Man, I love Apfelwein

[jholen]

Well I'm coming up on 2 months in primary, thinking I will bottle it up this weekend.

My wife isn't so much a fan of it right now, and am wondering if carbing it up a bit will help remove some of the super dry finish? Any input?

Edit: Thinking I might try carbing with apple concentrate instead of corn sugar - thoughts?

 

[GuinnessGuy74]

New homebrewer here. I just mixed up a batch using the original recipe to the T. I think my hydrometer might be off. Can anyone tell me what your starting gravity was for the original unmodified recipe?

I measured at 54 and that seems a bit low to me...

Thanks!
Jim

 

[LMGK]

Can you substitute cane sugar in place of corn sugar? I am all out of corn. Will it affect taste? I tried reading through threads but couldn't find a similar question post. Thanks

 

[stibone]

Can you substitute cane sugar in place of corn sugar? I am all out of corn. Will it affect taste? I tried reading through threads but couldn't find a similar question post. Thanks

I just did a one gallon test batch with raw cane sugar.. it came out a bit more winey then my first batch sweetened with concentrate.. I think it might need some more tome to mellow out then the concentrate but it should be fine.

 

[ThunderStruck]

Just Bottled up 5gal of Edwarts original Recipe on Feb 25. Used LT Brown Sugar, Montrachet & Indian Summer AJ. Started on Jan 4, the OG was abt .065, FG was right @.001 or so.

I was able to Bottle up 2agl still, and I went ahead and carbed up the rest in 12oz Bottles.

Thanks Edwart!, Good stuff even at this young age.

 

[gungnir77]

O-M-Freaking-G. Why have I not tried this yet?? This looks Awesome! Im doing it this weekend. Hell, maybe even tonight! One question though, at what temperature does the wine yeast ferment best?

 

[tommybjr]

Lavlin EC-1118 and brown sugar work? Fermentation temp?

 

[kc9eci]

Google is your friend. http://www.fermentis.com/fo/pdf/RedStar/English/FTMontrachetEN.pdf

ability to ferment within a large temperature range (15°C to 35°C, 59°F to 95°F)

Lavlin EC-1118, http://www.lalvinyeast.com/images/library/EC1118_Yeast.pdf

Wide range of temperatures for
fermentation including low
temperatures (Optimal between 15°C
to 25°C)

Brown sugar? Why not?

 

[Brianyear]

Lavlin EC-1118 and brown sugar work? Fermentation temp?

That's what I've always used. I fermented at room temp. (anywhere from 68 to 75) and it always worked out well.

 

[seanthefreak]

Im new to winemaking, just joined this forum yesterday. After its ready for bottling, what do you bottle it in, how do you carbonate it. And i seen you keg it, how do you do that?

 

[gungnir77]

Ok. I went straight the hell home from work and made this exactly to specifications. 3 very long damn months to go.......

 

[DarkBrood]

New homebrewer here. I just mixed up a batch using the original recipe to the T. I think my hydrometer might be off. Can anyone tell me what your starting gravity was for the original unmodified recipe? I measured at 54 and that seems a bit low to me...

That might be a tiny bit low, but a lot depends upon the juice that you're starting with - every brand will be different. Most people seem to be starting in the 1.050-1.070 range, so you should be fine. If you're concerned about it not being strong enough, just add some more dextrose or honey.

 

[DarkBrood]

Can you substitute cane sugar in place of corn sugar? I am all out of corn. Will it affect taste? I tried reading through threads but couldn't find a similar question post. Thanks

Cane sugar (i.e. normal table sugar) has a long-standing reputation for creating winey and cidery aromas and flavors when used in excess in beers and wines - an effect that increases with aging (which is why it's generally more "acceptable" in beer than in wine). However, these reputations largely come from the early homebrewers of the '60s and '70s who were largely extract brewers supplementing with waaaay too much of it (like my father, whose standby beer recipe was a can of Coopers extract with an equal weight of table sugar...and not much else).

That said, 2# in 5+ gallons shouldn't be too much of an issue.

P.S. For those who are concerned about cane sugar usage and are considering using brown sugar - be sure to check your labels...many brown sugars are simply table sugar with a bit of molasses or caramelization, rather than the unrefined brown sugars that you want (which will probably carry different labels as turbinado, raw, etc.)

 

[DarkBrood]

"Brewed" (i.e. mixed up) a first Apfelwine batch on January 19 with 5 gallons of Wally-World juice, 2# dextrose, and Lalvin 71B-1122 with an O.G. around 1.065 (I was in a hurry and distracted in poor light, so the reading was iffy). Pulled a sample yesterday for testing....(almost 7 weeks)....O.G. is around 0.095, taste is slightly tart, distinctly apple-y, and quite yummy already (now I see why so many people have a hard time letting this age long enough!)...and SWMBO agreed!

I'll be mixing in 1# of lactose (of course, dissolved in boiled water and cooled) to backsweeten some. After another week or two, another taste-test will determine whether to prime with dextrose or juice concentrate. SWMBO has decreed that half shall be bottled still and half carbonated. (My mind is awhirl with ideas of added some of the frozen blueberries from last summers' farm work, various spices, other juices (that crapfelwine sounds good!), etc...)

 

[DarkBrood]

Ok. I went straight the hell home from work and made this exactly to specifications. 3 very long damn months to go.......

'sup to you.....'tis yummy after about 1....:fro:

 

[america]

'sup to you.....'tis yummy after about 1....:fro:

Its way too harsh after just a month. 6 is much much better.

I did just make a batch with champagne yeast and it doesn't taste so bad after a month, but ill let it go at least 1-2 more before bottling.

 

[tommybjr]

Has anyone used cinnamon? If so, how much and how did it turn out?

Thanks

 

[GuinnessGuy74]

That might be a tiny bit low, but a lot depends upon the juice that you're starting with - every brand will be different. Most people seem to be starting in the 1.050-1.070 range, so you should be fine. If you're concerned about it not being strong enough, just add some more dextrose or honey.

Ok. I checked my hydrometer in distilled water. A smidge low, maybe a point (.999). I then checked some of the leftover juice. 1.050. Now corn sugar should add about 46 points per gallon, so I should have been expecting 1.065-70 (about 18 points over the juice).

Now I MUST have read my hydrometer wrong (More like 65 instead of 50) right??

Thanks for the help!
Jim

 

[PoBoy]

Have six gallons thirty days in the Better Bottle, clearing nicely with only an occasional bubble now - if that. Looking forward to tasting in a couple weeks. Read a couple thousand posts in this thread, learned a lot from that - then found a nearby LHBS and bought the Bottle, airlock, tubing and Montrachet (the bare necessities) and Tree Top juice from Wally. Used cane sugar.

Just a frugal guy lookin' for an affordable source for my daily USDA-recommended ETOH requirements. Really plan on liking this stuff because I'm a real cheapskate and that bottle alone was almost thirty bucks! Will take more than one batch to make the investment pay off.

 

[DarkBrood]

Im new to winemaking, just joined this forum yesterday. After its ready for bottling, what do you bottle it in, how do you carbonate it. And i seen you keg it, how do you do that?

Ya bottle it in...dum, da da dum! ...BOTTLES! Err...what kind...umm...how 'bout WINE bottles? (Sorry, but ask a dumb question.....)

More helpfully about the carbonation, then... you can bottle this "still" and it'll end up drinking like a fruit wine. That's simple...just siphon it into bottles, cork 'em and store for a while. To carbonate, boil a little water for 5 minutes, add some dextrose (i.e. corn sugar), let for a touch more, cool it down, and add to the fermenter. Bottle immediately (before the yeast starts working on it). Adding a little will give a little carbonation. Adding about 3/4c (the "standard" for a 5-gallon batch of beer) will give you carbonation similar to a beer. Adding more will give you champagne-like carbonation. Add too much and your bottles will eventually explode (i.e. NOT good).

And honestly, if you're that new to it all, just forget about kegging for now. You'll need a keg (which can be hard to find legally in some places and are rarely cheap), plus an assortment of other goodies to load it up....then more toys to dispense. Not to mention that it is...shall we say "problematic" to chill your drinks if they're in a keg and you only have one fridge.

 

[smagee]

The bottling question wasn't really all that dumb; carbonating in wine bottles could be an awful idea, as they typically aren't designed to handle the pressure (hence why champagne comes in champagne bottles--and with champagne corks, at that).

You'd be much better served bottling in regular beer bottles (either 12 or 22oz) with a standard beer cap. I'm not sure whether wine bottles would kerplode or not, but I do know I wouldn't want to take the chance.

 

[tennesseean_87]

At the least, I think the corks would blow from the pressure if you use wine bottles.

Strange things are afoot in my fermenter. When I bottled my cranpfel, something happened with my siphon. Maybe there's was an air leak or it was getting clogged with trub or something. Either way, I stirred up some yeast when I was trying to restart the syphon (to no avail). Since it was late, I threw it on the porch in the cold and figured I'd bottle later after the yeast dropped. They didn't. I finally stuck it in a normal fridge at a house I'm sitting for this week, thinking constant temps that low would surely clear it. It's been in there a few day, and only the top 1"-2" is clear, then a clear line dividing the cloudiness below. I walk in this morning to find--the airlock bubbling fast! It had been sitting for 2+ months, and weighed in at 1.008ish. I see no other reason for offgassing, etc. since it's at a stable temp and has been sitting there for a few days. I guess yeast do what yeast want to do.

 

[BobJ]

Swing top bottles are also good for carbonation.....

 

[DarkBrood]

At the least, I think the corks would blow from the pressure if you use wine bottles.

Strange things are afoot in my fermenter. When I bottled my cranpfel, something happened with my siphon. Maybe there's was an air leak or it was getting clogged with trub or something. Either way, I stirred up some yeast when I was trying to restart the syphon (to no avail). Since it was late, I threw it on the porch in the cold and figured I'd bottle later after the yeast dropped. They didn't. I finally stuck it in a normal fridge at a house I'm sitting for this week, thinking constant temps that low would surely clear it. It's been in there a few day, and only the top 1"-2" is clear, then a clear line dividing the cloudiness below. I walk in this morning to find--the airlock bubbling fast! It had been sitting for 2+ months, and weighed in at 1.008ish. I see no other reason for offgassing, etc. since it's at a stable temp and has been sitting there for a few days. I guess yeast do what yeast want to do.

Hmmmm....I'd take a careful smell (and perhaps a taste). A "stable" fermentation that restarts itself "spontaneously" is usually a sign of a wild yeast or bacterial infection of some kind. Keep an eye for any pellicle or deposit forming on your carboy near the liquid line - things that look unusual usually are. An infection doesn't mean that your batch is ruined, though....you may need a longer fermentation cycle, might want to consider transferring to a secondary fermenter, and will likely have some unexpected aromas and flavors. After all, beer brewers regularly infect our beers with such things on purpose!

 

[kc9eci]

And honestly, if you're that new to it all, just forget about kegging for now. You'll need a keg (which can be hard to find legally in some places and are rarely cheap)

Huh? What? How about any number of vendors via the internet like oh I don't know, kegconnection.com or http://kegcowboy.com/ or http://www.monsterbrew.com or...well you get the idea.

 

[tennesseean_87]

Maybe I was being a bit hasty this morning. I think it might have been the temperature fluctuation in the fridge as it cycled on and off, because i looked later and it wasn't bubbling until I stood there with the door open for a minute. The next time I looked, the airlock pressure was reversed. I am still such a n00b.

 

[smagee]

I'd bet the bubbling was more from some degassing from the movement. Even if you manage to infect a batch of this, what sugar is the wild yeast going to eat? Sure, there's a little present, but the risk is rather slim, in my book.

You might try some gelatin to clarify, if you really want to clean it up.

 

[LMGK]

Well this **** will get you going. Do not take a beer drinkers approach.

 

[jholen]

Bottled with 3/4 cup brown sugar.

Didn't have enough left for the last bottle, so I'm drinking that as we speak! Loving this stuff.

 

[t3e871]

I have all ingredients ready to go except I only have Lalvin D47 and Lalvin 71B 1122 wine yeast available. I have lots of ale yeast too. I'm leaning toward the 71B-1122 because it tolerates temps up to 86F and this batch will be sitting in my extra room closet all summer. I doubt it will get over 78F, but the D47 high temp range is listed at 68F. Any advice from the yeast/apfelwein experts?