here goes first TC attempt

[newtonsshed]

Just ran off to the shops needed more medicain as off sick and got some juice here's the plan for 15l TC;
6l of apple and blackcurretn
3l of apple and rasberry
3l of apple and elderflower
(Sugar content of juice is 11.1g in 100ml bit lkess than 13g in the apple and rasberry that I was looking at in another shop)
8 dessert apples chopped/crushed with a teaspoon of Pectolase
2 jars of 340g honey
maybe 500g soft brown sugar? I think honey be enough!??
1 teaspoon of wine tannin
1 teaspoon wine nutriants
2 packets 5g (10g total) of young's cider yeast

Going to add 10l of juice into 15l fv simmer 2l of juice with 640g honey until honey melted and add the prepared apples, tannin & nuteriants, put lid on shake vigerously take a reading pitch yeast and ferment out will have 2l headspace once fermenting slowed top up with 1l of red grape juice that I already have and alitre or so of apple juice.

Do you you think the mix is ok or is there too many different flavours ie elderflower, blackcurrent, red grape & apple?
What sort of gravity and % yeild do you reckon??

[newtonsshed]

All done have aprox 12l of juice I also added 2 crushed campden tablets didn't realise needed to use in conjuction with yeast restarter or Stir and wait 24 hours prior to adding the appropriate yeast to begin your wine fermentation. Just added with the yeast
bit nervous now as don't think anything is happening but I have only just pitched the yeast about 6 hours ago oh actually...

Is 6hours time for yeast to show activity in TC?

[oldbloke]

I've never Campden'd a TC, but then I don't put real apples in it. It's gonna slow your yeast down a lot.

[Woodchip]

Blimey!! All that sugar in there will make it like rocket fuel won't it?

[newtonsshed]

The OG was 1060 either I didn't mix/shake it too well or low sugar content in the juice but be looking at 6% abv not too bad?

well its been about week now, just tested it and says it ready to bottle with hydrometre and I rtasted the sample in the test jar didn't really taste of much was just sharp/sour but didn't get any apple/blackcurrent/rasberry or elderflower the colour is pink not the cloudy apple colour I was hoping for to be fair was quite red I guess due to rasberry/blackcurrent.

Will the flavour round off if matured/conditioned also will the colour change over time or not?

Do I leave in the plastic FV until the real fruit peices drop/settle out or do I rack nowas down to bottle stage with hydrometre?

If I rack off do I rack into glass beer bottles or plastic pop bottles? As I think it's going to nake it fizzy was looking to prime but don't want expoloding beer bottles saying that the fermentation wasn't as violent as I was expecting I guess due to the campden tablets?

[newtonsshed]

The OG was 1060 either I didn't mix/shake it too well or low sugar content in the juice but be looking at 6% abv not too bad?

well its been about week now, just tested it and says it ready to bottle with hydrometre and I rtasted the sample in the test jar didn't really taste of much was just sharp/sour but didn't get any apple/blackcurrent/rasberry or elderflower the colour is pink not the cloudy apple colour I was hoping for to be fair was quite red I guess due to rasberry/blackcurrent.

Will the flavour round off if matured/conditioned also will the colour change over time or not?

Do I leave in the plastic FV until the real fruit peices drop/settle out or do I rack nowas down to bottle stage with hydrometre?

If I rack off do I rack into glass beer bottles or plastic pop bottles? As I think it's going to nake it fizzy was looking to prime but don't want expoloding beer bottles saying that the fermentation wasn't as violent as I was expecting I guess due to the campden tablets?

[simco999]

With TC's in the past I tend to bottle in 2litre plastic PETS. Don't over prime - I used about 2 teaspoons of sugar per bottle and ended up with bottle fountains. Its up to you. I also found I needed to mix it with something sweet to take the edge of it.

[oldbloke]

well its been about week now, just tested it and says it ready to bottle with hydrometre and I rtasted the sample in the test jar didn't really taste of much was just sharp/sour but didn't get any apple/blackcurrent/rasberry or elderflower the colour is pink not the cloudy apple colour I was hoping for to be fair was quite red I guess due to rasberry/blackcurrent.

Will the flavour round off if matured/conditioned also will the colour change over time or not?

Do I leave in the plastic FV until the real fruit peices drop/settle out or do I rack nowas down to bottle stage with hydrometre?

If I rack off do I rack into glass beer bottles or plastic pop bottles? As I think it's going to nake it fizzy was looking to prime but don't want expoloding beer bottles saying that the fermentation wasn't as violent as I was expecting I guess due to the campden tablets?

A week's quite quick, TCs often go below 1.000 on the hydrometer, is it really done?
The sharp and sour will mellow a lot quite quickly. I condition 2 weeks warm then a minimum of 2 weeks cold, most of the sharpness will have gone by then, but some will take longer.
I find the adjunct juices I use round the overall flavour out rather than tasting of themselves.
I'd rack it when you're sure it's done, into something with all the sugar for priming - batch prime. Then bottle. I use beer bottles and prime 5ml per bottle, no fountains so far but a few a bit lively. If you drink more than me, 2l PETs would be good (old Coke bottles or similar)
OR, if you think maybe the flavours need time to mature, maybe rack into something you can seal, leave it a few months, then prime&bottle.

It was quite a mix for a first try. Maybe there just wasn't enough apple, given all those mixed juices .I started with just AJ+tannin. Now I do AJ/tannin/1otherjuice, plus maybe a spice or some ginger. Start simple and work up.

[newtonsshed]

A week's quite quick, TCs often go below 1.000 on the hydrometer, is it really done? - How can I tell if they go below 1.000? Is it case of lkeep checking on hydrometer and if same over 48 hour period type thing? There's no real sign of fermenting, bubbles etc the yeast seems to have settled on the bottom but the fruit hasn't settled out as yet, as I have just the one plastic cube water bottle thing I've screwed the cap on see if pressure buiilds up.

I don't think its worthy of long maturation in a keg and I be worried about purging as I have 19l cornies and only 12l of juice.

Do I need to top at any point with juice or can I prime with juice thinking of using a stong apple juice concentrate to not only prime but give more cider flavour though I think it will come with time in the bottle.

I just went with the cheapest juice drink they had I really wanted apple and elderflower but they only had 2 or 3 left at the time typically likewise with the blackcurrent so ended up rasberry too.

thanks again for everyones advice
Andy

[simco999]

Cornys and TC - there's posh!!

[Pinto]

With that much cider yeast and nutrient added, it'll probably hit 0.998 - 0.996 before its complete - to be sure, i'd let it go for 10 days (start reading the SG from day 8 ) and it should be complete; thats the time it normally takes for my 23l batches.

The cider flavour should be fine, even with plain juice - if anything, backsweetening with a little bit of splenda or stevia will help to bring the "appleness" out and blunt the sharper edges of the cider off. As to maturation... my rule of thumb is prime, 1 week in the warm, 2 in the cool and then get amongst it ! It'll only improve with age tho ( i found a few bottles of turbo i made back in march this year last week and they were outstanding ! )