Man, I love Apfelwein

[adiochiro3]

I just opened my first bottle tonight. I've been patiently waiting since September. 2 weeks in the bottle, and it was beautifully carbonated. What a treat! I can't wait to see what this is like in another 2-8 months!

 

[truvr]

For whatever reason, I could not fill the glass jug all the way to the top. Will this be ok to age for 6-8 months?

I would top it up with a little more apple or cranberry juice.

 

[bleme]

I would top it up with a little more apple or cranberry juice.

What he said. Let it ferment for a couple weeks and then top it off.

I'm also pretty forgetful about keeping airlocks filled for that long so after about 6 weeks I usually swap it for some sanitized plastic wrap/rubber band.

 

[eon]

Let it ferment for a couple weeks and then top it off.

It's already done fermenting. I pitched the yeast on 01/07/2014 and racked into the jug yesterday on 02/25/14

Should I still wait to top it off?

 

[bleme]

Ciders don't make the huge krausen that beers do, but they sometimes need a little room at the beginning. Once that is past, it is good to top off and reduce the surface area as much as possible.

 

[eon]

Thanks guys. I just topped it off today. Filled it up as high as I could go.

Now, let's see if I can wait 6-8 months without taking a taste!

 

[ChefRex]

Love this stuff!

 

[Edbert]

Thanks guys. I just topped it off today. Filled it up as high as I could go.

Now, let's see if I can wait 6-8 months without taking a taste!

You mean 6-8 hours right?

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[eon]

You mean 6-8 hours right?

Nope.

It's already done fermenting. I pitched the yeast on 01/07/2014 and racked into the glass jug on 02/25/14.

EDIT: I really want to drink it, but I am waiting 6-8 months before I even touch the stuff because I read this quote on the first page.

Six months and it hits its stride. Eight months and it'll blow your mind.

Did I make the mistake of pulling it out of the fermenter? I let it finish fermenting and then I figured I would...

1.) Rack it into a glass jug to age for 8 months

and then

2.) transfer it to small bottles to pass out to friends or just continue to store and drink it from the jug.

 

[BamaProud]

Start another batch, let the first batch age and drink the young batch to curb your curiosity.

 

[benco]

Can I make this in a 6 gallon carboy or a 6.5 gallon bucket. I don't have a 5 gallon carboy. I only want to do 5 gallons because I'm going to keg it. Thanks!

 

[HomebrewHandicapper]

Can I make this in a 6 gallon carboy or a 6.5 gallon bucket. I don't have a 5 gallon carboy. I only want to do 5 gallons because I'm going to keg it. Thanks!

You'll be fine with the extra head space but IMO you should scale the recipe up and top it off, then bottle whatever doesn't fit in the keg. Put those bottles somewhere safe and find them again in a year. I just found a 13 month old 1/2 rack in the back of my closet and it was soooooo good!! :rockin:

 

[benco]

I finally got around to making edworts apfelwein! So easy to make compared to brewing beer! I hope it turns out! It's something to keep going on the side.

 

[mgr_stl]

How much space do I need to leave in the top of my five gallon carboy if I use the original recipe?

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[W0GWT]

How much space do I need to leave in the top of my five gallon carboy if I use the original recipe?

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Not too much. I left an inch or so from the stem of my glass 5 gallon carboy. There will be a lot of fast bubbles, but they won't build up enough to reach your airlock. Less airspace is best.


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[JeffroDH]

I poured about an ounce off the top of a 64oz trial version of this recipe fermented with Wyeast California Ale Yeast... It's been brewing for about 2.5 weeks in a half gallon bottle with an airlock on top.

It was very dry, and even astringent, with no hint of the apple evident. I used an organic apple cider with no preservatives and added sugar to bring the gravity up.


Should I just let this age for a few more weeks? Months? Add some primer, bottle and let it condition in the bottle? How do I determine whether I've skunked this batch and need to start over? This is my first attempt at the apfelwein, though I have 6 gallons of a LME+grain rye imperial IPA kit bubbling happily away next to the fridge.

Thanks all for your support in advance. I have a few more gallons of this excellent cider for a full run, but didn't want to ruin it all, as it's rather expensive.

 

[flyinpig]

I'm with him...I have 5 gallons I made from my own pressed apples. Astringent was a good word.

Should I just let this age for a few more weeks? Months? Add some primer, bottle and let it condition in the bottle? How do I determine whether I've skunked this batch and need to start over? This is my first attempt at the apfelwein, though I have 6 gallons of a LME+grain rye imperial IPA kit bubbling happily away next to the fridge.

Thanks all for your support in advance. I have a few more gallons of this excellent cider for a full run, but didn't want to ruin it all, as it's rather expensive.

 

[Texastrooper]

YI just found a 13 month old 1/2 rack in the back of my closet and it was soooooo good!! :rockin:

You just found one????? lol... Maybe I have to push my wife to start to make them so that I can fine one .... lol...

 

[donttread]

Here is my first batch of Edwort's Apfelwein!!

 

[WinterWarrior]

I just made a batch of Edwort's Apfelwein. I followed his instructions except I used a fermenting bucket instead of a glass carboy. There's a bit of head room.

Does it really matter? I used the bucket because that's what I had.

 

[HBngNOK]

I just made a batch of Edwort's Apfelwein. I followed his instructions except I used a fermenting bucket instead of a glass carboy. There's a bit of head room.

Does it really matter? I used the bucket because that's what I had.

No. I start all my wines in a bucket, and rack to a carboy in a few weeks. The batch of cran-apple I have now spent a month in the bucket before I racked to carboy. Will be sweetening and bottling it tomorrow.

How's the hard lemonade coming?

 

[Culln5]

Being on a time crunch yesterday, I decided to give this a whirl. Everything went smooth, but when I checked it this morning there is no visible fermentation in my carboy or an inkling of a bubble? is 24 hours not enough time to expect to see fermentation?

George

 

[sparkshooter]

Bottled my first 5 gallon batch of Apfelwein after approx 6 weeks in primary. Made half bubbly, bottled in champagne bottles (with plastic champagne cork and wire). Other half is in wine bottles with regular cork and wire sleeve. Looks super classy.

It ended up finishing at 0.98, and I forgot to measure the OG (whoops!). I drank my hydrometer sample and was shocked at how good it was. I thought it would be quite alcoholic tasting, from how much people here talk about aging it, but it was very drinkable to me.

Now I've just got to move it to the basement to help with my will power not to break out a bottle prematurely.

 

[sparkshooter]

Has it gone cloudy? Mine took 24 hours (becoming increasingly cloudy) before the airlock started to do much.

 

[rhythmsteve]

The bucket will be fine, just transfer to carboy later in the process


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[Culln5]

Has it gone cloudy? Mine took 24 hours (becoming increasingly cloudy) before the airlock started to do much.

It doesn't look particularly cloudy....



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[sparkshooter]

I'm having trouble telling cloudiness from that picture, but I do see a ring of white bubbles around the edges - stare at them for a minute - do you see lots of little ones rising from below? That means you are fermenting. The little ring of bubbles is all you are likely to get. It doesn't build up a krausen or anything.

 

[SmokeyMcBong]

Just wondering, although its not mentioned in the original recipe, are you guys using yeast nutrient when you make this apple wine? If so, how much are you using?

Thanks.

 

[Swarley88]

Just wondering, although its not mentioned in the original recipe, are you guys using yeast nutrient when you make this apple wine? If so, how much are you using?

Thanks.

I don't. I just use apple juice, sugar, yeast and try to get a good, consistent ferment temperature and just give it time.

 

[Culln5]

I'm having trouble telling cloudiness from that picture, but I do see a ring of white bubbles around the edges - stare at them for a minute - do you see lots of little ones rising from below? That means you are fermenting. The little ring of bubbles is all you are likely to get. It doesn't build up a krausen or anything.

She's steadily fermenting now.... Guess I was a bit anxious.

 

[SouthernYankee]

She's steadily fermenting now.... Guess I was a bit anxious.

Wait till you start getting that rotten egg smell for a few days.

 

[pukexxr]

I recently brewed a batch of this (5 gal) and split that into two "secondary" fermentations, leaving half in the initial carboy. I dry hopped the half in the 3 gal carboy with 1 oz galaxy 5 days before bottling. THEN I carbed half of each of these at bottling with priming tablets.

I really enjoy the dry taste of the apfelwein (not generally a cider drinker, but have several friends with glutein issues). HOWEVER the dry-hopped half is truly phenomenal. The passionfruit aromas in the galaxy really draw out the fruitiness of the apfelwein, but retain the dryness that is desireable in the original to me.

Now I have a three gallon batch a couple weeks in. I intend to dry hop this iteration with 2 oz galaxy and see how that works out.

Sorry for the novel. Has anybody else had any particularly interesting hops in their apfelweins?

 

[WinterWarrior]

I took an OG reading of my apfel wine after 9 days and it was 1.001.

Should I continue to leave it for another 20-21 days?

 

[benco]

From what I've read on here a least a month. Most do at least 3 months. I assume if your bottling, you can let set for a few months. I'm doing my first batch, I plan on leaving in carboy for 3 months and keg it. They say the longer you can wait the better it gets.

 

[cpa4ny]

After the primary fermentation is over - has anyone tried to zap the cider with some gelatin to speed up the conditioning?

 

[BikeAndBrew]

After the primary fermentation is over - has anyone tried to zap the cider with some gelatin to speed up the conditioning?

Don't do it! Just be patient. It will clear on its own in time. Mine usually starts to clear up around 5 weeks or so, and after 8 weeks it's as clear as the apple juice coming out of the bottle was.

There really is no reason to rush the clearing process. Let it age in the carboy for a few months.I know it's tempting to drink this stuff young, but you will be rewarded if you let it age for 6 months or so! I usually let mine sit in the carboy for 12 weeks, then bottle & let it age until it reaches 6-8 months old. That's when the drinking is good.

Just let it clear on its own. If you have to, try a few bottles right after it's cleared. But, I promise you'll be happy if you just let it age.

 

[donttread]

If I used Apple Cider instead of Apple Juice, will it still clear?

 

[Pitman]

If I used Apple Cider instead of Apple Juice, will it still clear?

If you use pectic enzyme at the beginning it will. Otherwise it will take much longer if at all

 

[cpa4ny]

Thanks BnB!


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[jak1010]

OK, probably been asked a thousand times but can regular table sugar be used? I'm all out of corn sugar.