Cider stopped fermenting

[johnth]

Hi all,

I'm a bit of a newbie at this.

I started 3 gallons of cider from some apples from my garden.

I started it off in a 5 gallon fermentation bucket (sulphited for 24 hrs then yeast added) for 4 days and have just transferred it to 3 demijohns with airlocks. (yesterday)

Problem 1 - The starting SG was 1044 and when I transferred it to the dj's it read 1002 - does that sound right? I hadn't expected it to fall that much in 4 days

Problem 2 - I got some sediment in the last dj, I thought I'd just let it settle and transfer it again. However, this last dj, which is still cloudy seems to be the only one showing any activity through the airlock. The other 2 dj's are semi clear and show virtually no activity.
Should I leave well alone or mix it all back together and re transfer it?

Thanks in Advance

John

[Geezah]

It sounds like its nearly done fermenting, either stop it now if you want to retain a little sweetness, or leave it till it gets down to 996.
The sediment in that dj will eventually drop out, so I wouldnt worry about it. There will still be enough yeasties in the cider to continue fermentation in the clear ones.
If your gonna secondary ferment in bottles or barrel to make it sparkling all 3 should be ok.
I try to bottle mine when it gets down to 1000 with 5g of sugar.

[johnth]

Thanks Geezah,

I may have mucked it up as I've just mixed them back together

It was still a little under 1002... I hope I'm reading the hydrometer correctly... I think I am from what I've read.

I'll re-rack it in a day or so and hope for the best!

All The Best
John

[Geezah]

It will still come good. Just avoid messing with it too much as everytime to transfer it from 1 vessel to another you risk introducing something bad to the brew.
I generally wait till my cider gets to 1000, rack it off and add a campden tablet, give it a few days until it starts to get that glassy look, then bottle it up with priming sugar.

[dwhyte]

Geezah, why add the campden tablet, is it to stop the fermentation?

[Geezah]

The campdem tablet gives it a better shelf life by acting as a preservative and helping to stop any potential infection while its conditioning.

[dwhyte]

Not having made wine before either, why is campden necessary. Is it because it is fruit based and wild yeasts like it?
Could we not use campden tablets in beer to preserve it?