Major yeast cakes from

[Melou]

*Moderator: if you can update the thread's title to "Major yeast cake from unfiltered juice?" I would appreciate it! Thanks!*

Hi guys,

I have noticed and confirmed that using using cloudy juice produces some very thick yeast cakes. Got it with and with pectin enzyme and also with S-04, Belle Saison and EC-1118.

This time around I had planned ahead to avoid an underfilled corboy, and ended up with a 5L yeast cake sediment on a 27L primary after 3 weeks in primary. Other batches when I'm using my local Mott's-type clear cider yielded a mere 1L worth of yeast cake.

That 20% loss of volume is a tad much.

This is probably me being such a noob, but is that a common thing of using unfiltered juice ? Or am I special? (shotbus!)

 

[Maylar]

Ahem... it's "lees", please

And yes, I typically lose about 1/4 of my primary when racking off the lees.

 

[laredo7mm]

Yup, pretty normal as Maylar said. The only way to reduce the amount in your primary it is to use the pectic enzyme and then let it sit for 12 to 24 hours or so for the solids to settle and then rack to another container. Then pitch your yeast.

But, you will still have the same volume loss so I don't bother with that. I did it once and it was just more work.

The orchard juice I buy leaves me with about a half gallon of lees and yeast after fermentation is done. That is with a 5.5 gallon batch.

 

[Melou]

Well, I guess that's the flip side of the more complex hard cider you get from going the cloudy way.

Thanks guys!

Maylar, I get what you're saying that they're lees, but I thought the specific term would be yeast cake? Unless yeast cake would only apply to top layer of yeast on top of the lees? *Diizz! Diizz!* I'm shorting! Thanks for your insight... newbie AND frenchy here...