Fermentation temps

frenchie · June 28, 2014, 1:40am

I know for beer the first 5 or 6 days are the most important for keeping an ale at a fairly precise temperature. Is this also true for ciders? Or should you continue to keep them at optimum yeast temp for the duration? My first cider has been in primary for a week at 65-68* F(cider temp). OG was 1.050. It’s now 1.032, which is obviously a slower fermentation (as expected) than beer. Just wondering if I should hold the temp or just let it go to room temp. It’s chugging right along.

Thanks for any help.

Ron

dmtaylo2 · June 28, 2014, 2:29pm

Fermentation temperature doesn’t matter too much with cider, although experts say the colder the better. I fermented my last 3 batches in the refrigerator at about 40 F with wild yeast or wine yeast and they all finished fine. If you’ve already started fermentation in the 60s, then keep it there in the 60s. In another week or so when gravity is in the 1.020s, rack it. Then when gravity falls to the 1.010s, rack it again. Racking helps put the yeast to sleep so that they don’t ferment all the way down to 0.992, which is otherwise the norm for many ciders.

frenchie · June 28, 2014, 4:07pm

Thanks,Dave. You’re a gentleman and a scholar.

:cheers:

Ron

dmtaylo2 · June 28, 2014, 4:14pm

Ron, what yeast did you pitch?

frenchie · June 28, 2014, 5:54pm

wyeast 4766 cider yeast. Info on packet says 60*-75*. Did an overnight starter (didn’t use the stir plate) just to wake em up. Yeast was about 9 weeks old. Pitched at 60*.

Ron

frenchie · August 20, 2014, 4:53pm

Really excited to post this update. Cider went to 1.002 Taste is good, not great (used store bought apple juice). I was hoping for a semi-sweet sparkling cider, but as Dave has said, that’s not gonna happen with bottle carbing. Got excellent carbonation after one week in bottles. Really dry. So…

At the same time, I had a gallon of mead fermenting. Was expecting it to go dry also, but it stopped at around 1.012. Really sickeningly sweet, not pleasant to sip. Was a BOMM. using wyeast strong belgian yeast(as Loveofrose suggests, probably a yeast transit problem). So …

As I was looking for something to sweeten the cider in the glass, I thought about the mead. Poured about 2 or three tablespoons in roughly 12 oz. of cider. MAGIC! The sweetness was easily enough for my taste and no bitter aftertaste that I got with stevia (again as Dave had foretold). So I guess a few closely measured tests are in order, but I feel I now have a great batch of cider and a very useful gallon of mead that was fortunately under attenuated.

Still looking forward to first batch of fresh pressed cider in September from our local orchard.

Many thanks to Dave and Loveofrose for all your tireless help.

:cheers:

Ron