Cider stinks

[Tommcd]

Hi guys wondering if anyone can help or just some reassurance that it will be alright.

First batch of cider brewing probably went in at the deep end with doing 25 litres rather than a small batch first.

I'm about 3 days in and it stinks my partner wasn't best impressed once she'd cleaned the washing machine thinking it was the drain on that.

I'm wondering if it's best to leave it for now and hope for the best, try adding yeast nutrients if so can I have advice how and when please or I have read that you can try stir it up and will release some gasses but is it to early in fermentation to do that?

 

[phillc]

I'm not sure what your washing maching smells like, but if the fermentation smell you have is sulphur (rotten eggs, volcanic fumes) I wouldn't be too concerned. I had a batch of cider on recently, using Mangrove Jack M02 cider yeast, well within the prescribed temperature range, and I had a lot of sulphur emissions. I think it's quite common.

After bottling you will just need to be patient and wait for at least 4 to 6 weeks, even longer maybe, but the aroma does go away. My batch is about 4 weeks bottled now and tastes great, but still has a slight sulphur whiff on the nose.

If the smell is something else, then it might be an infection of some type, which I've also had in the past, but can't really think of an exact smell for that was. A lactic infection is much more about a poor taste.

 

[Tommcd]

Washing machine was fine come down thismorning and she's cleaned the hole thing so that's a bonus.

Yer I would say it smells like rotten eggs or like a stink bomb.

I couldn't even tell you what yeast I'm using I ordered one from amazon and they sent a complete different thing just said cider yeast for 25 litres on on.

Perfect thanks so your advice would be leave it, let it finish fermenting and bottle and pray

Thanks

 

[Chippy_Tea]

Eggy smells usually indicate stressed yeast so nutrient would help not sure if it will now but you may as well try.

 

[VW911]

Most young cider smells like farts.
Don't worry, it'll soon go...

 

[phillc]

....let it finish fermenting and bottle and pray

That pretty much sums up my cider making.

 

[BrewMeHappy]

It is probably fine. I always get moaned at by the wife when I do my cider brewing in the one of our cupboards that has the hit water cylinder in it, saying it stinks.

 

[johncrobinson]

Dont panic,SOME.!!! yeasts will do this.
It normally clears itself as fermentation progresses
It should hopefully come allright in the end,

A rotten eggs smell can however be also an indication of stressed yeast due to lack of nutrient allways add a dose of DAP at the start of fermentation to prevent this.

 

[Tommcd]

The smell doesn't seem to be as bad today, or I'm getting used to it.

Also a bit of a worry that there's no air lock movement, but have read air locks are not a true reflection of fermenting.

I'm bottling wine today so will take a hydrometer reading whilst I'm sterilising everything and see if anything has changed.

 

[Covrich]

Buy a dog blame him when you brew cider

 

[johncrobinson]

An airlock should indicate fermentation.
Its only if there is a "leak" will it fail to do so.
The very best indicator however is the hydrometer.

Normally the smell will clear by itself.
For persistant "rotten egg" smells the wine/cider can be treated with copper to remove it so all is not lost.
But you are not at that point yet.

 

[Tommcd]

I took a hydrometer reading today and it has gone down a fair bit so I'm guessing all is well.

I've been reading up and people are saying to add campden tablets to the apple juice 24 hours before yeast to prevent smells and spoils. So might give that a go.

The fermenting buckets I'm using does say to put vasaline on the seals and around the airlock, I didn't do that because I read a few things before making and people had said they don't bother. I suppose I should just do stuff properly before cutting corners next time.

 

[Clint]

The thing is these women don't know what's good for them...I have selective hearing...

 

[johncrobinson]

If you add campden to sterile pre-packed apple juice you will find all you have done is delay the start of fermentation
It is only usefull when using fresh apples squashed in a press.
DO NOT add campden to pre-packed juice.

The smell is either or both
(1) Type of yeast used.
(2) Not enough nutrient. (.DAP.)

The situation WILL NOT be helped by adding campden.
It can even harm the fermentation if overdone.

 

[Tommcd]

Oh OK thanks I stuck that at the top of my list to do next time but I will cross that off.

My yeast nutrition turned up today and I stuck some in seemed to have given it a good kick as the airlock is now in full swing.

It was fermenting before due to the hydrometer reading I took last night but may have just been verry slow.

Hopefully I'm back on track now

 

[johncrobinson]

Glad to hear it.
I know it can be a bit nerve wracking when something seems to have gone wrong.But more often than not its ok.

Now you have your nutrient you have eliminated one of the possible causes.
The other is the yeast.
Only a very few yeasts will produce this smell in a healthy ferment
The yeast manufacturers websites will say which ones do.
It normally happens at the start of fermentation and clears by itself after a few days.

As for your batch size, Well I am upping ALL my brews to 25ltrs minimum

 

[Tommcd]

Yer I was definitely kicking myself and thinking where did I go wrong fingers crossed its going to be OK.

I don't know what cider yeast I got because the seller sent something completely different so the only way to know would be on my next batch. But thanks I will look into cider yeasts a bit more next time I didn't think how much difference a brand or type of yeast would make but lesson learnt.

Would you say to add a Camden tablet at the end of fermenting? I was going to add sugar to my next fermenting container syphon the cider into it then bottle. Or will there be no point?

I think minimum of 25 litres is definitely a good idea

 

[phillc]

My favourite cider yeast, and the one I used constantly at the beginning of my cider making journey, is Lallemand EC-1118. It's actually a champagne yeast, but it's very straight forward and doesn't really impart any additional flavours or aromas. It's dominant and will out compete pretty much anything else which might be in your must. It also attenuates close to 100%, which means it eats all the available sugars and you'll end up with a very dry cider. Depends if you like that sort of thing, but I find this is as close to a bullet proof yeast as there is.

I've tried a few others now, and mentioned the Mangrove Jack M02 cider yeast above.

For bottling, I think by far the easiest method is to use carbonation drops. Least hassle, least messing about, just drop one or two straight into each bottle. I've never gone with the batch priming route, as I see it as just another vector for infection. When I've run out of carbonation drops, I have made a sugar water solution and added it individually to each bottle with a syringe. I calculate about 7 grams of sugar per bottle, and add 5 ml of solution to each bottle. This usually results in fairly high carbonation, if you like that kind of thing (which I do, with a very dry cider).

 

[Tommcd]

Thanks I will look into them I just looked for a cider yeast with sweetener as I heard that stops the cider from being to dry. I like thatchers and rattler cider so thought I would try that for now. I have one packet of the yeast I have used left will give that another go then try one of the above and see how I get on.

I was just going to batch prime as the recipe I was following said its easier and the second fermenting vessel I have had a tap on it so also thought it will make the bottling process easier and could sterilise the bottles in the container when that's sterilising or is that a bad move?

 

[MartinHaworth]

Yep! Sulphur. My mixed berry cider stank out the house for 4/5 days. I was not popular...