Sweet! I'll be getting my hands on some more apple juice soon from a local farm. It's unpasteurized and freshly squeezed.
Here are the batches I did previously:
6 gallons unpasteurized AJ + 1.2kg dextrose using Lalvin 1116
6 gallons unpasteurized AJ + 1.2kg dextrose using Lalvin 1118
Primary'd 2 months. It turned out good, very clear, but it's too dry and too tart for my tastebuds. Also, I find the first sip to be somewhat offputting. I'm not too good at descriptions, but I suppose it's a sulfury tartness? After a few sips I can eventually see past it. My friends don't seem to mind it.
So, for round #2 I picked up 3kg of honey (goldenrod) straight from a local apiary. Not really sure why, but I like experimentation. Label says it's unpasteurized - is that ok?
CvillKevin's excellent sticky has convinced me to go the ale yeast route this time. New plan:
6 gallons unpasteurized AJ + 1.5kg honey using Safale S-04
6 gallons unpasteurized AJ + 1.5kg honey, undecided for other yeast. Nottingham? Thoughts?
If the unpasteurized honey is a problem I was thinking of maybe boiling it in a bit of apple juice, and stirring that into the remaining unpasteurized juice. Otherwise I'll probably just heat it as CvillKevin suggested to soften it up a bit so I can actually stir it in.
My objectives are less tartness mostly and less dryness if possible. I don't have the means to cold crash nor do I want to halt fermentation (I like to carb my bottles). I want to keep this simple, I plan to primary again for at least 1-2 months then straight to bottle/keg.
Am I on the right track by switching the dextrose for honey and wine/champagne yeast for ale yeast?
Thanks!
Here are the batches I did previously:
6 gallons unpasteurized AJ + 1.2kg dextrose using Lalvin 1116
6 gallons unpasteurized AJ + 1.2kg dextrose using Lalvin 1118
Primary'd 2 months. It turned out good, very clear, but it's too dry and too tart for my tastebuds. Also, I find the first sip to be somewhat offputting. I'm not too good at descriptions, but I suppose it's a sulfury tartness? After a few sips I can eventually see past it. My friends don't seem to mind it.
So, for round #2 I picked up 3kg of honey (goldenrod) straight from a local apiary. Not really sure why, but I like experimentation. Label says it's unpasteurized - is that ok?
CvillKevin's excellent sticky has convinced me to go the ale yeast route this time. New plan:
6 gallons unpasteurized AJ + 1.5kg honey using Safale S-04
6 gallons unpasteurized AJ + 1.5kg honey, undecided for other yeast. Nottingham? Thoughts?
If the unpasteurized honey is a problem I was thinking of maybe boiling it in a bit of apple juice, and stirring that into the remaining unpasteurized juice. Otherwise I'll probably just heat it as CvillKevin suggested to soften it up a bit so I can actually stir it in.
My objectives are less tartness mostly and less dryness if possible. I don't have the means to cold crash nor do I want to halt fermentation (I like to carb my bottles). I want to keep this simple, I plan to primary again for at least 1-2 months then straight to bottle/keg.
Am I on the right track by switching the dextrose for honey and wine/champagne yeast for ale yeast?
Thanks!