Will this clear? Or should I let it?

[aldricmeints]

Will my cider clear if I leave it in the primary fermentor? Should I even let it? Fermentation stopped after about a week and is now finished. It is at about 5.2% with an FG of 1.020 and is quite tasty.

My recipe:
2gallons of unfiltered 100% apple juice(quite cloudy) and three gallons worth of frozen juice concentrate (100% apple with vitamin C added)
1 packet Safale 04 yeast and 1 packet of red star pasteur blanc.

I have about 5gallon volume in my Siphonless big mouth bubbler.

View attachment 1442845438417.jpg

 

[Maylar]

Why would you use 2 different yeasts together?

Either of those yeasts are capable of taking cider dry. I'd say it's not done.

 

[Brian77095]

I would be surprised if it is finished but I guess it could be if you have taken the same sp of .020 a few times now. It will definitely clear if you give it enough time. I would let it go.

If you do like it as it is right now then my next question is how are you going to package it? Bottle or keg?

 

[aldricmeints]

Plan to bottle carb and pasteurize at desired CO2

 

[Brian77095]

Ok so did a little more reading. I think it should clear over time....but, found you can also add pectic enzyme as a clearing agent.

Since you are going to pasteurize I guess it really does not matter if it is finished or not since you will be adding sugar to prime and then pasteurizing.

Let us know how it works out!

 

[wysiwyg]

I recently bottled a 1 gallon cider batch that took 2 months to clear. Used fresh pressed Honeycrisp juice (very cloudy), a whole pound of corn sugar (which made it cloudier), and half sachet of Danstar Munich Wheat yeast. It bubbled vigorously for almost 3 weeks, sat cloudy and slowly bubbled for another 3-4 weeks, then all of a sudden one day it became crystal clear. Then I knew it was done.

I bottled into 22oz bottles with 1 fizz drop each, but I don't expect too much carbonation. In fact, I don't even care if it carbonates, because I plan to use these as 'hot toddys' - empty bottle into saucepan with a bit of brown sugar and a cinnamon stick and heat just until steam rises (alcohol boils off before water).

I did this last year too and it was fanfrickentastic on a cold Minnesota evening!

 

[aldricmeints]

I used 2 yeasts for 2 reasons. 1. The safale delivery got delayed so I didnt quite trust the yeast. Who know how long it was sitting in 105 degree weather in florida. Second reason. The only location I can leave my fermentors is fairly warm 80ish degrees. Warm fermentation with stressed yeast could impart off flavors right? I dont know if that is all the way correct but higher yeast count would mean they are working less hard to convert sugar. Could be totally off on this one. Either way, it is not really going to ruin the cider.

 

[stella_tigre]

Plan to bottle carb and pasteurize at desired CO2

If your cider is really stalled out out 1.020, and you really used 2 gal of juice and 3 gal of concentrate, what was your SG before it started to ferment? Or do you mean 3 gallons of concentrate that was re-constituted to normal juice?
If it is stalled out because you hit the alcohol limits of the yeast, you will not get any bottle carbing. It might have stalled out from lack of nutrients, if you really are at 5%abv and 1.020. All of the sugars in apple juice are fermentable, so it doesn't usually stop at 1.020 on its own. (edited)

 

[TasunkaWitko]

In my experience apple cider or apfelwein will usually clear out after about 8 weeks, maybe a little longer. Once it clears, it is really, really clear.

If yours isn't that far along, I'd say that all it needs is a little time.

 

[aldricmeints]

I reconstituted to regular juice. 1.061 for SG

 

[Gavin C]

1.020 FG for a cider??

It's either not done or you used a refractometer.

This looks totally cloudy to me and entirely consistent with ongoing fermentation. If 1.020 is with a hydrometer that too would be consistent with that.

Unrelated to your question.

Do you plan on passing the beer through that spigot (on it's way to the bottling bucket) that has been submerged all this time. Hopefully not.

 

[stella_tigre]

1.020 FG for a cider??

It's either not done or you used a refractometer.

This looks totally cloudy to me and entirely consistent with ongoing fermentation. If 1.020 is with a hydrometer that too would be consistent with that.

Agree, it's not done. And it looks like it's still fermenting when it's all cloudy like that. Usually the first really bubbly stuff gets done, but the yeast are still munching away on the sugar at a slower rate. If you didn't add nutrients, and/or if you've been keeping the temp down, it will take a while to finish. Cider normally goes all the way to 1.000 or less (I have had S-04 make it to 0.998.) Then it will start to clear naturally, although a pectin haze might remain.

 

[aldricmeints]

Well,,, of course, you all were right. I guess I was thrown off by getting a reading of 1.020 two days in a row. Today it was down to 1.010. It is starting to taste quite dry like a wine. As for the submerged spigot. I always let the spigot soak in a seperate bucket of starsan solution prior to bottling.