Man, I love Apfelwein

[KWKSLVR]

4 pints of anything 8%ABV+ would just about send me under anyway, squirts not required.

I've always heard that, but I've never had a problem with Xylitol. I never had a problem with Olean either. I don't plan on using much of it. Bear in mind, there are 16 tablespoons in a cup so I'm essentially talking about using roughly 1 cup of it in 5 gallons (probably less). There are plenty of cakes/pies, etc that call for 3/4 - 1 cup just in the pie! In other words, you're talking about roughly 2 tablespoons of Xylitol in a slice of Apple Pie compared to approximately 1 teaspoon in a 12oz bottle of Apfelwein. That's a GIGANTIC difference.

I appreciate threads like those, and I'll bear it in mind since everyone's digestive tract is different, but there's very little information. How much Xylitol was used in the batch? What size "bottles" (I'd assume 12oz)? It reminds me of Olean, there were a ton of people that could eat a serving once or twice a day, every day and never have problems, then there were the fatties that would eat an entire bag of chips in one sitting complaining because they're on the crapper all night.

 

[tennesseean_87]

Thanks for answers on reducing. I obviously wouldn't be concentrating it post-fermentation, I'm not that stupid. Maybe I'll try caramelizing the sugar/honey to be added as I've seen in other cider recipes, rather than the juice. I think I'll look at using concentrate as well.

 

[BeerWard]

Just bottled my pomegranate version. Same recipe except for 3/4 gallon of pomegranate juice. It has been sitting around for 6 months waiting. Should be great for the hollidays!

 

[solbes]

Just bottled my pomegranate version. Same recipe except for 3/4 gallon of pomegranate juice. It has been sitting around for 6 months waiting. Should be great for the hollidays!

That sounds delicious. I really like juice from the tasty pom. Let us know how it turns out.

 

[paulster2626]

Hmm maybe I should start a batch with a pineapple kicker for next summer?

 

[Big_Belgian]

I have a question about bottling the apfelwein. Mine has been sitting in the fermenter for about 4 months, and I plan to bottle it this weekend. Do I need to add yeast at this point, as I would for an ale that had been in an extended secondary? Or just priming sugar?

Also, I am considering siphoning a gallon into a 1 gal. jug and letting it sit a few weeks on a cinnamon stick and some other holiday-type spices before bottling. Has anyone done something like that?

Thanks for any responses, and thanks for the recipe.

BB

 

[Recluse]

I've never added any yeast and it has carbed up just fine, but does take some time. Sometimes if I am really worried I will just suck up some of the lees into the bottling bucket. Not enough to make it cloudy, but so I know there is some yeast in suspension. Even when I bottle crystal clear, I get a little sediment in the bottles after bottle conditioning, so there must be enough there to get the job done.

I am anxious to try the holiday spice thing too!! I once made a Cinnamon Cyser that was really good, and I imagine this would make for a similarly good spiced cider.

 

[mikebowman]

Just kegged mine, a little over a month after I made it. The sample I took was delicious! The first sip took me by surprise, but after that it certainly was delicious. Can't wait to get it carbed up and into the fridge! I didn't take an OG reading, but the FG was around 1.000.

Only thing I'm kicking myself about is forgetting to bottle some! I was planning on bottling a 6 or 12 pack with some sugar, but I totally forgot, until my keg overflowed a bit! Next time...

 

[billcom6]

I have 2 gallons of Apfelwein sitting a carboy right now that I startedon March 13. I hadn't touched it in months but bottled some last night.
I don't have a lot of experience with wine, but it just doesn't taste right. I can't really explain it. It sort of tastes like really watered down cider but with a bitter unpleasant bite at the end. It tastes better than it did a few months ago, but not good enough to serve to people.

Does anyone have any ideas of what I can do at this point to improve the flavor? Is my best option just to sweeten it (not with sugar, becasue that would cause it to ferment more, correct?) or add some spices? Could I just dump a half gallon of cider in it and hope for the best? I really have no ideas.

Any tips or info would be appreciated. The more specific (what kind of sweetener, how much, etc.) the better.

 

[ArrogantBastage]

I recently ran across this thread and decided to give it a shot yesterday evening after brewing a second round of single malt single hop beer (Pale 2 with Cascade hops). I tried the original recipe but used a different apple juice. I'm really looking forward to seeing how it turns out. After reading through some, not all, of this thread I am seeing several very nice options to try next time.

 

[jgerard]

I recently ran across this thread and decided to give it a shot yesterday evening after brewing a second round of single malt single hop beer (Pale 2 with Cascade hops). I tried the original recipe but used a different apple juice. I'm really looking forward to seeing how it turns out. After reading through some, not all, of this thread I am seeing several very nice options to try next time.

I made a smash brew with 2 row and cascade, it was awesome! I too am waiting on my first batch of apfelwein.... and second one =)

 

[Accidic]

I have a hard to place taste in one of my recent ones. I usually go dry but sucralose works ok without fermentation continuing. Aspartame also and it's cheaper but I don't like the taste of it personally. Alternatively you could stabilize or even pasturize (although the latter makes me nervous personally).

As for the off aftertaste, mine tastes very faintly like the bottom of an outdoor empty trash can. I've been meaning to bottle carb to see if it conceals it (as it's faint) but I've found it makes terrific glogg. As a mixer it's covered nicely. I think consensus was it was oxidation although I can't confirm.

 

[TommyB]

I recently ran across this thread and decided to give it a shot yesterday evening after brewing a second round of single malt single hop beer (Pale 2 with Cascade hops). I tried the original recipe but used a different apple juice. I'm really looking forward to seeing how it turns out. After reading through some, not all, of this thread I am seeing several very nice options to try next time.

What recipe did you use for your 2row/Cascade smash beer?

 

[ArrogantBastage]

What recipe did you use for your 2row/Cascade smash beer?

I'll post the recipe on my profile for those that are interested.

 

[Denny's Evil Concoctions]

I am playing with yeast strains. Since I can't use (and haven't been able to) my wonderful RIMS system for quite a while (nor my keggerator - yes..sad..cry..) I am playing with apple juice, sugar and yeast strains!

1st up a gallon of Juice with 250 grams glucose and saf-33. (1.072 OG)

Next up a gallon of Juice with 500 grams of glucose and saf-33/Flor Sherry yeast, exposed to oxygen after velum forms for 4 weeks. I estimate 500 grams witht this juice should be enough to get the ABV in the 15% range, enough for the velum to form (I hope).

Oh and Hi to all of you who remember who the hell I am. lol

 

[CreamyGoodness]

Can I just say that I made a gallon a couple days ago. I overfilled the jug a bit, so I poured some out into a cup. The fizzing, cloudy apple juice that had been fermenting for 24 hours actually tasted pretty fantastic as it was. If it gets better from here, Im going to be really impressed arent I? . Thanks Edwort.

 

[Longtrain4]

It sort of tastes like really watered down cider...

I have just about the same experience, it appears to be watery with some apple notes on the finish. I thought that maybe I did something wrong or something just didn't jell, so to speak, so, I started another three gallon batch on 11/1/11, which just finished fermenting.

Mine is younger then yours, but I guess I'll just leave in to age and sample it from time to time to see if it improves to the "willing to serve to others" stage.

You might want to check out http://makinghardcider.com/index.html , nice site, some recommendations for finishing off hard cider, which can be applied to Apfelwein I'm sure.

 

[TommyB]

It sort of tastes like really watered down cider but with a bitter unpleasant bite at the end.

Im still waiting on my first batch to ferment. Any of you Apfelwein vets out there speak to this? I attempted a cider a while back and this was my result also. I was hoping the Apfelwein would turn out different....

 

[blackbear219]

Im still waiting on my first batch to ferment. Any of you Apfelwein vets out there speak to this? I attempted a cider a while back and this was my result also. I was hoping the Apfelwein would turn out different....

According to my taste buds, I find very little difference between apfelwein and cheap champagne. YMMV. My wife absolutely loves it though. I always keep at least one tap in the keezer stocked specifically for her and this is one of the top choices.

 

[drew1d]

Ed Wort...Ur a AMoa taher f jucvkr

Bottled tonight. It tastes like white wine, IMO.

5 gallon Kedem (Made in USA) Apple juice
1 lb White Domino Sugar
1 lb Domino Light Brown Sugar
Pack and a half of red star Montrachet yeast.

I did secondary it, my primary was a bucket. A pointless step, but I didn't have the 5 gallon bottle free.

I'll start the next one this week. Ed Wort...thank you.

 

[Skagdog]

I just mixed a 3 gallon batch of the original recipe way back in post #1. Can't wait to try it in a few months.....

I had to make 3 gal because I'll be racking my Winger Ale to my 5 gal next week for a secondary...

I thought two carboys was enough to get started....guess not!

 

[TommyB]

According to my taste buds, I find very little difference between apfelwein and cheap champagne. YMMV. My wife absolutely loves it though. I always keep at least one tap in the keezer stocked specifically for her and this is one of the top choices.

Do you force carb yours?

 

[ringobob]

I have 2 gallons of Apfelwein sitting a carboy right now that I startedon March 13. I hadn't touched it in months but bottled some last night.
I don't have a lot of experience with wine, but it just doesn't taste right. I can't really explain it. It sort of tastes like really watered down cider but with a bitter unpleasant bite at the end. It tastes better than it did a few months ago, but not good enough to serve to people.

Does anyone have any ideas of what I can do at this point to improve the flavor? Is my best option just to sweeten it (not with sugar, becasue that would cause it to ferment more, correct?) or add some spices? Could I just dump a half gallon of cider in it and hope for the best? I really have no ideas.

Any tips or info would be appreciated. The more specific (what kind of sweetener, how much, etc.) the better.

In my limited experience, what you're describing sounds like a young, raw product that needs age. That seems unlikely, given that you started it 8 months ago, but that's what the character sounds like to me. Has it been sitting on the lees this whole time? Perhaps if some of them got mixed back into suspension when you bottled, that could produce some of the flavors you're talking about. I know when I bottled my wine kit, a couple at the beginning and a couple at the end got a fair amount of sediment in them and those bottles have a character similar to what you're describing.

As for how to fix it, no idea, I'm pretty new to this myself. But the above is my best guess for what happened.

 

[emjay]

It also sounds like it's possibly lacking enough acidity, and will likely be much better when (if) carbonated. Similar comments are actually made about flat beer all the time.

Just in case that's not enough though, I would also prime it for carbonation with frozen apple juice concentrate, to increase the intensity if the flavor.

 

[spark_plug]

So I'm a new brewer myself. Seen this recipe and had to try it out!

I followed Ed's recipe with the exception of Montrachent, I used EC-1118. About 18 hours after I added the yeast it really started to foam as you can see in the picture. After 24 hours it pushed up into the air lock and thats where its stopped. It's been bubbling the vodka in the air lock pretty steady for the past 7 days. However it has now settled, but there is a crust at the top of the carboy neck. Is this crust something I should be concerned about? I've tried tipping it a bit to wash it down, but its on there pretty good, and not sure if I should be even doing that. Is it ok to just let it go till its settled for racking over, or is it something I should be concerned about? Thanks

 

[emjay]

It's called a krausen ring. Just leave it alone... you'll see this with almost everything you ferment. It's when you DON'T see it that I'd start wondering if there's a problem...

 

[spark_plug]

It's called a krausen ring. Just leave it alone... you'll see this with almost everything you ferment. It's when you DON'T see it that I'd start wondering if there's a problem...

Thanks emjay, it looked pretty normal, and going as planned. Just wasn't sure if that would cause any problems or not. probably just cleaning the carboy when I'm done.

 

[blackbear219]

Do you force carb yours?

I do.

 

[Mpavlik22]

I searched this thread with no results, but has anyone made it as instructed but tried back sweetening it with apple juice concentrate after fermentation is complete?

I would cold crash to get all the yeast to settle out and keep it cold.

 

[TommyB]

Can anyone tell me how many gravity points 1 can of Apple Juice concentrate adds to the OG? (I dont recall the actual ounces right now)

I have a batch fermenting right now that started at 1.070 and I just added the concentrate.

 

[usfmikeb]

Can anyone tell me how many gravity points 1 can of Apple Juice concentrate adds to the OG? (I dont recall the actual ounces right now)

I have a batch fermenting right now that started at 1.070 and I just added the concentrate.

Different brands have different sugar contents, but might be able to estimate based on grams of sugar on the label.

 

[Bookem15]

I searched this thread with no results, but has anyone made it as instructed but tried back sweetening it with apple juice concentrate after fermentation is complete?

I would cold crash to get all the yeast to settle out and keep it cold.

I have and it works great but if you are making a flat cider make sure you kill the fermentation prior to adding it. I think on my 5 gallon batch I added 5 cans of concentrate to it and it turned out great. Good luck with yours

 

[smagee]

I am playing with yeast strains. Since I can't use (and haven't been able to) my wonderful RIMS system for quite a while (nor my keggerator - yes..sad..cry..) I am playing with apple juice, sugar and yeast strains!

1st up a gallon of Juice with 250 grams glucose and saf-33. (1.072 OG)

Next up a gallon of Juice with 500 grams of glucose and saf-33/Flor Sherry yeast, exposed to oxygen after velum forms for 4 weeks. I estimate 500 grams witht this juice should be enough to get the ABV in the 15% range, enough for the velum to form (I hope).

Oh and Hi to all of you who remember who the hell I am. lol

Seems like a while since I've seen that name pop up... . Mind elaborating on your velum experiment? I'm not sure I want a batch that hits that strongly, but I'm definitely intrigued. I'll also be looking forward to seeing the impact of the different strains; are you moderating their temperatures at all during the fermentation?

 

[Accidic]

So I'm a new brewer myself. Seen this recipe and had to try it out!

I followed Ed's recipe with the exception of Montrachent, I used EC-1118. About 18 hours after I added the yeast it really started to foam as you can see in the picture. After 24 hours it pushed up into the air lock and thats where its stopped. It's been bubbling the vodka in the air lock pretty steady for the past 7 days. However it has now settled, but there is a crust at the top of the carboy neck. Is this crust something I should be concerned about? I've tried tipping it a bit to wash it down, but its on there pretty good, and not sure if I should be even doing that. Is it ok to just let it go till its settled for racking over, or is it something I should be concerned about? Thanks

I've gotten similar activity from EC-1118 every single time. One of the batches I've currently got going is half Montracet, half EC-1118 and it absolutely spewed out of the top of the airlock for several days and then almost as if by magic it completely cleared itself (a feat I might add my 5yo was completely dazzled by) in a matter of a few seconds. Montracet seems to have less of that usually but it could have just been a weird batch of Juice too. I just recently got ahold of some Pacman so I'm looking forward to making a batch with it but I've heard it may experience similar behavior to the EC-1118.

 

[TommyB]

Different brands have different sugar contents, but might be able to estimate based on grams of sugar on the label.

OLD ORCHARD 100% Juice - Apple Cherry 12oz
Serving size
conc - 2oz (60ml)
Recon - 8oz (240ml)
Servings - 6
29g sugar amount/serving (So is that 6 x 29g = 174g)?

Any help on gravity points for this would be much appreciated......

 

[Denny's Evil Concoctions]

It's called a krausen ring. Just leave it alone... you'll see this with almost everything you ferment. It's when you DON'T see it that I'd start wondering if there's a problem...

While the former is true, the latter is not completely correct. Many wines or juice based fermentations will not foam at all, just bubble and you have to look close even see those. Less body in most juices than beer leads to little to no foam. Also depends on yeast strain.

Seems like a while since I've seen that name pop up... . Mind elaborating on your velum experiment? I'm not sure I want a batch that hits that strongly, but I'm definitely intrigued. I'll also be looking forward to seeing the impact of the different strains; are you moderating their temperatures at all during the fermentation?

From what I understand, many flor sherry yeast strains act a lot like other wine yeasts except they will form a velum if the abv hits around 15%. So using such a yeast will not necessarily impact flavor unless you allow O2 exposure to the velum for a long period of time.

One benefit to using a flor yeast is they can handle up to 20% abv! I am tempted to eventually make a strong barley wine and finish with a flor yeast. Unfortunately I just found out that red star (fermentis) no longer sells their dried flor yeast. I had a couple packets in the freezer.

I am making a gallon of cherry cider with enough sugar added to bring it to 22.4 brix (1.095). It has a mix of Saf s-33 and flor yeast. It's in a cube shaped container with a spigot. If the velum forms I will allow some O2 contact and see how this effects flavor over time... If I don't get impatient and just drink the damn stuff. lol

I have some cider about 5 days in using only safbrew s-33 and it's around 7% right now. The sample tasted pretty damn good as is. Curious to see what it will finish at as the OG was 17.6 Brix (1.073). Should be able to hit the 10% mark I would think.

I also have another cherry cider brewing that was about 15.2 brix with just flor yeast but I am just using that yeast to ferment it out. (Actually I added the wrong yeasts to the wrong containers, the 22.4 brix cider was supposed to be flor only..duh)

Temp wise, no, my temp moderation consists of trying to keep the basement around 21c - 23c. haha.

 

[Vernacular]

Wow this "apple wine" recipe warms the soul! Second batch in the works.

I haven't calle Ed any bad names so far though.

 

[smagee]

[Snipped Denny's details]

Interesting, thanks for the response. I may have to do some experimental tweaking for my next batch as well...

 

[cdubbaya]

You know you love apfelwein when you start buying extra carboys and airlocks to let your batches sit for a few months while you brew other things. Picked up another 5 gal glass carboy because my others were full (or will be soon)!

 

[emjay]

While the former is true, the latter is not completely correct. Many wines or juice based fermentations will not foam at all, just bubble and you have to look close even see those.

Yep, that's why I said "wondering" if something's wrong, rather than asserting that something would be wrong. Wasn't trying to imply that there should always be a krausen ring, just contrasting the idea that the ring itself could actually be indicative of a problem, when it's really just the opposite.