Stuck cider.

[SlaterS]

Soooooo I gots me a stuck cider. Some background...

I used a local vermont organic cold pasteurized cider with no potassium Sorbate to begin with. I have always just dumped and pitched and had a fantastic cider at the end.

This time I tried to get fancy and add some Campden tabs and pectin to clear it up. I added the appropriate amount of crushed Campden, waited 24 hours, added the appropriate amount of Pectic enzyme, waited a further 24 hours. Pitched champagne yeast annnnnnd nothin... No airlock activity at all.

So I decided to give her a good shake and wait... Nothin.... Repair he's with another pack of champagne yeast (rehydrated), annnnnnd nothin... It's been sitting in the airlock for about 3 weeks now, just pulled a gravity sample and still reading 1.058.

Any suggestions? The cider was pretty damn expensive and I want this to work.

Thanks.

 

[WVMJ]

Rehydrate another pack of yeast but this time proof it to make sure it working in like 2 cups water, a couple tablespoons of sugar and quarter teaspoon of citric acid or lemon juice, make sure its bubbling away and add an equal volume of your cider, once that gets going good then add it to your cider. If it does nothing then maybe there is something in your cider like sorbate, you wont know what is going on unless you proof your yeast first to make sure it is alive and well. WVMJ

 

[danath34]

I'm thinking it's one of three things:
1) The cider may have SOME sort of preservative. Check the label.
2) Maybe the first two packs of yeast were expired and not viable? Properly rehydrate and try again (3rd times a charm right??)
3) Maybe the Camden is still having an effect? What's the batch size? If its a small batch, with too much Camden, its possible the 24hr rule of thumb may not hold. I would make sure its in a warm place and shake the crap out of it.

 

[MarkKF]

Temperature? If it's in the 50's that might be it. I always use a starter to check my juice and yeast.

 

[SlaterS]

Ya temp might be a factor I guess, we had a cold spell the past three weeks and it's been hard keeping my house above 65-68.

If it's temp, I should be able to shake the hell out of it as long as I keep it in a warm place right? Yeast don't die off in the 50's low 60's, just sleep. Thoughts?

 

[cujocon]

I never have my cider above 65 degrees and have never had a problem with yeast die-off. I've had success at these temps with D47, US-04, US-05, Montrachet, and others.
I would try another yeast and cross fingers...if it doesn't work, add a few bottles of cheap vodka and drink anyway.
Good luck.

 

[bernardsmith]

I never have my cider above 65 degrees and have never had a problem with yeast die-off. I've had success at these temps with D47, US-04, US-05, Montrachet, and others.
I would try another yeast and cross fingers...if it doesn't work, add a few bottles of cheap vodka and drink anyway.
Good luck.

Champagne yeast typically comes from a killer strain. It doesn't play nicely with other yeasts. I think WVMJ's approach is the best one.. slowly adding the stalled fermentation to the active yeast allows you to immediately see if the problem is located in the stalled batch or the yeast itself... and if the problem is in the stalled batch it will either be remedied with this technique or if the problem is a fundamental one (eg the presence of unlisted or acknowledged sorbates in the juice ) you will see evidence of this very quickly...