Man, I love Apfelwein

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Been on an Apfelwein kick

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Edbert said:
I have been making beer for a long time, and recently trying some mead. One of the main drawbacks (for me) to mead is the long wait from pitch to drink. My 1st batch of Apfelwein is right at 3 weeks old, straight up Edwort's recipe, but still pretty cloudy. I have no intention of trying it before 4 weeks but I am also concerned that it is so cloudy at 22 days.
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It stays cloudy a long time. Just leave it alone; it will clear up crystal clear, on its own, with time.
 
whoaru99 said:
It stays cloudy a long time. Just leave it alone; it will clear up crystal clear, on its own, with time.
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I agree. I am on the 4th month of first batch. Pretty clear right now. Wasn't clear at all until maybe round 3. I bottled all mine to sit for awhile while I brew another batch in its place in the carboy.

Pics of "leftovers" from bottling.

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I made my first batch of this however where I live most of the LHBS are pretty bone dry for things. Unless it's kits. I recently discovered a store in a city I often work in that had a pile of hops. Jackpot. I ended up making mine with rudeshimer wyeast. I ordered some montrachet knowing i'd like to make another batch of this and to do it right. I can't wait though. There's pages and pages on how good this stuff is (thank you edwort for this plus everything else) and I wont be able to drink it for some time haha. Brutal.
 
I need to start another batch of apfelwein... I'm almost halfway through my first 5 gallon batch. This time, I think i'm going to carb it.

Might even have a kegerator built by then... :)
 
I'm a bottle-carbed addict of this stuff. My most recent (November 2013) 54L batch is ready. I used Lalvin K1-V1116. I have experimented with Montrachet, I find this just as good, and it is readily available to me.

This batch I also ran out of dextrose, my third 10kg bag was all used up (did I mention I am a professional apfelwein consumer?) So I used brown sugar. I had heard positive and negative reviews of it, but I really, really like the result. The only downfall is I had to boil the sugar in apple juice so it would mix in easily.

I also scored some %100 apple juice from a local grocery store for $1/1.89L (which I think is $2/US Gallon.) And Costco continues to have Grolsch 12-packs for $18. My bottle supply is well over 100. The recycling guy must really wonder about the bags & bags of crushed plastic juice bottles...
 
Made my first batch per directions except I added about 36 inches of cinnamon stick and used fresh pressed cider that I had pressed the night before. No added sugars. (I had poor record keeping when I made this batch :( )
 
Hello all,

I followed this Edwort Apfelwein recipe, and my apfelwein is sitting at 30 days from the beginning of the process. I tasted my first glass this weekend, and I really liked the flavor and color. Should I continue to let this sit for another three months, or should I bottle/keg it now?

Thanks,
Fred
 
I would get a hydrometer reading now (good excuse to drink another sample) and again in 2 weeks as this can drop VERY slowly toward the end for some reason. If they are the same, you are good to bottle without worrying about bombs.
 
Bleme,

Why does the original recipe say that you should let it sit for 4 months? Will it do something different over the next 3 months?

THanks,
Fred
 
I plan on making this fine libation! Can I force carb it just like I do my homebrew? Thanks!
 
benco said:
I plan on making this fine libation! Can I force carb it just like I do my homebrew? Thanks!
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Yes you can, good stuff, enjoy:mug:
donttread said:
Bleme,

Why does the original recipe say that you should let it sit for 4 months? Will it do something different over the next 3 months?

THanks,
Fred
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It gets better and clearer:mug:
 
donttread said:
Bleme,

Why does the original recipe say that you should let it sit for 4 months? Will it do something different over the next 3 months?

THanks,
Fred
Click to expand...

Like everyone said, it get better with age. You can certainly bottle it after a month, I have, but once you bottle it you're likely to drink it
 
If I bottle it after sitting for just one month, will I get the same benefits from letting it sit in the bottles as opposed to sitting in the 5 gal. carboy?
 
donttread said:
If I bottle it after sitting for just one month, will I get the same benefits from letting it sit in the bottles as opposed to sitting in the 5 gal. carboy?
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Not a difference really. They are still aging either way. The only difference when its in the carboy still is you cant start drinking it
 
Just for fun I tried some Cider juice (not sure how to call the non fermented cider :D ) from Central Market. That stuff they sell around Christmas.
I used ED's approach as I have done all the time with regular juice. But the result was weird. It never seemed to ferment as much as the normal apple juice. And it stayed cloudy all the time for weeks. After about 6 weeks it still had a very juicy smell like the Cider juice. But when I tested the gravity the hydrometer basically sank to the bottom. :drunk:
So I kegged it, carbonated and cooled it. It has an interesting taste. Very much as the non fermented juice but with a kick in the back. My wife loves it but I am missing the tartness of the Cider made from regular juice.
Anyone had some similar experience?
 
Texastrooper said:
Just for fun I tried some Cider juice (not sure how to call the non fermented cider :D ) from Central Market. That stuff they sell around Christmas.
I used ED's approach as I have done all the time with regular juice. But the result was weird. It never seemed to ferment as much as the normal apple juice. And it stayed cloudy all the time for weeks. After about 6 weeks it still had a very juicy smell like the Cider juice. But when I tested the gravity the hydrometer basically sank to the bottom. :drunk:
So I kegged it, carbonated and cooled it. It has an interesting taste. Very much as the non fermented juice but with a kick in the back. My wife loves it but I am missing the tartness of the Cider made from regular juice.
Anyone had some similar experience?
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I'll let you know. I'm 2 weeks into primary. First batch with tree top apple cider. OG was 1.052 for a 6 gallon batch
 
Hey y'all about to throw together my second batch, pr 6 gallons. What's the opinions on ABV and dextrose qauntities?


Sent from my iPhone using Home Brew
 
houndazs said:
I'll let you know. I'm 2 weeks into primary. First batch with tree top apple cider. OG was 1.052 for a 6 gallon batch
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Cool so if 2bs dextrose in 6 gal gave you .052, that'd be about 6.8 ABV finished at 1.0.

Does anyone oxygenate the straight juice and or dextrose mixture?
 
Well I'm stoked. Finally threw together again 6 gallons of Treetop and 2 lbs dextrose for OG 1.060. Good aeration with the jugs, no Oxygen. Double pitched.
 
Do you think it would be safe to bottle this stuff carbed in rum bottles? We dug through our bottles when we started making wine and have saved all of our older rum bottles. I figured I could try and carb them in it, they're glass and have screw caps. Think they'll hold up to the carb or is there something special about the glass in champagne and beer bottles? (newb).

I made mine with rudeshimer yeast as I couldn't find montrachet. I've ordered some montrachet yeast and would like to bottle this stuff up once it's ready to age in the bottles.

Also, should I be worried about sunlight hitting this? Or is that not much of a concern as it is with beer?
 
Liquor caps don't hold much pressure, which would be a saving grace here, since otherwise you'd be making bottle bombs.

Don't use rum bottles. If it wasn't sold with a carbonated beverage in it, it isn't strong enough- after all, pressure vessels cost more, and companies aren't in the habit of wasting money.
 
Liquor caps don't hold much pressure, which would be a saving grace here, since otherwise you'd be making bottle bombs.

Don't use rum bottles. If it wasn't sold with a carbonated beverage in it, it isn't strong enough- after all, pressure vessels cost more, and companies aren't in the habit of wasting money.
 
Ok guys I made a one gallon batch of Ed Wort's apfelwein and have a question. I followed his recipe but used two quarts of cranberry juice and two quarts of Apple juice.

I pitched the yeast on 01/07/2014, fermenting in a 2 gallon plastic bucket. Finally racked into a one gallon glass jug tonight which is 02/25/14.

For whatever reason, I could not fill the glass jug all the way to the top. Will this be ok to age for 6-8 months? I've included a picture below. Thanks!

EDIT: Also, should I have just aged this in bottles instead of the one gallon glass jug? I know it's bad to continually rack because it exposes the wine to oxygen?
 

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