Thunder_Chicken
Well-Known Member
I just walked in to my shed a little while ago to see how my apfelwein was doing. I finally experienced the "rhino fart" phenomenon. Had to air out the shed a little bit. Bubbling away happily.
Before I shift into "relax, don't worry, etc." mode, I just want to be sure nothing's wrong, haha. I pitched about 24 hours ago, and so far I don't have much activity in my fermenter. I've seen other people say that after 24 hours it should be bubbling noticeably, but I'm assuming they're probably brewing in slightly warmer environments; it's already getting pretty cold in my part of Idaho and the room the fermenter's sitting in is probably around 65 degrees.
After pitching, over the next few hours I could see lots of yeast in suspension and the numbers increased by the hour. Now they're no longer visible and the batch is cloudy. There are some very tiny, barely visible bubbles slowly rising in some of it. I have a bit of yellow foam on the top; I'm hoping that's just from the yeast/nutrient and doesn't represent any kind of infection.
Anybody hear any red flags amidst all that?
It will sidle up and smile. Then kick you in the nuts, take your wallet, and run off laughing. :fro:This sounds like something I'm gonna have to try. I have an unhealthy obsession with making things as powerful as possible. Hmm a 20+% abv apfelwein carbed up like champagne and sweetened before kegging sounds like a good sneak up on you and kick you square in the ass kinda drink.
The tiny bubbles and cloudiness are the start of fermentation. Nothing to worry about at all. I'd betting anything you wake up in the morning and she's bubbling/farting away! Mine usually takes 24 hours or so until I need the tiny bubbles and foam on top and 36-48 hours until it's really churning.Wulvaine said:Before I shift into "relax, don't worry, etc." mode, I just want to be sure nothing's wrong, haha. I pitched about 24 hours ago, and so far I don't have much activity in my fermenter. I've seen other people say that after 24 hours it should be bubbling noticeably, but I'm assuming they're probably brewing in slightly warmer environments; it's already getting pretty cold in my part of Idaho and the room the fermenter's sitting in is probably around 65 degrees. After pitching, over the next few hours I could see lots of yeast in suspension and the numbers increased by the hour. Now they're no longer visible and the batch is cloudy. There are some very tiny, barely visible bubbles slowly rising in some of it. I have a bit of yellow foam on the top; I'm hoping that's just from the yeast/nutrient and doesn't represent any kind of infection. Anybody hear any red flags amidst all that?
Has anyone used US-05 with this recipe? I wanted to get something a bit sweeter and not so dry. I'm worried that there might be blow off with this yeast so maybe I should use my 6 gallon better bottle instead?
You might want to tell my ceiling that.You might want to try a sweet cider yeast. Most ale yeasts will easily take apfelwein down to dry. It's only ~ 9%, well within the tolerance of most ale yeasts.
Apfelwein doesn't really krausen, and cider doesn't really krausen with ale yeast, so you can safely fill up the carboy very full and just stick an airlock on it. A blow-off is cheap insurance though. I'd use your 6 gal better bottle to make 6 gallons of apfelwein.
You can bottle now. Some people bottle at 6 weeks and say its great. I try to wait 2 months, and this batch I'm going to wait 3 to see if there's any difference.Wineomatic said:July 21st I airlocked my Apfelwein. I await patiently to bottle! Should I wait til November or October?
Originally Posted by RhodySeth
Yeah I know but I've already incurred a lot of aggro from the Wife. She's already expressed displeasure with all the beer I've got conditioning and if she spies a full five gallons of the apfelwien her ire will only grow.
Of course, her ire will probably grow when she spies 2.5 gallons of apfelwien so maybe you're on to something.
When she tastes it she's gonna ask when are you making more. My old lady loves the stuff.
a blow off tube is always recommended until primary ferm is complete.twofocused said:To any one who has gone crazy and added 8 lbs of sugar to a 5 gallon batch did you need a blow off tube or was an airlock enough.
A blowoff would be good, ask my ceiling why. I was using a fairly aggressive yeast at a highish temp though.To any one who has gone crazy and added 8 lbs of sugar to a 5 gallon batch did you need a blow off tube or was an airlock enough.
I have two 5 gallon batches going right now. I plan on bottling one of them after 2 months and I want to let the other bulk age for another 3 months or so. I'm thinking about racking it into another carboy after 2 months to get it off the yeast and allow it to clear even more. Should I be adding K-Meta and Sorbate to it when I rack it? If I want to back sweeten a bit, can I do it and let it age that way or is it best to back sweeten just a few days before bottling?
Thunder_Chicken said:You should definitely add k-meta when you rack it for bulk aging to prevent oxidation. You should sorbate at the same time if you plan to backsweeten. You probably want to wait a day or two after sorbating to add the sugar to taste, and then wait a few more days after that to see if fermentation has been truly halted before bottling. I'm not sure how long you can age with sugar in solution - I would think that you would be setting up a banquet for infection bugs, but maybe the sorbate and alcohol limit that. Bottling soon after sweetening would limit the potential for infection exposure. Having said that, some people (like me) can taste sorbate even at normal doses. It can make the wine taste like chemical candy. You might want to taste the apfelwein without sorbate - even though technically dry it tastes pretty sweet to me. It is not a puckering dryness, especially if aged. When aged the apple flavor comes out again and it really conveys a perception of sweetness. Conversely, a hint of sugar in young apfelwein (which really tastes bland and lifeless, buried under the alcohol) really makes the apple flavor pop out, but might make aged sweetened apfelwein seem too sweet. I guess my advice is to experiment, and see what works for your taste buds. The taste definitely evolves with age.
Thanks. This isn't my first time making this but it would be my first time back sweetening anything. I generally don't like sweet wines but the wife thinks it could use a little sweetness added and if it will make her drink more of it, I'll do it! That's why I have 2 batches going right now, one to sweeten for her, another for me to drink dry, the way I prefer it.
Anyway, I'll add the K-Meta and Sorbate when I rack it. Any idea how much I would use of each for a 5 or 6 gallon batch?
Hello. I am planning to follow the original recipe with the montrachet yeast. I live in Puerto Rico. Current temps are at around 90 degrees outside ( probably 85 indoor). Should I use a water bath to lower fermentarion temps like I do for ales?
If so, what fermentation temp should I be looking for?
Thanks all for your help.
TexasWine said:I'd say yes, 85F is a tad warm. Sounds like you've done a water bath before with ales, so I'm curious how cool can you keep your fermentation? Given your location, I assume you use bottles of ice and don't rely on the evaporative cooling effect. You don't necessarily need to get to ale temps for the Montrachet. Something around 70-75F would be fine. But it would also be fine to ferment in the 60s. Lots of wiggle room with this recipe! Pretty hard to mess it up.
I can usually keep them in the low 70's/high 60's if I switch ice bottles during the morning and evenings.
I will probably need to get a second water bath to ferment this one then. Do I need to place it in a dark place as I do with ales, or can I place it in an open area (like a living room)
Thanks again for your feedback.
finsfan said:just "brewed" a batch and fit all 5 gallons of motts in, cant wait to have this in 4 months
Pomylka22 said:Just cracked open a bottle thats a little over a year old and it is super!! I need to get my next batch going soon
Good luck leaving it alone that long once you have tasted it.Started a Holiday Apfelwein last night. 6 gallon batch consisting on 2 cinnamon sticks, a little nutmeg, 30 raisins, and half dark brown sugar(probably 2.5 pounds total sugar to reach 1.060 OG).
I wish I would have started it a couple of months ago...but if it needs more time come thanksgiving/Christmas, I'll just let it age until next year.
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