Comments on: Apple Wine Recipe http://www.washingtonwinemaker.com/blog/2007/11/05/apple-wine-recipe/ Growing grapes and making wine in Bellevue Fri, 30 Jul 2010 01:09:21 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.9.2 hourly 1 By: Erroll http://www.washingtonwinemaker.com/blog/2007/11/05/apple-wine-recipe/comment-page-1/#comment-39669 Erroll Wed, 07 Jul 2010 15:12:09 +0000 http://www.washingtonwinemaker.com/blog/2007/11/05/apple-wine-recipe/#comment-39669 Sounds like you're doing great, CuAllaidh. I'm glad I could help, but you made the gold medal mead - congratulations! Erroll Sounds like you’re doing great, CuAllaidh. I’m glad I could help, but you made the gold medal mead – congratulations!

Erroll

]]> By: CuAllaidh http://www.washingtonwinemaker.com/blog/2007/11/05/apple-wine-recipe/comment-page-1/#comment-39660 CuAllaidh Tue, 06 Jul 2010 18:28:19 +0000 http://www.washingtonwinemaker.com/blog/2007/11/05/apple-wine-recipe/#comment-39660 After bulk aging my apple mead for about 7 months I finally tasted it, it was a surprisingly dry mead with some interesting flavours. I entered it into an SCA mead competition, and while it didn't place it was well recieved, and I did make an interesting Oak Aged Chai Mead which won the gold. I must credit your site as part of the reason I won that gold. the Chai mead was only my second attempt at making mead, or any alcoholic beverage, I spent alot of time combing your blog and others for tips and tricks before I started, and thus I think is why my meads turned out well. After bulk aging my apple mead for about 7 months I finally tasted it, it was a surprisingly dry mead with some interesting flavours. I entered it into an SCA mead competition, and while it didn’t place it was well recieved, and I did make an interesting Oak Aged Chai Mead which won the gold. I must credit your site as part of the reason I won that gold. the Chai mead was only my second attempt at making mead, or any alcoholic beverage, I spent alot of time combing your blog and others for tips and tricks before I started, and thus I think is why my meads turned out well.

]]> By: Erroll http://www.washingtonwinemaker.com/blog/2007/11/05/apple-wine-recipe/comment-page-1/#comment-36378 Erroll Tue, 26 Jan 2010 21:22:31 +0000 http://www.washingtonwinemaker.com/blog/2007/11/05/apple-wine-recipe/#comment-36378 Hello cotyke, I've re-used yeast before. You have to be careful about your sanitation - best bet is to have your must ready, then rack, then add the lees to the must right away - but it does work. With sweetening, you want to make sure that fermentation has finished, and the best way to do that is to wait. Let it ferment to dryness, rack, if it drops more sediment rack again, repeat until doesn't drop sediment for a month, then <a href="http://www.washingtonwinemaker.com/blog/2008/12/09/sweetening-wine-an-example/" rel="nofollow">stabilize and sweeten</a>. Erroll Hello cotyke,

I’ve re-used yeast before. You have to be careful about your sanitation – best bet is to have your must ready, then rack, then add the lees to the must right away – but it does work.

With sweetening, you want to make sure that fermentation has finished, and the best way to do that is to wait. Let it ferment to dryness, rack, if it drops more sediment rack again, repeat until doesn’t drop sediment for a month, then stabilize and sweeten.

Erroll

]]> By: cotyke http://www.washingtonwinemaker.com/blog/2007/11/05/apple-wine-recipe/comment-page-1/#comment-36340 cotyke Mon, 25 Jan 2010 13:41:22 +0000 http://www.washingtonwinemaker.com/blog/2007/11/05/apple-wine-recipe/#comment-36340 hello! im also new at this apple wine making, ive went to a wine maker with questions and walked out with a recipe and dry chemicals to aid my batch. i was just curious if you might save the yeast after racking and when might i add sweetness after stop fermentation on 1st rack? thanks!!! hello! im also new at this apple wine making, ive went to a wine maker with questions and walked out with a recipe and dry chemicals to aid my batch. i was just curious if you might save the yeast after racking and when might i add sweetness after stop fermentation on 1st rack?

thanks!!!

]]> By: Erroll http://www.washingtonwinemaker.com/blog/2007/11/05/apple-wine-recipe/comment-page-1/#comment-35940 Erroll Fri, 08 Jan 2010 02:10:10 +0000 http://www.washingtonwinemaker.com/blog/2007/11/05/apple-wine-recipe/#comment-35940 <blockquote>why would the 1118 stop at 1.010</blockquote> Hi milo, Yeast might stop for any number of reasons: temperature (was there a sudden change? was it always near the low end of the yeast's tolerance?), nutrients (did you add any?), pH, etc. So without knowing more about your batch, I can't really say. It sounds like things worked out for you, and sometimes that's all that matters. But I'm like you - I like to know what's going on with each batch and get consistent results. Erroll

why would the 1118 stop at 1.010

Hi milo,

Yeast might stop for any number of reasons: temperature (was there a sudden change? was it always near the low end of the yeast’s tolerance?), nutrients (did you add any?), pH, etc. So without knowing more about your batch, I can’t really say. It sounds like things worked out for you, and sometimes that’s all that matters. But I’m like you – I like to know what’s going on with each batch and get consistent results.

Erroll

]]> By: milo http://www.washingtonwinemaker.com/blog/2007/11/05/apple-wine-recipe/comment-page-1/#comment-35315 milo Sat, 12 Dec 2009 22:15:04 +0000 http://www.washingtonwinemaker.com/blog/2007/11/05/apple-wine-recipe/#comment-35315 This is my second year making apple wine,I use 5 gal kegs,to this I added 1 1/2 pounds of sugar and lavin 1118 yeast starting OG 1.095, FG of 1.010,why would the 1118 stop at 1.010,not upset or anything tastes great put the keg together today and in the kegarator it went. We are going to bottle next week plenty of time to carb. My queston is why did the yeast stop,the wild yeast around here goes that low? This is my second year making apple wine,I use 5 gal kegs,to this I added 1 1/2 pounds of sugar and lavin 1118 yeast starting OG 1.095, FG of 1.010,why would the 1118 stop at 1.010,not upset or anything tastes great put the keg together today and in the kegarator it went. We are going to bottle next week plenty of time to carb. My queston is why did the yeast stop,the wild yeast around here goes that low?

]]> By: Erroll http://www.washingtonwinemaker.com/blog/2007/11/05/apple-wine-recipe/comment-page-1/#comment-35213 Erroll Tue, 08 Dec 2009 23:54:07 +0000 http://www.washingtonwinemaker.com/blog/2007/11/05/apple-wine-recipe/#comment-35213 Good to see you again CuAllaidh, I'm glad you were able to overcome the problem of preservatives - well done! It looks like you're on your way to some nice apple wine :) Erroll Good to see you again CuAllaidh,

I’m glad you were able to overcome the problem of preservatives – well done! It looks like you’re on your way to some nice apple wine :)

Erroll

]]> By: Erroll http://www.washingtonwinemaker.com/blog/2007/11/05/apple-wine-recipe/comment-page-1/#comment-35212 Erroll Tue, 08 Dec 2009 23:50:22 +0000 http://www.washingtonwinemaker.com/blog/2007/11/05/apple-wine-recipe/#comment-35212 Hello Jenni, It's hard to say exactly what's happening from your description, but it doesn't sound like your wine is bad. It could be that it's still fermenting (do you have current and original specific gravity readings?). If so, then that's where the "fizz" is coming from. It may have fermented out, but even so it would be saturated with CO2. In that case, you see the CO2 come out of solution - you might even call it "fizz." You could probably just leave it be for a while, wait for sediment to drop, and then rack. When you say, "it fizzed quite a bit so I added a couple campden tablets" it makes me wonder if you are using sulfite regularly. The rule of thumb is to sulfite prior to fermentation, at bottling, and at every other racking at a rate of one campden tablet (or equivalent) per gallon. Personally, I don't like campden tablets because they're hard to dissolve, but I <a href="http://www.washingtonwinemaker.com/blog/2007/05/08/measuring-sulfite/" rel="nofollow">measure sulfite powder</a> and use it in every batch. Anyway, I think you're doing fine, and I'd love to hear how you like the finished product. Erroll Hello Jenni,

It’s hard to say exactly what’s happening from your description, but it doesn’t sound like your wine is bad. It could be that it’s still fermenting (do you have current and original specific gravity readings?). If so, then that’s where the “fizz” is coming from. It may have fermented out, but even so it would be saturated with CO2. In that case, you see the CO2 come out of solution – you might even call it “fizz.”

You could probably just leave it be for a while, wait for sediment to drop, and then rack.

When you say, “it fizzed quite a bit so I added a couple campden tablets” it makes me wonder if you are using sulfite regularly. The rule of thumb is to sulfite prior to fermentation, at bottling, and at every other racking at a rate of one campden tablet (or equivalent) per gallon. Personally, I don’t like campden tablets because they’re hard to dissolve, but I measure sulfite powder and use it in every batch.

Anyway, I think you’re doing fine, and I’d love to hear how you like the finished product.

Erroll

]]> By: CuAllaidh http://www.washingtonwinemaker.com/blog/2007/11/05/apple-wine-recipe/comment-page-1/#comment-35207 CuAllaidh Tue, 08 Dec 2009 19:44:07 +0000 http://www.washingtonwinemaker.com/blog/2007/11/05/apple-wine-recipe/#comment-35207 My Cyser fermented down to a FG of 1.000, quite nice, unfortunately it was my first attempt and I did not have a hydrometer until after I started it so I don't quite know what the OG was. Its quite dry and may need some added sweetness at bottling. I'll let you know how it turns out. I found out actually that the cider I used had preservatives in it that definitely hindered fermentation, however I overwhelmed it by adding yeast two additional times and overcame the issue. It is going to require considerable aging I think though to mellow out perfectly. My Cyser fermented down to a FG of 1.000, quite nice, unfortunately it was my first attempt and I did not have a hydrometer until after I started it so I don’t quite know what the OG was. Its quite dry and may need some added sweetness at bottling. I’ll let you know how it turns out. I found out actually that the cider I used had preservatives in it that definitely hindered fermentation, however I overwhelmed it by adding yeast two additional times and overcame the issue. It is going to require considerable aging I think though to mellow out perfectly.

]]> By: Jenni http://www.washingtonwinemaker.com/blog/2007/11/05/apple-wine-recipe/comment-page-1/#comment-35193 Jenni Tue, 08 Dec 2009 02:54:31 +0000 http://www.washingtonwinemaker.com/blog/2007/11/05/apple-wine-recipe/#comment-35193 Hi Errol, I got a recipe from a guy and im not sure if I did something wrong. I used 6 gallons of apple cider 6 lbs. sugar and a packet of yeast on 11-27-09 then after initial fermentation about 2 weeks I transfered into a glass carboy and noticed that it fizzed quite a bit so I added a couple campden tablets, now I'm on day 25 and it is still fizzing is there anything I can do is the wine junk or is this normal? Any information you could give would be appreciated Thanks Jenni Hi Errol,
I got a recipe from a guy and im not sure if I did something wrong. I used 6 gallons of apple cider 6 lbs. sugar and a packet of yeast on 11-27-09 then after initial fermentation about 2 weeks I transfered into a glass carboy and noticed that it fizzed quite a bit so I added a couple campden tablets, now I’m on day 25 and it is still fizzing is there anything I can do is the wine junk or is this normal? Any information you could give would be appreciated Thanks Jenni

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