My first cider

[redd1982]

I have a quick question. I have been fermenting a batch of hard cider for almost 2 weeks, and I have not come close to the gravity I wanted. I uses Nottingham Ale yeast...can I pitch a pack of S-05 to get this moving?

 

[mrphillips]

Did you use actual cider or apple juice?

How large was your batch? I'm assuming 5 gallons, but many people do smaller batches.

Did you aerate your batch enough? Giving your bucket a quick slosh (though nothing too vigorous) might get the yeast going again.

Did you add any extra sugar?

I think that your choice of Nottingham yeast was a good one, and I don't see any reason why you should have to pitch any more...unless you're making a 10 gallon patch or something like that. Did you take an Original Gravity?

I had a cider that took 3 weeks to stop fermenting. It was slow and steady, so maybe patients is the best remedy. It's the hardest part of brewing!

 

[redd1982]

Yes, I am doing a 5 gal. batch, I also used fresh pressed apple juice from an apple orchard we went to in Indiana. Was a great time...highly recommended if you have kids!

I am still getting action in the airlock, but it's very slow. I added 2 lbs. of sugar, and my OG was 1.081. I posted the question after taking a gravity reading of 1.052. It has been just over 2 weeks. I thought it would be much lower with Nottingham Ale.

I will wait and let you know how it turns out. Thanks for helping...your info helps.

 

[K9de]

How long should a 5 gallon batch be exposed to open air?

I'm currently doing a similar recipe with 2 pounds of sugar, a cup of honey, and %100 percent organic store bought apple juice, and champagne yeast. I did put in some yeast nutrient because I read somewhere that there was not much nutrience for the yeast in pasteurized juice. Everything was put together today and currently seeing one bubble come up every 15 to 25 seconds, but I didn't stir the cider that well after adding the yeast, and the whole thing was exposed to open air after that for maybe 20 minutes tops. should I open and stir?

 

[mrphillips]

NOOOOO! Haha. K9de, just be patient. It sounds like even though you didn't aerate your batch as well as you could have, you have nothing to worry about. Yeast is a beautiful thing, and will work for you if you give it time. I had a batch of cider that did something similar. It fermented for 1.5 weeks, and then stopped. I was skeptical of it being finished, so I just spun my bucket in my swamp cooler 3 or 4 times, and by that night it was bubbling away again, and continued to do so for another 4 days. Just something to think about.

Less exposure to the air is always better, but with it being open for 20 min., there's a very...VERY small chance it might have picked up an infection, but if you open it again, you'll just be asking for trouble. Happy Homebrewing!

 

[K9de]

Thanks for the reply MrPhillips! after about 24 hours the batch is going nice and well, have bubbles coming out every second! So what I was thinking about doing is waiting till it stops burping/bubbling and then rack to a carboy. I have read elsewhere that it should sit in the primary for at least a month. I'm thinking of making this a flat cider, as I heard that if sugars are not dissolved and evenly mixed then there will be no consistency in carbonation.

After a month or when no more bubbles show, should I rack and filter, back sweeten if needed/wanted with nonfermentable sugars, add some pectic enzyme, let sit for another couple week and clear, then bottle some, and rack the rest into 1 gallon carboys?

That way I can let some age, and drink some soon. I know this isn't going to be the best cider / apple wine, have already learned so much in the last 24 hours and wrote down some things I'm going to do differently on my next batch, I just dont want to end up with some stinky fermented apple juice, or vinegar!

I probably shouldn't open it till the bubbles stop or severly slow down in a couple weeks to take a hydrometer record? and do I want to put the juice back from the hydrometer tube back into the batch?

thanks!

 

[redd1982]

Ok. I am on almost 4.5 weeks into fermentation and my airlock is going insane, and I am only at 4.5 abv (looking for 6.2%). I know I can wait, but I have lost almost 1.5 gals on a 4 gal batch. I see that as a problem.

Is there any reason I shouldn't cold crash to make this a "bottlable cider". I don't want to create bottle bombs.

Help me out. Thanks.

 

[podz]

Ok. I am on almost 4.5 weeks into fermentation and my airlock is going insane, and I am only at 4.5 abv (looking for 6.2%). I know I can wait, but I have lost almost 1.5 gals on a 4 gal batch. I see that as a problem.

Is there any reason I shouldn't cold crash to make this a "bottlable cider". I don't want to create bottle bombs.

Help me out. Thanks.

How have you lost 1.5 gallons of cider? Where did it go?

If you cold crash and bottle, you will create bombs.

What is your hydrometer reading now?

Cider doesn't ferment nearly as fast as wine or beer because it's generally missing the same level of nutrients for the yeast. It can easily go on fermenting for 2 months depending on temperature and starting gravity.

Another thing: adding 2 lbs (that's 900 grams) of sugar in a 5 gallon batch does not produce cider, it produces apple wine. I use 750 grams of sugar and it hits over 9% ABV if fermented dry (0.996). With 900 grams of sugar, you're looking at 10-11% ABV if fermented dry. Apple juice without any added sugar at all will hit nearly 6% ABV fermented dry.

Give it time, or if you're impatient to drink then split the batch into smaller jugs with airlocks and cold crash one at a time in your fridge as you get thirsty.

EDIT: I just read that Nottingham will ferment down to 1.008. Starting at 1.081, this will give you 9.58% ABV by the time it finishes fermenting. Your target ABV calculations were way off.

 

[snuesen]

Any posted yeast tolerance is usually just for beer brewing, by the way.

Nottingham may finish 1.008 in an ale, but it will eat up simple sugars in a cider very readily. Not uncommon to see a cider finish below 1.000.

 

[podz]

Yeah, so as I first estimated - we are looking at the production of an 11% ABV apple wine here, not a cider.

 

[Yooper]

Ok. I am on almost 4.5 weeks into fermentation and my airlock is going insane, and I am only at 4.5 abv (looking for 6.2%). I know I can wait, but I have lost almost 1.5 gals on a 4 gal batch. I see that as a problem.

Is there any reason I shouldn't cold crash to make this a "bottlable cider". I don't want to create bottle bombs.

Help me out. Thanks.

How did the cider get lost? Isn't it in a fermenter? Did someone drink 1/4 of it or something? I don't understand where it went!

 

[mrphillips]

Like others have said, cold crashing doesn't take ALL the yeast out of solution. It's nearly IMPOSIBLE to take all the yeast out of solution. What you could do to stop fermentation is get yourself some potassium sorbate - it will stop the yeast from producing alcohol. It costs about a $1.50 at your homebrew store, and if you add it when your gravity is around 1.010-1.015, you shouldn't need to backsweeten your cider. Of course, this also means that you won't be able to carbonate because the yeast won't be able to eat up the priming sugar.

I would check the gravity to see where it's at, and if it's above 1.040, give it another week of fermenting, and you'll probably be close to your magic gravity number.

 

[Yooper]

Like others have said, cold crashing doesn't take ALL the yeast out of solution. It's nearly IMPOSIBLE to take all the yeast out of solution. What you could do to stop fermentation is get yourself some potassium sorbate - it will stop the yeast from producing alcohol. It costs about a $1.50 at your homebrew store, and if you add it when your gravity is around 1.010-1.015, you shouldn't need to backsweeten your cider. Of course, this also means that you won't be able to carbonate because the yeast won't be able to eat up the priming sugar.

I would check the gravity to see where it's at, and if it's above 1.040, give it another week of fermenting, and you'll probably be close to your magic gravity number.

Sorbate doesn't work to stop an active fermentation, at least not in my experience. It only inhibits yeast reproduction, and in an active fermentation there are billions and billions of yeast that don't need to reproduce so it's ineffective in stopping an active fermentation.

It works well in a finished fermentation, when the cider/wine is totally clear and without any lees in the bottom, since there are less yeast in suspension. The sorbate then can be very effective to prevent renewed fermentation. It doesn't always work, as yeast are pretty tough buggers, but it's oftentimes effective if done right.

 

[redd1982]

How have you lost 1.5 gallons of cider? Where did it go? If you cold crash and bottle, you will create bombs. What is your hydrometer reading now? Cider doesn't ferment nearly as fast as wine or beer because it's generally missing the same level of nutrients for the yeast. It can easily go on fermenting for 2 months depending on temperature and starting gravity. Another thing: adding 2 lbs (that's 900 grams) of sugar in a 5 gallon batch does not produce cider, it produces apple wine. I use 750 grams of sugar and it hits over 9% ABV if fermented dry (0.996). With 900 grams of sugar, you're looking at 10-11% ABV if fermented dry. Apple juice without any added sugar at all will hit nearly 6% ABV fermented dry. Give it time, or if you're impatient to drink then split the batch into smaller jugs with airlocks and cold crash one at a time in your fridge as you get thirsty. EDIT: I just read that Nottingham will ferment down to 1.008. Starting at 1.081, this will give you 9.58% ABV by the time it finishes fermenting. Your target ABV calculations were way off.

Thanks for the info. This is helpful. The part about the "1.5 gals" was a typo. I am currently at 1.045 for my gravity reading after 4.5 weeks. Fermentation is going slow, but it worried me that it was soo active. I have never made a cider.