cider question following mistake by newbie!

[Mrs Pink]

Hi guys
I am new to home brewing and haven't much of a clue! So far I have made a batch of white wine from a kit (cheating!) and a batch of cider from a kit.... my attempt at home-made elderflower wine had to go on the compost heap!
Anyway I decided to try and make something with apple juice - bunged 4 litres of juice and 500g of sugar into a demijohn and added a packet of cider yeast. I then noticed that the yeast was sufficient for 25 litres!!! :shock: :shock:
I put it on a heat pad and it is bubbling away merrily.
Is it going to be a complete disaster? Will I need to chuck it? I am not sure what adding too much yeast will do?
All advice gratefully received.
Thanks!

 

[abeyptfc]

ive only made my first batch of turbo cider last night and only used half of the yeast, i used a normal cup full of granulated sugar.
watch this video, this guy is really good and easy to follow, he puts in about 3 cups of sugar and a full packet of yeast and it turns out rather alcoholic but I dont know if it will ruin it, u might need to leave it a bit longer

video - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=La38oQjdyPw

 

[31bb3]

A full packet of yeast wont hurt dont worry the sugar will give it a high alcohol content did you take a starting gravity ????

 

[Mrs Pink]

No, I didn't..... but once it seems to have stopped fermenting I'll check....
Thanks for the reassurance and for the Youtube tip!

 

[31bb3]

it should stop fermenting at about 1012 ish leave it a couple of days it takes a while to clear

 

[Mrs Pink]

Thanks - do you mean leave it after it has stopped fermenting for a couple of days before bottling?
I have a collection of plastic bottles as well as wine bottles with screw caps - what do you think it would be best in? Also how long does it need in the bottle before it is drinkable? Cheers :

 

[Tony]

Nice to meet you Mrs Pink

Readings with the hydrometer will help you determine when the fermentation has finished. Are you going to carbonate your cider - of leave it 'flat'? If you are going to carbonate (prime) then do not use wine bottles, they will explode. If the plastic bottles are from 'fizzy' drinks - ie lemonade, coke etc then they will be fine for bottling primed cider.

 

[Samarith]

Yes, let it stop fermenting then give it a few days. That will let it clear a bit so you don't get as much sediment in the bottles.

I'd use the plastic bottles, standard wine bottles are not rated for pressure so the CO2 could cause them to explode.

3 days in a warm place, a week in a cool place. Pop it in the fridge to chill and you're good to go...it gets a bit better over the weeks but it doesn't need a long time to mature.

 

I'm guesstimating that your starting gravity will be about 1.090.
This will give you a potential alcohol of about 12%ABV! (White Wine strength)
When I do "Turbo Cider", I allow it to ferment for 10 days and then bottle with 0.5 tsps sugar and 2 tsps "Splenda" per litre.
This will normally clear and carbonate in 4 weeks, getting better the longer you leave it.
If you didn't add the initial sugar you would get a more reasonable ABV of about 5.8%.
Just my thoughts, you have fun and do your own thing.

 

[abeyptfc]

I started my 2nd batch of turbo cider earlier, i was looking around tesco and came across pear and blackcurrant juice, made by Princes. stuck 4 litres in this time so we'll see what happens, i think my reading was around 10% :lol: yeeha

 

[Mrs Pink]

Well this is day THIRTEEN and it is only just finished fermenting! It is still very cloudy and there is only the tiniest bit of sediment in the bottom.
It is in a demijohn.
Should I transfer it into another demijohn or bottle it? Is there anything I should add? I have several tubs of chemical type stuff I bought in a homebrew shop without having a clue what I was doing ! Should I add any of that? eg finings? Then how long should I leave it etc?
Clueless- sorry!
Thanks for the advice
:

 

[Mrs Pink]

ps
What would make this apple wine rather than cider??

 

[sueelleker]

Using 2L of apple juice per gallon, and making the volume up with water.

 

[Mrs Pink]

Thanks Sue. Is it too late to do that now do you think?

 

[corby_brewer]

~Leave it alone, let it clear. When its clear bottle.

 

ps
What would make this apple wine rather than cider??

Apple wine, Barley wine, is it not just a question of ABV and maturation time?