Well…I’m thinking I really like still cider versus carbonated. The question…after the 2nd rack for 21 days then back sweetening and adding sodium metabisulfite…how long will it last in the fridge?
I’m still going to try back sweetening and bottling…let sit for a week or 2 then cold crashing for a carb experiment but I must say my taste test today while racking was DAMN GOOD.
Also…where would one find a measuring tool for metabisulfite? I have 1 gallon jugs and it’s 1tsp per 6 gallons. What’s the suggestion here?
Cider will often keep for a year or more, especially if refrigerated. It is more similar to wine than beer, and can be aged like wine.
You should be able to pick up a 1/8 teaspoon measure in any grocery store or cooking store, or Walmart or whatever. It’s a tiny little scoop about the size of your pinky fingernail.
[quote=“NYdave”]Thanks Dave. Always so very helpful.
Wow…so the open jug of cider can be enjoyed gradually for almost a full year?
I’m shocked. Didn’t even know an open bottle of wine would last that long.
Thx a lot![/quote]
If Dave will allow me to interpret what he is saying…
You can age wine/cider and in my opinion beer for a long time, if they are sealed and stored properly (basements are great for this). The alcohols with esterify and alcohol flavors will become amazing sherry/dried-fruity things that simply rock. Hops tend to fade as the oils break down, but malty and/or high-gravity beers: age away.
If you open a bottle of wine, beer, or (not having any personal experience) cider, it will oxidize. Even worse, it will start to taste like the fridge. With wine, I usually don’t go more than a few days once its open, a week max. As I am currently fermenting my first cider and my first cyser, I would imagine they are similar. Age them forever, but once you open one, drink it.
Pietro is right. I would NOT advise you to keep an OPEN container of wine in storage for any long period of time, as eventually it will go stale or might even turn into vinegar. Keep it capped/corked and serve in a short time – a few weeks is probably fine for an open container in the refrigerator, but not much longer than that.
Just a suggestion for precision measurement of metasulfites (and any other powders that need tiny amounts). Place a small container on a scale, and add a measured (weighed) amount of powder, say 5 grams. Then add water till you get to ten times the weight of the powder by itself. Now you can use a medicine syringe to measure out precise quantities. If you need say 1.62 grams of powder, just use 16.2 ml of the solution instead.
I’m about to bottle my first still cider after a month in primary. (I would like to just keg it and put it on a little CO2, but I don’t have the kegs to spare - I’m planning to let it go to sleep for a year.) OG was 1.070 and SG is now @ .998. I am not planning to refrigerate it. What protects it? If I sorbate and use K Meta, will there still be trace amounts of CO2?
The cider was completely unremarkable yesterday when I tasted it other than the fact that the SG was actually at .990 (which caused me to take another reading to verify). I ended up drawing off 3 liters into bottles and those will be my experiment. I racked the rest onto sorbate and K meta in a keg which I’ll back-sweeten, add tannins to and then force carb in a few days. There was no trace of sulfur before I racked.
That was the method I used this year. Cider had unusually high acid levels, and it fermented out very dry. I stabilized like a white wine (K-sulfite & K-Sorbate), added enough sugar to balance the acid but not enough to make it sweet, and kegged to force carbonate. Turned out quite good - a lot better than I was expecting when I tasted it after fermentation was done.
I think I’ve finalized my experiment plan for (4) 750ml bottles: I’m going to stabilize, back-sweeten to about 1.002, add some lime/black tea mix (tannin) to 2 of the bottles and then squirt some CO2 into the tops of all before sealing them. Let them go to sleep for 6 months, try one of each and try the remaining 2 after 12 months. None will be refrigerated.
Good plan for a nice still cider. The squirt of CO2 is to purge the bottle of O2, yes? That is probably a good idea, just don’t expect it to carbonate the cider at all.
If you are making it at home, you can put anything you want in it. I tried cinnamon and oak chips last year, and was not very happy with the results. The oak was fine, but the cinnamon didn’t blend well the way I had thought it would.
[quote=“rebuiltcellars”]The squirt of CO2 is to purge the bottle of O2, yes?[/quote] Yep, I’m trying to get a nice still cider and the CO2 is to purge the oxygen.
I’ve kegged and force-carbed the other portion of this batch. Added tea/lime and then another 1/2 tsp of malic acid. Will let this sit in the cold for a while and see what develops.
