First Cider

[ssorck]

Well I decided to go ahead and hit the cider today. As a first 'experiment' I just left the cider in a primary jug for 4 weeks and just poured it carefully into a couple of growlers leaving the dregs behind and stuck plastic wrap over them and in the fridge. I'm gonna drink a good bit of this today!

I went from OG of 1.067 to FG of .0992 for a 9.84 % alcohol. Tart and dry, I like it!

So if I wanted to bottle and age future batches and didn't want to bother carbing could I just bottle as is? Any risk of bottle bombs doing so? I wouldn't think so as long as the yeast is done but not sure...

[Root Skier]

Well I decided to go ahead and hit the cider today. As a first 'experiment' I just left the cider in a primary jug for 4 weeks and just poured it carefully into a couple of growlers leaving the dregs behind and stuck plastic wrap over them and in the fridge. I'm gonna drink a good bit of this today!

I went from OG of 1.067 to FG of .0992 for a 9.84 % alcohol. Tart and dry, I like it!

So if I wanted to bottle and age future batches and didn't want to bother carbing could I just bottle as is? Any risk of bottle bombs doing so? I wouldn't think so as long as the yeast is done but not sure...

Hey 9.84%, that's awesome! I think if you got down to 0.992, the yeast got all the sugar it could. I think you'll be ok so long as you store them below the yeast's temp range or drink them fast enough. What kind of yeast did you use?

My 3rd batch I racked to a secondary Friday after 17 days. I just used a leftover Mr. Beer gold packet and went from 1.076og to 1.002fg for 9.71%. It's delicious. The best I've made yet. It still had a bit of residual sweetness that's just the right amount for me.

[Yankeedag]

Well I decided to go ahead and hit the cider today. As a first 'experiment' I just left the cider in a primary jug for 4 weeks and just poured it carefully into a couple of growlers leaving the dregs behind and stuck plastic wrap over them and in the fridge. I'm gonna drink a good bit of this today!

I went from OG of 1.067 to FG of .0992 for a 9.84 % alcohol. Tart and dry, I like it!

So if I wanted to bottle and age future batches and didn't want to bother carbing could I just bottle as is? Any risk of bottle bombs doing so? I wouldn't think so as long as the yeast is done but not sure...

Hey 9.84%, that's awesome! I think if you got down to 0.992, the yeast got all the sugar it could. I think you'll be ok so long as you store them below the yeast's temp range or drink them fast enough. What kind of yeast did you use?

My 3rd batch I racked to a secondary Friday after 17 days. I just used a leftover Mr. Beer gold packet and went from 1.076og to 1.002fg for 9.71%. It's delicious. The best I've made yet. It still had a bit of residual sweetness that's just the right amount for me.

I've been doing ciders for a while.
Yes, you can bottle as is without fear of bottle bombs. I don't carb my ciders, unless I put it in the 3 gallon keg I have. I stopped trying to carb the cider as it never really came out with consistant pressures..maybe my fault. In about a year, most of that 'tart' will be gone. I use lactose in my ciders just so it can be drank within 90 days of bottling.

[radonc73]

Are you supposed to kill the yeast? I had googled a recipe for the 5 gallons my wife bought me and some call for stovetop heating to kill they yeast to avoid bottle bombs. If I don't have to I would rather not heat it up too much. Seems like a recipe for bottle bombs its self.

[Root Skier]

I want to make an applewine of around 15% abv that still has some residual sweetness. I figure I will need to start around 1.120og and I'd let it go to around 1.004fg. I plan on using EC-1118 yeast for this.

How do I figure out how much sugar I'll need to hit that og?
What else???