Man, I love Apfelwein

[Revvy]

Speaking of Fermentation. What constitutes rapid fermentation as opposed to slow fermentation as far as amount of time between bubbles?

When I started my Apfelwein it was bubbling once every two seconds, now it's bubbling once every six seconds. I would think that every two seconds would be considered rapid (although maybe a constant stream of bubbles is considered rapid) but I'm curious as to how many seconds between bubbles would be considered rapid, medium, slow etc.

Well actually bubbling in the airlock is not a true indicator of fermentation, the hydrometer is...So in a sense the question is moot....The airlock is outgassing oxygen initially and more importantly co2 (which is of course a byproduct of fermentation), but there are a lot of variables that come into play in terms of the airlock bubbling...You could have for example and bad seal between the grommet (or stopper) and the airlock, or the lid on the bucket isn't fully tight and gas is getting out elsewhere besides the airlock, or the stopper and mouth of the carboy and that would appear slow, while fermentaion is actually occuring rapidly... Or the little bubbler in the airlock could be sitting a little crooked, or become weighted down with tiny co2 bubbles and need to build up a good head of gas before blurping again.

Even having the airlock leaning slightly askew affects it.

I've got a beer in my fermentor that has had almost no airlock activity, but I see the liguid in the airlock is saturated with tiny bubbles so I'm pretty sure activity is occuring...But I won't really know until I take a hydro reading...But since I used a smack pack of yeast and a big starter I trust that the yeasties are doing their jobs...But my last beer on the other hand, the brown ale I pitched on a yeastcake from a previous batch sounded like a machine gun the way the bubbler was going up and down...I ended up needing a blow off tube once it got going...

So as you can see airlock activity varies, and should not be used a a sign of speed or lack of fermentation.

 

[Tonedef131]

I was thinking about bottling this in wine bottles but I have never used them before. Is it okay to prime this to make it sparkling if using a corked bottle?

 

[BigKahuna]

I was thinking about bottling this in wine bottles but I have never used them before. Is it okay to prime this to make it sparkling if using a corked bottle?

Nope.
Use beer bottles if you're carbing!

 

[Tusch]

Or champagne bottles!

 

[tim1088]

I am planning on making a batch this week and picked up some Publix brand Apple Juice which is 100% apple juice, no concentrate. Also it seems to have a lot of sugar in it, 26g per serving which seems to be high as well so what do you all think?

 

[Tusch]

Appears that 25-27 grams per cup of juice is normal. So no worries, continue as planned.

 

[AnonyBrew]

If you bottle the Apfelwein before it ferments out will that make it sweeter or will it mess it up?

You could just mix it 50/50 with some more apple juice right in the glass when you drink it.

Got my 1st half batch going today. I chose the Mr. Beer keg kit route like others on here have.

 

[doubleb]

I have gotten lots of positive responses (no negative ones) from friends and family on the apfelwein. Of course I'm happy with it also, especially with a bunch all to myself.

 

[ArcaneXor]

I continue to be amazed by my Apfelwein experience. My "original recipe" Apfelwein has been in the fermenter for about six weeks now, and is still an opaque, hazy yellow. The batch I made with Premier Cuvee yeast was a nice, crystal clear amber color after less than four weeks (at which point I added blackberries). Both still have an unpleasant yeast taste to them.

Should I just let them sit for a while longer, or is it time to start thinking about cold crashing?

 

[Schlenkerla]

I continue to be amazed by my Apfelwein experience. My "original recipe" Apfelwein has been in the fermenter for about six weeks now, and is still an opaque, hazy yellow. The batch I made with Premier Cuvee yeast was a nice, crystal clear amber color after less than four weeks (at which point I added blackberries). Both still have an unpleasant yeast taste to them.

Should I just let them sit for a while longer, or is it time to start thinking about cold crashing?

You can let them sit for bit or go ahead and bottle/keg. Let them sit for 3 months afterwards the yeast will settle out and the flavor will mellow nicely.

I would rack the AW off the berrys to a 2ndary. Let that sit for a bit before bottling. I would be patient with the added fruit. I've found waiting is a good idea. I have had gushers after 4 months. I used pasturized fruit too, so I'm convinced they were not infected. They were awesome at 2-3 months.

 

[potatoe]

I am fermenting at about 59-60 degrees, (Large, cold, Chicago warehouse), I have been told that this (or colder, down to 40), is a decent temp for cider fermentation, preserving aroma and blah blah.

What truth is there to this? I am using Montrachet yeast, but am thinking of experimenting with the other varieties of Red Star I have kicking around. From what I have read of this thread, (not even close to all of it), most people are fermenting at ale-ish temperatures. Can anyone chime in with some colder fermentation experience?

Salud.

 

[Schlenkerla]

I did mine at mid to low 50's and it took three months to reach 1.000

I think the 40's would be too low. I'd buy a heated brew belt or get a tub w/ an aquarium heater. Try to hit the mid 60's.

http://www.northernbrewer.com/temp-control.html

 

[solidghost]

I am keen to know whether if you ferment at a higher temp, will it result in any off-flavours like what happens in beer? You mean, like fusel alcohol or something. I guess it is also very dependent on the yeast used in the brew.

 

[Vagabond]

I dunno if it's somewhere in the hundreds of pages of this thread but, Is it not required to carbonate this? If not, which way do you folks prefer it?

To carb or not to carb.. That is the question!!

 

[mrfocus]

I dunno if it's somewhere in the hundreds of pages of this thread but, Is it not required to carbonate this? If not, which way do you folks prefer it?

To carb or not to carb.. That is the question!!

It's not required. Most people prefer it though. (There is a separate thread about it).

 

[BigKahuna]

I dunno if it's somewhere in the hundreds of pages of this thread but, Is it not required to carbonate this? If not, which way do you folks prefer it?

To carb or not to carb.. That is the question!!

That is not the question...that is the answer...and since you are doing it, You can try both ways.
as much as you'd like.

 

[Redweasel]

I dunno if it's somewhere in the hundreds of pages of this thread but, Is it not required to carbonate this? If not, which way do you folks prefer it?

To carb or not to carb.. That is the question!!

I LOVE this stuff flat!

I Love this stuff carbed!

Either way you win. What I did was bottle like normal for carbing and put about 6 22 ozers in the fridge to drink flat. I really can't decide which I like best as trying them back to back gets me too to care.

 

[Schlenkerla]

IMHO - Ice Cold & Carbed is the only way to drink it. :rockin:

 

[tim1088]

Hey guys I am about to brew a batch of this and had one final question. I am using a 5 gallon glass carboy with a rubber stopper and airlock. Will this be ok or will the fermentatino be enough to blow the rubber stopper out, I heard that this can happen sending gallons of sticky brew all over the place when brewing initially in the carboy. Any thoughts?

 

[Crazytwoknobs]

It probably won't be an issue if you left sufficient headspace, it won't blow a stopper, but it might foul an airlock.

With Montrachet, you get a little bit of foam, I got like 4 inches.

 

[Nurmey]

Hey guys I am about to brew a batch of this and had one final question. I am using a 5 gallon glass carboy with a rubber stopper and airlock. Will this be ok or will the fermentatino be enough to blow the rubber stopper out, I heard that this can happen sending gallons of sticky brew all over the place when brewing initially in the carboy. Any thoughts?

Ed Wort, the originator of this brew and thread always makes his in a 5 gallon carboy. If you're following his recipes, you're good to go.

 

[SavageSteve]

I just sampled my first apfelwein after drawing some from the carboy for a specific gravity reading. Came in at 0.997.

I must say, I was very surprised with how it tasted. If someone gave me some without telling me what it was, I would have said it was a dry white wine, perhaps a chardonnay (without the oakiness). I never would have guessed it was made from apple juice.

Yes, I know it's called apfelwein, and was made with a wine yeast, but I was still surprised at how wine-like it tasted-- dry, fairly tart, smooth with a subtle buttery flavor, and a very subtle flavor of apples.

It's only 4 weeks old at this point, so I expect it to change as it ages more, but I like it already! I had two shot glasses of the stuff, and caught a bit of buzz just from that!

Thanks, Ed!

 

[BakerStreetBeers]

Since I had nothing to do while waiting for the first two cornies in my new keezer to chill overnight. I made a trip to Costco and picked up 5 gallons of juice for making my first batch of Apfelwein. I tried to get the Montrachet yeast, but the good folks at my LHBS (this being Sonoma County they also deal quite extensively in wine-making supplies) told me that they no longer sell it. "It really, really, really stinks," they explained. Having read this thread quite extensively (though nowhere near completely) I knew what they were talking about. They told me that for this sort of application, they recommended the similar (according to them) Epernay yeast. So, what the hay, I bought some. I was a bit surprised that a Google search of this site for "Epernay" got no results. Skimming a web search suggested that this yeast is known for its low foaming qualities -- the only thing I was really worried about.

Besides the yeast, the only deviation from Ed's original recipe was that I poured off two mugs worth of apple cider into a pot, heated with a cinnamon stick, then drank them with a spash of rum -- I have a cold.

Looking forward to my first glass. And I'm definitely planning on following Ed's advice and starting a second batch in 2 weeks. Costco sold the gallon jugs in two packs so I have 20% of the next batch already on hand!

 

[EdWort]

It probably won't be an issue if you left sufficient headspace, it won't blow a stopper, but it might foul an airlock.

With Montrachet, you get a little bit of foam, I got like 4 inches.

Here you can see how much head space I leave with mine. The middle bottle is too much, the one's on the left and right are just fine. Montrachet only makes about a 1/4 inch of foam when it kicks in. You'll get the most foam just pouring the apple juice into the carboy.

I fired up two more carboys on Monday. Man the room is filled with the sweet aroma of fermentation!!!!

 

[blacklab]

I just bottled a batch I made with some real cloudy 'organic' stuff from my local hippie grocery store - turns out the cloudy apple stuff didn't drop out, but I really like the taste. My first batch was with the typical tree top/costco stuff, and we really liked it, so this one should be even better. It was much sweeter, even with the FG being .990 or so. Can't wait until it's carbed!

 

[Crazytwoknobs]

AH! EdWort is totally right, I was thinking of my batch with Safale. There's very little foam with montrachet.

 

[BigKahuna]

I'm thinking that Apfelwein may be the solution to the BMC Conundrum. I got it again tonight..."Tastes like a Really good beer with a jolly rancher in it"
If someone wants you to make them a BMC, Why not dry hop a gallon of your next batch of Apfelwein and see how it works. It could not be worse than Bud light, and it may be the best way to pacify the BMC's in your life.

 

[ThebrewdawG]

It's time to bottle what I call "Ed's delight" and I decided to use clear bottles for a couple of reasons. First being, I'm thinking its not gonna last long, and I want my freinds to see exactly what their drinking for a change. If anyone else wants to use clear, try Land Shark. I just started drinking this and its pretty damn tasty! A Shout out to Jacksonville Fla. on this one! It's also by far the only plastic label that comes off with little effort. Drink soak remove while drinking a 2nd & 3rd etc.

Ed is right in saying 2 weeks and start another

 

[Revvy]

Well after 2 months my batch FINALLY became clear enough to read through....

(although I have pulled out a couple quarts on occasion to imbibe. )

I just bottled it. I carbed up 3 gallons of it (I had just enough fliptops and 16-20 ounce beer bottles for 3 gallons carbed) and bottled the remainder in some 1 liter PET bottles left over from my mr beer days...

Is the carb time pretty much the same for the apfelwein as it is for beer, 3+weeks?

 

[Redweasel]

Is the carb time pretty much the same for the apfelwein as it is for beer, 3+weeks?

Mine was nicely carbed after 3 weeks.