight.
Thanks again and looking forward to the end product that everyone enjoys.
I'll keep you posted on progress

Oops almost forgot. Since the apfelwein is not racked, would there be any advantage to batonnage? There's that wine thing again!!!

 

[balrog]

would there be any advantage to batonnage?

I don’t stir. But I’m from beer making not wine making, and stirring is not something done often. But I also ferment fully dry, dosage and bottle ApfelWein for sparkling result rather than traditional still as @Miraculix says.

 

[balrog]

CranApfelWein.
Brewed 3/8. Bottled today. Wanted to make Beak & Skiff 1911 Cranberry cider.
Mine's very tart, more tart than berry, apple way in background, still not bad for attempt #1.
3:2 apple juice to cran juice, all botttled, no added sugar, about 1.045OG, 1.002FG, ~5%ABV

 

[Miraculix]

CranApfelWein.
Brewed 3/8. Bottled today. Wanted to make Beak & Skiff 1911 Cranberry cider.
Mine's very tart, more tart than berry, apple way in background, still not bad for attempt #1.
3:2 apple juice to cran juice, all botttled, no added sugar, about 1.045OG, 1.002FG, ~5%ABV
View attachment 824171

Maybe that is actually a brilliant idea to emulate that cider apple bite/bitterness! A little bit of cranberry juice should go into the same direction as the more flavourfull ciderapples do. I am going to try this with some generic store bought juice! Thanks for the idea!

 

[Apis Mellifera]

So I'm 171 of 342 pages through this thread and just wanted to ask a quick question.

Has there been any update (or consensus change) to the original recipe posted on page 1? I plan on using the original for my first but since it has been so long since this started I was just curious if there was anything I should change.

This will be only my 2nd shot at homebrewing. My first is about a week in on a mead using honey from my hives in my backyard.

 

[balrog]

So I'm 171 of 342 pages through this thread and just wanted to ask a quick question.

Has there been any update (or consensus change) to the original recipe posted on page 1? I plan on using the original for my first but since it has been so long since this started I was just curious if there was anything I should change.

This will be only my 2nd shot at homebrewing. My first is about a week in on a mead using honey from my hives in my backyard.

Not that I'm aware of; make it as stated.
Then, if you're like me, you make changes that appeal to you -- less (or no) added corn sugar for less ABV; or part of the apple juice replaced by other juices (like cranberry).

 

[Miraculix]

So I'm 171 of 342 pages through this thread and just wanted to ask a quick question.

Has there been any update (or consensus change) to the original recipe posted on page 1? I plan on using the original for my first but since it has been so long since this started I was just curious if there was anything I should change.

This will be only my 2nd shot at homebrewing. My first is about a week in on a mead using honey from my hives in my backyard.

If you want to keep it like the original from Germany, you skip any additional sugar and stay with pure apple juice.

 

[balrog]

My family definitely prefers just the juice, no added sugar.

However, we do not unfortunately have the appropriate traditional glassware in which to serve it...

 

[Miraculix]

My family definitely prefers just the juice, no added sugar.

However, we do not unfortunately have the appropriate traditional glassware in which to serve it...
View attachment 825522

I've been to Frankfurt two or three weeks ago and was able to enjoy some bembel . Haven't been there for a long time, the ebbelwoi is really nice.

 

[Jack_0106]

I've been doing this for a while. Never knew there was a proper name for it!? Apfelwein?

Mine are 5 liter batches though.

• 4 and a half liters of pure pressed apple juice (leaves room for foam)
• 200g of brown sugar
• half pack of yeast (usually Gervin GV13)
• other things like nutrients and half dose of tannins
• OG at ~1.060, finishes around ~1.000
• Turns out 7-8% party juice!

 

[squiddle]

Just started my very first batch of this on Monday! Super excited to see how it comes out. My advisor would make this recipe and always boast about how easy it was and how it would knock you on your ass, never believed him until I tried it and was stumbling after a few glasses.

I've tried a few mead and similar apple wine recipes prior but my sanitation was never good enough (which made some funky flavors). Got some starsan and made sure to follow proper sanitizing procedures to a T.

OG was 1.062 and anticipating a FG of ~1.000 which will give me an 8%-er. May back sweeten but reading this thread it seems like as-is is great!

only did 2.5 gallons cause it is my first go-around with this recipe. I will most likely bottle half and put the other half in secondary for another month and see how that comes out.

Cheers!

 

[Apis Mellifera]

If you want to keep it like the original from Germany, you skip any additional sugar and stay with pure apple juice.

So I started my batch last night. Only thing I did different was some yeast nutrient.

I’ve got foam coming out the wazoo. Is that normal when adding nutrient? Everything I read said this had very little foam.

 

[balrog]

I rarely get foam. I use Montrachet yeast (now "Premier Classique", it's called).
What yeast did you use?

 

[Apis Mellifera]

I rarely get foam. I use Montrachet yeast (now "Premier Classique", it's called).
What yeast did you use?

The same one.

It foamed like crazy hours 12-18 but has since backed off.

 

[balrog]

The same one.

It foamed like crazy hours 12-18 but has since backed off.

Curious.
Day 2 of a batch

Day 5 showing bubbles on top but not creating "foam"

Day 13 of that batch

 

[Apis Mellifera]

Curious.
Day 2 of a batch
View attachment 826148

Day 5 showing bubbles on top but not creating "foam"
View attachment 826150
Day 13 of that batch
View attachment 826149

Hmm.

Mine was real quick. I caught the first bit of foam coming up the airlock the morning after I started.

I’ve moved on to the rhino farts stage of brewing though.

 

[balrog]

Hmm.

Mine was real quick. I caught the first bit of foam coming up the airlock the morning after I started.

I’ve moved on to the rhino farts stage of brewing though.

Well I don't use nutrients, so who knows.

 

[cottonwoodks]

The temp can affect speed too.....

 

[jackinil]

Just started my first batch of Apfelwein. 3gal batch-3 gal grocery store apple juice[Indian Summer brand],19 oz dextrose,yeast nutrient and 71B yeast. The wait begins...

 

[jackinil]

Took about 24 hrs to really get going. Still bubbling about every 4-5 seconds.

 

[Airborneguy]

I made a batch with US-05 last week. It was covering in krausen within hours. I was shocked because previous batches never even looked as if they’d fermented. I could only tell by gravity readings.

 

[squibload]

It's just how it is... These things don't taste right when they are coming out of the fermenter.

Is this a dead thread? Been a while, I just opened a bottle of my Apfelwein from about 2 years ago,
been in the basement. I was under the impression that this stuff was about like my 2-week cider.
Well it's better than that, just needed to sit for a while. Carbonation was good, like a wine or champaigne (sp?).
Also have to report that it accidentally developed a bit of alcohol. :>)
Have 2 other subsequent bottled batches down there, otherwise I'd make some more! Was thinkin it was a joke
on all of us but it turned out pretty good.

 

[balrog]

Is this a dead thread?

I still look in on it from time to time, so it's got just as much life as others, less than some, more than some. I have been asked only to make the cranberry apfelwein myself, as that is the most popular amongst my family.

 

[Miraculix]

I am aging an apple/honey/malt extract wine at the moment. Kind of the same thing here but more interesting and more abv. I maxed it out till the yeast gave up. This means above 16%.

 

[Elk479]

Made 5 gallons of this stuff, gotta make 5 gallons more to keep up with its popularity.

Man, I love apfelwein

 

[fluketamer]

i really loved apfelwein until i discovered grahams cider .

https://www.homebrewtalk.com/threads/grahams-english-cider.107152/

try it i havent brewed another batch of edworts since.

the tannins and acid and lower sugar content and nutrients and ale yeast really do it wonders. lol

 

[ArizonaGoalie]

I made a 1 gallon batch of this during the early stages of the pandemic, May 2020. After a couple months, I put it in a secondary to clear, then moved it into 2 separate 64oz growlers. I put the growlers in a bathroom cabinet and forgot about them. Just rediscovered them a couple days ago.
Holy Mother of fantastic Apfelwein! So good.