I'm with him...I have 5 gallons I made from my own pressed apples. Astringent was a good word.
I bottled my first batch at 6 weeks last weekend. It's fantastic. I know some people don't like the dryness but I think it's some of the best stuff I've ever made...perhaps even drank. It reminds me of a dry white wine but with a really nice apple presence. I used Langer's juice, brown sugar, and the recommended Montrachet wine yeast.
Anyone ever age some of this on oak chips?
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I have mostly lurked and learned but I just had to say "thanks" to everyone that promoted this fine beverage. I started mine on 2/9 and I bottled it last night. I popped a top just now and I am very pleased. It is a little younger than recommended so I plan on starting a second batch this weekend and I hope it will make it for 3-5 months. Good stuff and thanks for all the inputs and information!
Thanks and I have a question for you. I put 6 in the frig last night. When I popped the top I heard a little "pssft". The bulk of what I bottled was left out of the frig. I did not kill the yeast. Should I worry? Or should I just stay up tonight drinking? :cross:
I didn't carbonate them but I did think about it but since I am very new to this I keep it simple. My final was less than 1.0. My second bottle out of the fridge didn't give any indication of any pressure. I am guessing that I am over thinking this. But to the experts....what say you?
I wouldnt worry about it at all. Im sure that first one was just because you had been mixing up some of the yeast in suspension. Even when I carbed, I never had an issue. You should be golden!
Hey, my apfelwein took 2nd place in the Specialty Cider category of the Ocean State Homebrew Competition! Thanks EdWort! Now I can tell people to try my "award winning" apfelwein.
Where and when was this? I wish I knew about it.
What temp you guys ferment at?
It was the Ocean State Homebrew Competition at Johnson & Wales.
For my last batch I believe I fermented at 70 degrees.
My first batch of this has been in the primary fermenter for a little over a month. Had a sample of it a couple days ago and it was delicious.
I was wondering if I continued to "sample" this from the top using a wine thief, would I expect the product I'm drinking to taste the same as the stuff in the middle and bottom of the carboy? What I'm getting at is does this (or any other fermented liquid) separate at all ever?
Mmmmm...apfelwein. I'm drinking some right now out of a wine glass (portion control, haha!).
My apfelwein is only a few months old - although my wine palate is not very refined, to me, it tastes like an $8-10 bottle of white wine here in Canuckistan. AND I LOVE IT. I also have some carbed, but I prefer it flat (am I the only one???).
I'm getting ready to start another batch, but I'm worried that I just got lucky my first time around since so many people have discussed long-term aging and carbonation.
Mmmmm...apfelwein. I'm drinking some right now out of a wine glass (portion control, haha!).
My apfelwein is only a few months old - although my wine palate is not very refined, to me, it tastes like an $8-10 bottle of white wine here in Canuckistan. AND I LOVE IT. I also have some carbed, but I prefer it flat (am I the only one???).
I'm getting ready to start another batch, but I'm worried that I just got lucky my first time around since so many people have discussed long-term aging and carbonation.
So after all this reading (not all 1200 pages, but a few hundred), I got excited. I ran out and got 6 gallons of walmart apple juice, a pack of Montrachet, and 2 lbs of table sugar. I emptied half of 2 bottles into the carboy, put a pound of sugar in each and shook the bejesus out of them. I added them to the carboy, and dropped the rest of the 6 gallons into the carboy and shook it for awhile. After rehydrating the yeast, I threw it into the carboy, put an airlock on it, and walked away for 3 weeks. And forgot to grab an OG reading lol
But... I put my wine thief to work and tasted this 2 days ago. Let me tell you, given that it's so green, hasn't aged, etc, I am hella impressed! It's not "crystal" clear (a very very slight haze left), but it's DAMN clear compared to golden beers that I've made! It finished at 1.000 and is dry, but surprisingly enjoyable! I could drink it as it is! But I'm going to bottle next weekend and put a few away in the closet somewhere to forget about. And I will promptly be starting another 5-6 gallon batch (or 2) next weekend!
Considering how easy this is to make, and how wonderful it tastes (I can only imagine how great it'll be later), this will be a staple. And I'm already making plans to bottle and gift this stuff for the holidays.
Thanks, Ed!
Just some observations from making 4 batches of this stuff. My first batch made with Costco fresh pressed apple juice was just ok. Had a real pungent sour aftertaste and only became drinkable after 6 months.
My next two batches were god awful using walmart el cheapo juice. Incredibly sour tasting. Let them age but every time I tasted a bottle I wound up pouring it out. Dumped all the rest of these, just too sour and awful.
My latest batch I decided to spend a little more and bought 4 gallons of musslemans apple cider and 2 gallons of tree top apple cider. Added pectic enzyme at the beginning. At 5 weeks it was done and clear and let me tell you it is wonderful. Nice clean crisp flavor with no sourness. After this latest result, I am convinced the quality of the juice you use is extremely important.
I'd like to hear what if anything can be done to reduce the sour and tart flavors and bring back more apple.
I've only made 2 5-gallon batches of this stuff, once with table sugar and the 2nd time using the correct sugar, both times with "Tree Top" brand juice.
Both batches had no trouble clearing. I've tried it both sparkling and still, like both. The finish is totally clean and crisp with a high amount of dryness, which I do not like in wine but can enjoy anyway. My only complaint is the sourness. Note, it is not that bad, I've never poured out any apfelwein and do not intend to start.
I just figured the heavy tart aftertaste is just part of the recipe, does the pectic enzyme help sweeten it? I backsweetened a gallon with some Orange Blossom honey but I think the yeasties ate it since it was not sweet after 2 weeks.
I'd like to hear what if anything can be done to reduce the sour and tart flavors and bring back more apple.
I've done some mixing of meads with other beverages upon serving, depending on desired result. You could add a lil apple juice to each glass upon serving....that way you'll get a bit more apple flavor as well as a lil more sweetness....and stretch the bottle(s)...maybe mix with Sprite or 7-Up, have an apfelwein spritzer, or something...Back-sweetening does that. You can either sweeten and pasteurize or sweeten in your glass.
But I'm going to bottle next weekend and put a few away in the closet somewhere to forget about.
Thanks, Ed!
I'd like to hear what if anything can be done to reduce the sour and tart flavors and bring back more apple.
So i had plenty of AJ and yeast lying around because i was planning on making a graff..then sometime after midnight last night i decided that i would just make an apfelwein. i hadn't made one in a long time and being a typical male, decided that i didn't need to check the directions.
..and i totally forgot the corn sugar. i did follow edwort's recipe for the rest (i used montrachet, etc). to further complicate things, my car is in the shop, so i don't think that i can make it to a home brew store for corn sugar. should i walk to the supermarket for some brown sugar or frozen juice concentrate? does it matter that i'm adding this after the yeast?
thanks!
So i had plenty of AJ and yeast lying around because i was planning on making a graff..then sometime after midnight last night i decided that i would just make an apfelwein. i hadn't made one in a long time and being a typical male, decided that i didn't need to check the directions.
..and i totally forgot the corn sugar. i did follow edwort's recipe for the rest (i used montrachet, etc). to further complicate things, my car is in the shop, so i don't think that i can make it to a home brew store for corn sugar. should i walk to the supermarket for some brown sugar or frozen juice concentrate? does it matter that i'm adding this after the yeast?
thanks!
Be very careful adding it though. If your fermentation has started producing gas, it could go off like a volcano when you add the sugar. Think Mentos in a 2 liter of Coke trick. Something with the granulation makes the gas release rapidly. A friend of mine had it happen a day into a fresh batch when he added a few extra ounces of dextrose.
Will I have any issues leaving just 2 gallons sit in a 5 gallon bucket for that long?
Sort of, because when you start drinking it, you are going to kick yourself for not filling it on up. It's not too late to add 3 more gallons in there...
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