Racked to secondary...now what?

[NicholasL]

Hi Everyone,

Newbie cider maker here - started with fresh pressed apple juice (we pressed them ourselves), added Campden tablets to kill off the natural yeast, pectic enzyme, sugar and yeast nutrient. Next day I added champagne yeast. Still not clear on how to use hydrometer but I believe OG was 1.040 before I added the sugar. I let the juice ferment in a Demijohn for 2 weeks and after checking there were no signs of continuing fermentation, and taking another gravity reading which was 1.000, I racked off the cider into a smaller demijohn (15L) to reduce the head-space.

Here are my questions -

1. I know at this point I can start drinking the cider, but is it best to let it age further - say another 2 weeks to a month? What would I be looking to accomplish by letting it sit in secondary?

2. Also, I have heard that head-space can lead to spoilage, which is a bit confusing to me. My grandfather made wine since the dawn of time, and he would attach a syphon with a tap to the demijohn and leave it in the cold cellar and fill bottles as needed, and he never had any spoilage. If I did the same thing, am I running the risk of spoilage? Is it best to fill gallon jugs/bottles once I am ready to start drinking it?

3. When (if at all) should I add Campden tablets again to stabilize the cider?

I've attached a picture of my cider sitting in secondary.

Appreciate the help!

Thanks,

Nick

 

[RPh_Guy]

Your questions don't have simple answers, but I'll take a stab at them.

1. I know at this point I can start drinking the cider, but is it best to let it age further - say another 2 weeks to a month? What would I be looking to accomplish by letting it sit in secondary?

You can certainly drink the cider whenever you want.
Short term, the yeast may continue to clean up fermentation byproducts (e.g. diacetyl and acetaldehyde) depending on how much was produced during fermentation. Oxygen will react with hydrogen sulfide, removing it.
Longer term:
Age and cold both improve clarity (if that matters to you, or if you want to stabilize in order to sweeten). It will clear regardless, it just depends whether the sediment collects in your secondary vs the package. You could also use fining agents to improve clarity faster.
If you choose not to add sulfite, the natural microbes may conduct MLF or if you have Brett it will add flavor. Also without sulfite, if there is too much oxygen, acetic acid (vinegar) may form.
Oxidation changes the cider, shifting it from fresh to mature. That's a matter of personal taste whether you like that.
Age can also degrade the higher alcohols that add "hotness" if you didn't control fermentation temp well enough to prevent them.

2. Also, I have heard that head-space can lead to spoilage, which is a bit confusing to me.

Mainly vinegar formation, as I mentioned above, but other off flavors are also possible.

he would attach a syphon with a tap to the demijohn and leave it in the cold cellar and fill bottles as needed, and he never had any spoilage.

Cold slows down the microbes.
Also, maybe you guys were just used to the vinegar tang and other wild flavors. It's not offensive or unusual if you expect it to be there. I personally don't mind a little bit of acetic acid, and even embrace wild yeast flavor because it's delicious.

. When (if at all) should I add Campden tablets again to stabilize the cider?

If you want to prevent oxidation and the effects of the wild microbes you should add sulfite immediately. Or if your want to bottle and carbonate, I would do that right now instead.
That's completely your call.

Cheers

 

[ten80]

That's not very much headspace, but you can add sanitized clear marbles if you want to reduce it further for long-term aging. I add ~50 ppm sulfites (from sodium metabisulfite) at each racking to stabilize cider. You can age cider as long as you want, I have a few still in the carboy from last fall that are patiently waiting to be kegged or bottled.

 

[Miraculix]

Hi Everyone,

Newbie cider maker here - started with fresh pressed apple juice (we pressed them ourselves), added Campden tablets to kill off the natural yeast, pectic enzyme, sugar and yeast nutrient. Next day I added champagne yeast. Still not clear on how to use hydrometer but I believe OG was 1.040 before I added the sugar. I let the juice ferment in a Demijohn for 2 weeks and after checking there were no signs of continuing fermentation, and taking another gravity reading which was 1.000, I racked off the cider into a smaller demijohn (15L) to reduce the head-space.

Here are my questions -

1. I know at this point I can start drinking the cider, but is it best to let it age further - say another 2 weeks to a month? What would I be looking to accomplish by letting it sit in secondary?

2. Also, I have heard that head-space can lead to spoilage, which is a bit confusing to me. My grandfather made wine since the dawn of time, and he would attach a syphon with a tap to the demijohn and leave it in the cold cellar and fill bottles as needed, and he never had any spoilage. If I did the same thing, am I running the risk of spoilage? Is it best to fill gallon jugs/bottles once I am ready to start drinking it?

3. When (if at all) should I add Campden tablets again to stabilize the cider?

I've attached a picture of my cider sitting in secondary.

Appreciate the help!

Thanks, View attachment 647510

Nick

The much more important question is, what is that in the background? I first thought it is a Nordlead, but I think it is not.... WHAT IS IT!???

 

[Sequoiacider]

I'd say the amount of headspace you have there is just fine.
You can let it sit in secondary as long or as short as you like. I bottle the cider once it has reached the clarity that I desire, which for me is clear enough to read a newspaper through. The amount of time that takes can vary based on a number of factors, but with my process typically takes about 2 weeks in secondary. I do add a half-dose of additional pectic enzyme when I rack to secondary to aid the clarification.
Regarding adding additional Campden, I wouldn't. Unless you are planning on letting it sit in secondary for a long time, adding campden at this point will potentially leave your cider with a sulphite level that can be tasted.

Your options at this point are very dependent on what kind of cider you want. Do you want a sweet cider or a dry cider? Do you want it Still or Sparkiling? (Note: Sweet and Sparkling is a difficult combination, not recommended for a 1st timer).

 

[Miraculix]

Korg Electribe?

 

[ten80]

Regarding adding additional Campden, I wouldn't. Unless you are planning on letting it sit in secondary for a long time, adding campden at this point will potentially leave your cider with a sulphite level that can be tasted.

Sulfite taste threshold is around 100 ppm total SO2 in a bottled wine (thresholds vary by person), so adding 50 ppm for long-term aging where the SO2 will dissipate over time (become bound to organics or partition to headspace) should leave you well below taste thresholds. Just keep in mind that bound sulfites are added with each sulfite addition and eventually you may exceed the taste threshold.

Here's an interesting read on sulfites:
http://srjcstaff.santarosa.edu/~jhenderson/Sulfur Dioxide.pdf

 

[NicholasL]

Thanks everyone for the great advice and insight! Very much appreciated. I like a nice clear dry cider, sweetness isn't too important to me and I am fine if the cider is still as well. I think I am going to let it age in secondary until it is at my desired clarity and then start drinking. I suppose I was overthinking it! I was just worried about spoilage after I began dipping into the batch and increasing the head-space as we drank it, but now I see there isn't anything to worry about.

Thanks again.

Also, if anyone has any advice on how I could go about achieving a sweet and sparking cider I'd love to hear it (for my batch next Autumn, of course).

 

[NicholasL]

Korg Electribe?

haha! A fellow musician - its a Nord Electro 3 - 73 key.

 

[Miraculix]

haha! A fellow musician - its a Nord Electro 3 - 73 key.

Nice!

So i was close with the Nordlead!