Bottling Cider
Moderator: Post Moderators
Bottling Cider
Can anyone share their experiences with bottling cider? I am thoroughly confused from what I've read on HBT forums. It seems to be 50/50 split consensus on whether or not bottle bombs are inevitable. I'd like to give away some bottles for Christmas but do not want to be delivering time bombs. I don't have my FG numbers right now, but I pitched the yeast (Montrachet) two months ago and have not added anything else.
I have not yet begun to defile myself.
-
lexuschris
- Posts: 2105
- Joined: Sat Apr 25, 2009 7:08 pm
- Location: Corona del Mar, CA
- Contact:
Re: Bottling Cider
Heya Scott,
I've only put ciders in 2L soda bottles, and they could take a lot of pressure. I have however bottled mead and have watched a 12-oz bottle of mead assume gaseous form & vacate instantly when opened... quite a mess!
I hope some others will chime in with some more thoughts. I have a few to get started with...
1) Measure your gravity. See if it is in the ballpark of where you expect. If your sitting on a stuck ferment, you would not want to bottle. It might kick back up when the bottles get warm, etc.
2) I'm told that you can use either Potassium Sorbate or Campden tablets to stop the yeast actiivty, and avoid any further fermentation in the bottles. I've not tried either though...
3) If you've fermented completely dry... no more sugars left, then you should be safe to bottle. If you plan to back-sweeten, then you really need to kill the yeast with #2 or something.
Good luck!
--LexusChris
I've only put ciders in 2L soda bottles, and they could take a lot of pressure. I have however bottled mead and have watched a 12-oz bottle of mead assume gaseous form & vacate instantly when opened... quite a mess!
I hope some others will chime in with some more thoughts. I have a few to get started with...
1) Measure your gravity. See if it is in the ballpark of where you expect. If your sitting on a stuck ferment, you would not want to bottle. It might kick back up when the bottles get warm, etc.
2) I'm told that you can use either Potassium Sorbate or Campden tablets to stop the yeast actiivty, and avoid any further fermentation in the bottles. I've not tried either though...
3) If you've fermented completely dry... no more sugars left, then you should be safe to bottle. If you plan to back-sweeten, then you really need to kill the yeast with #2 or something.
Good luck!
--LexusChris
"A woman drove me to drink, and I hadn't even the courtesy to thank her." – W.C. Fields
Re: Bottling Cider
Thanks Chris. If I were to use the Campden tablet method, then that would not allow any carbonation in the bottle. So, is it not recommended to prime with sugar and bottle, even if my gravity has bottomed out?
I have not yet begun to defile myself.
-
lexuschris
- Posts: 2105
- Joined: Sat Apr 25, 2009 7:08 pm
- Location: Corona del Mar, CA
- Contact:
Re: Bottling Cider
Ahhh.. you want it sparkling! Yeah, you'll want to keep the yeasties alive then.
Hopefully one of our experience mead makers can help on this one. I've always carbonated in the 2L soda bottle by back sweetening. e.g. ferment it dry, then add in some more cider or sugar, and put in the soda bottles. You would just need to compute how many volumes of CO2 you need and the amount of sugar to add, etc.
--LexusChris
Hopefully one of our experience mead makers can help on this one. I've always carbonated in the 2L soda bottle by back sweetening. e.g. ferment it dry, then add in some more cider or sugar, and put in the soda bottles. You would just need to compute how many volumes of CO2 you need and the amount of sugar to add, etc.
--LexusChris
"A woman drove me to drink, and I hadn't even the courtesy to thank her." – W.C. Fields