Pappy`s Pub Cider - Award Winner!

[Paps]

Need to know if I can bottle without priming and/or pasteurizing and still get some carbonation.
help!

I keg so this might not be the best info on bottling...
1-do a full month primary
2-do a 2 week secondary
3-bottle
4-make sure to bottle at least one plastic bottle that you check daily for pressure (not opening but squeezing by hand)
5-if at ANY time your test bottle seems over-pressurized, then `burp` all of the bottles
6-once you feel that they are at the pressure you like, transfer all of the bottles to your fridge and store them there until consumed.
7-continue testing the plastic bottle daily.
8-it wouldn't hurt to store these inside some sort of plastic container in case any either explode or shoot a cork out and leak cider all over your fridge.

That's about the best i can do for the bottling question.
Perhaps somebody whom bottles this regularly might be able to chime in with what gravity they bottle at.
Hope this helps.
-Paps

 

[wayned10]

I regularly bottle my version of this without any issues, after primary I rack to secondary for 3-4 weeks to ensure all activity is done. This leaves it slightly carbonated, simply small bubbles and no chance of bombs. With that being said, I store all my bottles in a cool part of the house around 73 degrees and would never risk these getting warm, but that should be the case with anything you bottle. You could always crush up a couple camden tablets in the secondary and bottle after a few days for a still cider, this has been a favorite for friends. Hope that helps!

 

[wlffmnnn]

One more question from me. Sanitization. Do you need to be a sanitization nazi like your brews or can you be a little lax with it. For the record I went with my typical sanitization process when I started this today.
Put this together at 16:00 today and now at 21:15 already bouncing the airlock.

 

[slym2none]

Always be a sanitation-nazi. Always.

 

[wayned10]

I sanitize everything, save some StarSan in a gallon jug and fill a spray bottle so it's always on hand.

 

[BrettNic]

I regularly bottle my version of this without any issues, after primary I rack to secondary for 3-4 weeks to ensure all activity is done. This leaves it slightly carbonated, simply small bubbles and no chance of bombs. With that being said, I store all my bottles in a cool part of the house around 73 degrees and would never risk these getting warm, but that should be the case with anything you bottle. You could always crush up a couple camden tablets in the secondary and bottle after a few days for a still cider, this has been a favorite for friends. Hope that helps!

Do you use regular beer bottles and caps or the larger/thicker champagne/beer bottles and cork?

I am thinking I will be good with regular beer bottles and caps as long as I use the plastic bottle trick and check for the desired level of carbonation regularly. I can then pasturize if I need to.

Thanks for all the suggestions everyone!

 

[MindenMan]

Please forgive me if I have missed something... If your fermentation is done prime and bottle. If you are trying for sweet and fizzy cider, that is a whole different animal; in my opinion pasteurizing is the only way to prevent glass grenades. I missed a face full of glass one day in the garage by three seconds, I literally mean three seconds (or less), and it scared the crap out of me!

 

[Paps]

This particular recipe will pretty much ALWAYS be sweet.
There's 2 lbs of sugar per gallon......
The yeast cannot eat it all and therefore priming of this is not needed
as it will do no good anyways.
What the carb people are seeking is a timeframe when to bottle or a gravity reading as when to bottle. I personally keg but i do know that more than a few here bottle this regularly....
Hopefully they will remember to take a gravity reading come bottling day and post said gravity and later on how fizzy it became....
-cheers.

 

[RobertMT]

I made 3 1/2 gallon batch of
Pappy's Pub Cider

I used 3 gallons of three apple Fresh Pressed 100% USA, tree top juice and substituted 1/3 of called for sugar, with frozen apple juice concentrate (3 cans), added one week into primary formation. I used washed yeast from Apfelwein brew.

This fermented until yeast just about stopped, 3 weeks, I then racked into secondary and added another can of FAJC, bringing it back to 1.003 SG, I waited another week, pulled airlock and sealed secondary. This allowed some carb to build as fermentation, stopped due to high alcohol content. I then cold crashed, cleared and bottled. Has very little carb, but not quite flat. It's very strong somewhat sweet cider, I expect age will help mellow it out.

 

[wayned10]

Do you use regular beer bottles and caps or the larger/thicker champagne/beer bottles and cork?

I am thinking I will be good with regular beer bottles and caps as long as I use the plastic bottle trick and check for the desired level of carbonation regularly. I can then pasturize if I need to.

Thanks for all the suggestions everyone!

I use regular 12oz amber bottles without any issues, and I would never store them in a garage or anyplace that the temp would get above 75, this goes for beer as well since it makes the yeast really active. I love EC 1118 for my Applewine but lately I've switched over to a beer yeast so I can carbonate with priming sugar and not worry about explosions. Prior to the beer yeast I still bottled but I would never use added sugar to carb or I would kill the yeast completely to make a still cider.

 

[Ghunter0815]

Paps...I must say, this stuff is amazing! Just bottled last night, and already want to start another batch!!

 

[wlffmnnn]

After re-reading this entire thread i came up with one more question. Seems that it is well liked to add cinnamon sticks to secondary. I have never added anything to my secondaries before and must ask how you would sanitize the cinnamon sticks? Again Sanitization Nazi here.

 

[OleBrewing]

After re-reading this entire thread i came up with one more question. Seems that it is well liked to add cinnamon sticks to secondary. I have never added anything to my secondaries before and must ask how you would sanitize the cinnamon sticks? Again Sanitization Nazi here.

From the strength of it I wouldn't worry. You could soak the sticks I vodka if u are worried. 14% is well high enough where I wouldn't be worried

 

[Paps]

how you would sanitize the cinnamon sticks? Again Sanitization Nazi here.

The sticks come in a sealed glass container and are made to be used in foodstuffs. I personally just throw them into the carboy. The high ABV probably kills many a microbe but if you are really worried about it you could possibly place them in a toaster oven or microwave and heat them to 180-F for 5 minutes or so.

Cheers

 

[TandemTails]

Just bottled my 1 gallon batch of Pappy's Pub Cider! It fermented in primary for 29 days and secondary for 37 days for a total of 66 days. It was extremely hot when I racked to secondary but when I sampled some at bottling today, the hotness has died down dramatically and it tasted really good. The sweetness also went away a little bit too.

Stats:
Size: 1 gal
Yeast: Lalvin EC-1118
OG: 1.096
FG: 1.008
Est ABV: 12.5%
Days in Primary: 29
Days in Secondary: 37
Ferm Temps: Mid 70's

 

[Paps]

If you ferment mid 60`s vs the 70`s it wont produce so many fuesel alcohols and not be so `hot`tasting at 1rst. Letting it age indeed does help with that though. Patience is indeed a virtue with this....Also making 10 gallons plus at a time helps with that vs a 1-gallon batch.
-Cheers.

 

[yankeroo]

5 gals of tree top apple juice (sometimes Motts if the store is out of tree top)
10 LBS table sugar (wal mart brand cheap stuff)
1 packet Lalvin EC-1118 yeast
1 tablespoon yeast nutrient (wyeast beer nutrient blend)

No rocket science here, just dump everything in the carboy and let the champagne yeast do it's thing.Primary till all bubbling of the air lock stops then wait a week.After the week is up rack to 2ndary (optional)
I used "super-kleer K.C."{kieselsol-chitosan} in 2ndary (optional) to clear the cider and the stuff is amazing.Cold crash in the freezer for an hour and bottle.

Do not attempt to drive,operate heavy machinery,or anything requiring coordination or basic motor skills after drinking this.

Cheers.

Do you carb it at all in the bottles? or use anything to condition it?

 

[Paps]

Do you carb it at all in the bottles? or use anything to condition it?

I force carb in a corny keg with beergas so i do not bottle.
Several others here do bottle and their posts offer some insight as to how to get some carb in this via bottling.

As for conditioning......"I used "super-kleer K.C."{kieselsol-chitosan} in 2ndary to clear the cider"
-cheers

 

[yankeroo]

I used Safale US-05 and everything else the same in the original recipe...Has anyone else used this yeast? Will this yeast be able to handle to high ABV?

 

[Paps]

I don't offhand know the alc tolerance of s-05 but i'm sure it's less than the EC-1118.
That being said even the EC is pushed to the max.
It would make a slightly less ABV content cider with more leftover sweetness to it. Which may or may not be what you are after.
-cheers.

 

[BrettNic]

I am about 4 weeks into primary and still bubbling and I started with a OG of 1.128. This stuff is going to be strong!

 

[TandemTails]

I am about 4 weeks into primary and still bubbling and I started with a OG of 1.128. This stuff is going to be strong!

Mine was sitting in primary for about the same length (although my OG was 1.096). I let mine sit in secondary for another 37 days and ended up with an ABV around 12.5%

I had a bottle a few weeks ago and it was really good. I'm letting it sit for a while longer though before I open another one to see if the hotness mellows out even more.

 

[yankeroo]

Have you guys used dextrose instead of table sugar? Curious if those two can be interchangeable?

 

[yankeroo]

Also does anyone know what would if anything, happen if I added a second different yeast strain a week or so into primary fermentation?

 

[Paps]

Have you guys used dextrose instead of table sugar? Curious if those two can be interchangeable?

Can't say that i have used dextrose instead of cheap ole table sugar.
I can't see why you couldn't sub it, but also can't see why you would want to.
It will change the flavor and imho for the worse, I've had a cider with dextrose added and didn't care for it myself.

Also does anyone know what would if anything, happen if I added a second different yeast strain a week or so into primary fermentation?

I'm not sure as again, I've not done this but have read something about EC-1118 being a `killer yeast` which will overpower other yeasts placed into the must.

Alternatively if you want to alter the yeast profile you could do say a belgian style yeast 1rst and then a week or so into primary fermentation then put in the EC-1118.
This would give a week to get those belgian bannana esters going and all that.
Give it a try and let us know how it turns out.

 

[yankeroo]

I can't see why you couldn't sub it, but also can't see why you would want to.
It will change the flavor and imho for the worse, I've had a cider with dextrose added

I ran out of table sugar and didn't have time to run out and grab some. I'm doing a 1 gallon batch so I did a pound of each.

As for the yeast I used s-05 and it doesn't seem to be bubbling as much as it should for how much sugar is in there....

 

[Paps]

Some people do staggered nutrient additions.
Some also do staggered sugar additions.
(generally for meads)
In theory those would also work with cider.
I haven't tried them myself as i'd rather not risk infection by opening the fermentor over and over. I take the lazy man approach and try to keep everything as simple as i possibly can.

The s-o5 should get you to the %12 mark with nutrient additions but probably not much beyond it. This is a very sweet product as is and if using yeasts that won't hit the %18 ABV mark i would suggest using less sugar.

-cheers

 

[Crash21]

I recently made this recipe unknowingly..lol

I used 70% Appple Cider and 30% Pineapple Juice.
I put 5 Gallons of Juice mix into the carboy with 6 LBS of sugar. SG was 1.15.
Used 1118 and nutrient, pectic enzyme.
After 2 weeks fermentation had stopped and the FG was .999.
This should be around the 19.5% ABV according to the online Calculator.
I then added 4 lbs of sugar. After 2 weeks fermentation had NOT restarted.
So I racked to 4 1 gallon carboys (worked out perfectly considering the headspace left in the Primary Carboy and leaving the yeast cake). I had about 1/2 cup to give a taste test.
The Gravity after adding the other 4 lbs of sugar brought it back up to 1.005.
It is very nice. Still some apple flavor left and sweet enough without being too much.
I will let it sit in secondary for a couple of weeks and bottle and chill.

 

[Namesake_Brewery]

I started a version of this and have a question.

Only changes was 4 gallons and 8lbs of sugar.

Question is has anyone jacked a gallon of this? I was going to keg 3 gallons of it and applejack 1 gallon.

 

[Paps]

Question is has anyone jacked this?

Yes.
It is suprisingly subtle.
Took 500-ml down to 200-ml if i remember right.
However finishing at about 18-20% ABV........
You don't really need it jacked.
{this is the part where i mention `moderation` so you don't curse me after you wake up hung over and sore from sticking your ding-ding in a light socket due to being ****faced drunk....or something like that.}