5 Day cider? No way...

[drakeskakes]

So I'm still very new to brewing. I've done a fair amount of all grain batches with my friend, but I'm starting to work my way to flying solo.

I decided to try some ciders. Before investing in 5 gallons of any one recipe I decided to do 5x 1gallon batches all with different brands of cider, some with some added honey, different yeasts ect.

I ended up buying 1 gallon of fresh pressed cider directly from the ranch Smit Orchards at $15/g. I poured about 1 cup in a glass and tossed the yeast in, gave it a good stir and set it aside for about 12 hours. Then, pitched the activated yeast after a standard sanitizing protocol and waited. When I woke up the next morning, the air lock was going bazzerk. 30-40 burps per minute. This pace continued from Tuesday morning to Friday night. Saturday morning, I woke up and the air lock was stalled out. I was a little nervous but let it sit. 12 hours later, same thing. No burps and no more bubbles from the bottom. I took the risk and tested the FG and I was surprised when it read 1.000. The OG was 1.070.

Still skeptical, I rapid chilled, kegged and drank. It gave me a buzz and tasted great.

So as far as my knowledge of drinking goes.

Does is taste good? "Yes"
Did it get you drunk? "Yes"
"Congrats, You made booze"

So, Cider in 5 days? What happened?

 

[dcodd87]

Wow! I have no freaking idea! The only thing that would even come to mind, and again it could be completely false, is the fact that it was fresh squeezed cider. Is it possible that there were nutrients and other things the yeast fed off of because it was fresh?

It's a bird, no its a plane, no look it's SUPERYEAST!

 

[FuzzeWuzze]

Depends what you consider tasting good.

Cider that young is definately drinkable, it really depends on what yeast you used.

FWIW many ciders like Edworts are done with Champagne or wine yeast, which will get you well below 1.0 and produce a really dry cider. Its far from undrinkable, if you like dry white whine you'd love it...it just doesnt have an abundance of Apple flavor.

If your still at 1.0 you likely have some sugars left in there, which will make the apple flavor more pronounced.

 

[drakeskakes]

Depends what you consider tasting good.

Cider that young is definately drinkable, it really depends on what yeast you used.

FWIW many ciders like Edworts are done with Champagne or wine yeast, which will get you well below 1.0 and produce a really dry cider. Its far from undrinkable, if you like dry white whine you'd love it...it just doesnt have an abundance of Apple flavor.

If your still at 1.0 you likely have some sugars left in there, which will make the apple flavor more pronounced.

I used Red Star Pasteur Champagne Yeast. I'm convinced it has to do with creating a starter. Also, someone at the brew mart suggested there was natural wild yeast nutrient in the cider and I refused to simmer it.

It is certainly on the "Dry" side, which I actually prefer. My roommates say it does taste slightly like "Apple cider that had ice cubes melt in it" so the apple cider taste has backed off. Which is in line with your assumptions. I think for the 5 gallon batch I will toss in two can of concentrate which I will actually make myself from the cider, not store bought apple juice. I'll keep it cool to prevent further ferm, or toss some Sorbate in there if I decide to go to secondary.

I'm baffled, but it is friggen strong. I wouldn't call it the best cider I have ever had but it is definitely tasty and drinkable.

 

[kroog]

Try ale yeast next time and let it sit for 48 hours after action stops.
I prime before bottling with a can of apple juice concentrate and love the results.
5 days for cider? Yup. That apple cider is full of all the stuff yeast love. I try to keep the temp under 70. Warmer than that I've had some off flavors. Let it sit after bottling. If you like it now you'll love it in a month.

 

[TopherM]

I do alot of ciders, and I could easily create conditions for a 1-2 day fermentation, quick carb, and be serving it on day 2 or 3.

HOWEVER, "tastes good" is likely very relative here. It's just like beer - you have a young, green cider. If it tastes good to you, awesome, but mark my words, the last pint you drink will be the best.

I make all of my ciders to about 6.1% ABV, and they seem to peak around the 4-5 month range.

Yes, you've made a drinkable cider, but it will be much much better with some conditioning/aging.