BeerBorg

I am making a very strong apple cider for the purpose of freeze concentrating. I want there to be some residual sweetness left behind.

I started off with 2 gallons of apple cider. To that I added 2 cans of apple juice concentrate, 3 pounds of dark brown sugar and 2.5 tsp of yeast nutrient. OG was 1.105.

I pitched with Red Star Cuvee wine yeast on 12-10-13.

I took a hydrometer reading tonight; 1.032. So it's already 9.7%abv.
I plan to bring it down to 1.012-1.016 so it shouldn't be long now.

The hydro sample was sparkling and felt carbonated when I drank it. It looks carbonated. Is that just very active yeast at work?



Also, is now a good time to transfer to a secondary?

Remember, yeast produce carbon dioxide and ethanol as a result of fermentation. So yes, it can have some carbonation if the CO2 cannot escape and gets forced into solution. It sure looks like it's carbonated.

Well, it's in the LBK so the c02 should be escaping. Anyway, I think I'm going to rack it to my secondary tomorrow.