Man, I love Apfelwein

[BrewerBear]

No need to add bottling yeast unless it has been aging a loooong time.

 

[CreamyGoodness]

Any reason I shouldnt prime and bottle in the pint and a half size guinness bottles?

 

[america]

Any reason I shouldnt prime and bottle in the pint and a half size guinness bottles?

I've never used that brand of bottle but had had no problems with bottles that size or with ones bigger/smaller for that matter.

 

[bleme]

Any reason I shouldnt prime and bottle in the pint and a half size guinness bottles?

I use a half pint sake bottle all the time with no problems. It is great for getting the last drop from the bottling bucket and I don't feel so bad when I open one early to "test" the batch.

 

[1fast636]

Is there a recipe for making this in the mr.beer keg it's just sitting here wanting to ferment some more. I'm on our iPad and i can't find a search thread tool so figured some one can point me in the right dirrection

 

[Leadgolem]

Is there a recipe for making this in the mr.beer keg it's just sitting here wanting to ferment some more. I'm on our iPad and i can't find a search thread tool so figured some one can point me in the right dirrection

Let's see, a Mr. Beer is designed for 2 gallon batches I believe. So 40% of the ingredients would be.

2 Gallons 100% Apple Juice (No preservatives or additives)
0.8 pounds of dextrose (corn sugar)
2 grams of Montrachet Wine Yeast

I would just use about 1/2 a packet of Montrachet Wine Yeast. That's only 2.5 grams and is no where near over pitching. Then tape the packet shut and stick it in the fridge/freezer for later use.

I would also probably just add an entire 1lb bag of corn sugar. The result will be a bit stronger, but in 2 gallons of liquid you aren't going that high. Should be about 1.073, depending on the juices OG before the sugar addition.

Happy brewing.

 

[1fast636]

Sweet thanks

 

[Yourrealdad]

I have been through quite a few of the pages and searched and I seem to be finding two different theories.

Can someone chime in again.

Do I need to take this off the yeast ever or can I go 6 months on the yeast cake?

If I need to take it off how long should I leave it on?

I bottle if that makes a difference.

Thanks

 

[BrewerBear]

You can go 6 months if you like,if you transfer to secondary wait until it clears first.It really does not matter if you get it off the yeast or not,mainly preference.

 

[STJonesin4]

I'm getting ready to make a batch of this with the original recipe. Has anybody done this with grapefruit juice? SWMBO loves grapefruit crushes. Just thinking it may be a "win" for me to make a grapefruit concoction. Thinking of getting a one gallon jug and experimenting. Any thoughts?

 

[bleme]

I know citric acid can really wreak havoc on yeast but give it a shot by all means.

You might want to check out the skeeter pee thread for ideas on how to get citrus to ferment though.

 

[STJonesin4]

I know citric acid can really wreak havoc on yeast but give it a shot by all means.

You might want to check out the skeeter pee thread for ideas on how to get citrus to ferment though.

Skeeter pee. I'm on it.

Thanks!

 

[Leadgolem]

I'm getting ready to make a batch of this with the original recipe. Has anybody done this with grapefruit juice? SWMBO loves grapefruit crushes. Just thinking it may be a "win" for me to make a grapefruit concoction. Thinking of getting a one gallon jug and experimenting. Any thoughts?

I did something kinda similar with pink grapefruit.

This is from my notes:
5 cans great value pink grapefruit juice 46oz.
5 bottles grapefruit perrier 750ml.
5.74 lbs sugar.
3.5 tsp yeast nutrient.
3.5 tsp yeast energizer.
1.75 tsp pectin enzyme.
20 oz bottle of harvested distillers yeast.

OG: 1.1
FG: 0.99
ABV: 14.7%

I thinks this was a 3.5 gallon batch. It's been a while. It really needed sweetening before it went in the bottle, which I didn't do. I usually add a little simple syrup to the glass before I drink it. It's still very sour otherwise.

When this was young it was absolutely horrible. It took about 4 months in the bottle before it was good. Though it is now very good indeed. Much more complex and smoother then I expected.

I know citric acid can really wreak havoc on yeast but give it a shot by all means.

You might want to check out the skeeter pee thread for ideas on how to get citrus to ferment though.

That's a good idea. A lot of the fruit bases for the skeeter pee recipes are really acidic.

 

[STJonesin4]

I did something kinda similar with pink grapefruit.

This is from my notes:
5 cans great value pink grapefruit juice 46oz.
5 bottles grapefruit perrier 750ml.
5.74 lbs sugar.
3.5 tsp yeast nutrient.
3.5 tsp yeast energizer.
1.75 tsp pectin enzyme.
20 oz bottle of harvested distillers yeast.

OG: 1.1
FG: 0.99
ABV: 14.7%



I thinks this was a 3.5 gallon batch. It's been a while. It really needed sweetening before it went in the bottle, which I didn't do. I usually add a little simple syrup to the glass before I drink it. It's still very sour otherwise.

When this was young it was absolutely horrible. It took about 4 months in the bottle before it was good. Though it is now very good indeed. Much more complex and smoother then I expected.

That's a good idea. A lot of the fruit bases for the skeeter pee recipes are really acidic.

Thanks for the info. I want to give something a try - possibly a 1 gallon batch. Sorry for the off-topic. It was sorta "on-topic".

 

[freemanmh]

I had a batch that I started on 7/25/2012 using EC1118. This was a set it and forget it batch - it was in primary the entire time and never got racked to secondary. I decided this past Saturday (3/2) that it was time to package. Kegged it and dropped it in my keezer. It finished at 1.001 and the sample was incredibly clear, not to mention ludicrously good. It is so much better than the first batch I made which was bottles after a month (though that was quite tasty as well).

Luckily, I had the foresight to start another batch about a month after this one do I can refill the keg when it kicks. Heed the advice early in this thread - keep a batch going, you won't be sorry.

 

[Thunder_Chicken]

This thread is killing me. I started a gallon of apfelwein last week with the sugar substituted with honey. I haven't even tasted it yet, but this thread is making me consider buying another 5 gallon primary and loading it up with apfelwein and just ditching it in my equipment room for 6-9 months, just in case it is awesome.

I'm not a fan of commercial ciders because they are all too sweet, but a dry apfelwein sounds really good. I think with using honey this will be super dry. I hope it doesn't disappoint.

 

[devianttouch]

This thread is killing me. I started a gallon of apfelwein last week with the sugar substituted with honey. I haven't even tasted it yet, but this thread is making me consider buying another 5 gallon primary and loading it up with apfelwein and just ditching it in my equipment room for 6-9 months, just in case it is awesome.

One thing to be aware of about this: since what you have just made is more like a cyser (apple mead) than an apfelwein (apple mead) it may take longer to ferment and it WILL require more ageing. Patience will pay off though!

 

[Thunder_Chicken]

One thing to be aware of about this: since what you have just made is more like a cyser (apple mead) than an apfelwein (apple mead) it may take longer to ferment and it WILL require more ageing. Patience will pay off though!

It would figure that I'd make something a) that I never heard of before, and b) will require more patience on my part.

EdWort's original recipe uses 5 gallons apple juice and 2 lbs of corn sugar. My scaled recipe with honey was 101 oz (about 0.8 gallons) of juice, and about 3/4 cup of honey, with Montrachet yeast. Is this going to require any other special handing as a cyser, other than longer aging? What would be an appropriate temperature range to age this?

If possible, after fermentation is good and done, can I cap the carboy and safely hide it someplace out of sight for a few seasons? It's on top of my fridge now and is going to be too much temptation if I have to sit and watch it age.

 

[Leadgolem]

It would figure that I'd make something a) that I never heard of before, and b) will require more patience on my part.

EdWort's original recipe uses 5 gallons apple juice and 2 lbs of corn sugar. My scaled recipe with honey was 101 oz (about 0.8 gallons) of juice, and about 3/4 cup of honey, with Montrachet yeast. Is this going to require any other special handing as a cyser, other than longer aging? What would be an appropriate temperature range to age this?

If possible, after fermentation is good and done, can I cap the carboy and safely hide it someplace out of sight for a few seasons? It's on top of my fridge now and is going to be too much temptation if I have to sit and watch it age.

Hmm, I don't think using honey instead of sugar is going to really take much longer. I've done mead to FG in 14 days. You can, you just need to use twice the normal amount of nutrients as the directions for must say.

I kinda doubt you are going to have to bad of a nutrient shortage issue given what the apple juice is bringing to the party. I've made similar stuff with table sugar, and it was fine. Took just over two weeks to hit FG. Table sugar is pretty much pure fermentable, no nutrients to speak of.

Once it's good and done, yeah sure. Cap it and stash it somewhere it won't tempt you.

 

[Thunder_Chicken]

That's what I hear from the cider forums as well - not really enough honey to really mess with ferment times or aging. As for nutrients, there is a whole packet of Montrachet in there for just one gallon, plus with whatever is in the juice, so there is a lot of stuff in there to chew on.

I'll leave it on airlock until it drops out clear, then I'll cap it and try to forget it someplace that I'll be sure to stumble upon in a few months.

Is using a HDPE bucket for long-term aging of this stuff a good idea or no? I've heard that oxygen diffusion can be a problem. The 1-gallon is a glass jug, but if I wanted to do 5 gallons of this I'd have to get another bucket or carboy.

 

[Thunder_Chicken]

any one gallon recipes?

EdWort's recipe scales (just use 1/5th of everything for 1 gallon).

The jug of apple juice that I bought was actually about 3/4 gallon, and I subbed in honey for the corn sugar, worked out to be 1/2 cup of honey.

 

[Mooseman923]

So this is the first wine I've ever made. I'm going to bottle 2.5 gallons of a 5 gallon batch I made back in October. It has been in Primary this whole time. If I were to transfer 2.5 gallons to another carboy and add another pound of brown sugar, would this work or should I just leave the extra sugar out?

 

[GGGsPorter]

Made the recipe exact except for I used wyeast cider 4766, and I kind of forgot about it in the carboy. It's been 6 months now. Is it still any good? No visual mold or anything funky like that. Has anyone fermented this long with this recipe? I'm going to keg it today if it tastes right. Thanks for the recipe Ed!

 

[Mooseman923]

Made the recipe exact except for I used wyeast cider 4766, and I kind of forgot about it in the carboy. It's been 6 months now. Is it still any good? No visual mold or anything funky like that. Has anyone fermented this long with this recipe? I'm going to keg it today if it tastes right. Thanks for the recipe Ed!

I just tasted mine today for the first time after about 4.5 or 5 months and it was delicious.

 

[GGGsPorter]

Mooseman, thanks for the info! That gives me hope mine will turn out. I'll report later on my results.

 

[Mooseman923]

Mooseman, thanks for the info! That gives me hope mine will turn out. I'll report later on my results.

Do you have any advice as to my earlier post? I just bottled a little over half of my 5 gallon batch. I'm going to transfer my other half into my other 2.5 gallon carboy to just age for a few more months. Would it be a good idea to add some more sugar to start up fermentation again? Or would that ruin my wine?

 

[LBussy]

What purpose would starting fermentation again serve?

 

[GGGsPorter]

Do you have any advice as to my earlier post? I just bottled a little over half of my 5 gallon batch. I'm going to transfer my other half into my other 2.5 gallon carboy to just age for a few more months. Would it be a good idea to add some more sugar to start up fermentation again? Or would that ruin my wine?

I personally wouldn't do that. Possible off flavors?

 

[GGGsPorter]

Kegged mine up this afternoon. Tasted good! No off flavors (autolysis) from being in primary 6 months. Very dry. FG .995 Good apple flavor coming through! Looking forward to it being cooled and carbonated!

 

[Leadgolem]

Do you have any advice as to my earlier post? I just bottled a little over half of my 5 gallon batch. I'm going to transfer my other half into my other 2.5 gallon carboy to just age for a few more months. Would it be a good idea to add some more sugar to start up fermentation again? Or would that ruin my wine?

Probably not. I can't think of any reason to restart the fermentation, other then the co2 blanket. You would be producing more of the compounds you have been waiting on to break down.