Is my 1st Brigalow headed for the drain or can I save it

[gonetopilbara]

Hi,

Only after googling did I find that Brigalow may be a disappointment in regards to their cider.

On Sunday I prepared the brew according to the instructions, which being environmentally friendly far too quickly I also appear to have tossed the instructions (If anyone knows where I can get a copy without buying another can it would be great as I can't find a Brigalow website?

Anyway, 2 days ago the heat belt appeared like it might be getting a bit warm (temp on outside of container heading towards 30c.

At this point I turned it off and when I went back and checked this morning the temp appeared to be reading 18c and the bubbling through the air-lock was no longer.

Could it have completed the first stage in just 5-6 days or have I killed it? I have not opened the container it was brewed in, but the wort? all appears to be sitting on the bottom and no more bubbles through the air-lock.

Is it ok to check the Specific Gravity and is it worth bottling.

I intended to get the cheaper Coopers brown plastic bottles. Is this ok and how much sugar and what sort should I add.

Sorry for all the questions and hope there is not a copy of the instructions for Brigalow Cider in an obvious place on this site and thanks in advance for any help people can give.

 

[Bomber Watson]

Im pretty new to this to, but i did lay down a brigalow cider a couple of years ago and it was terrible.

I wouldnt worry about the instructions, and i wouldnt worry about the lack of bubbling.

Whats the gravity reading atm?

And what does it taste like out of the fermenter?

There not just a disappointment in regards to there cider, there a disappointment in general, only Brigalow item i still have is my bottle brush, it has nice bristly things out the bottom that does an alright job.......

Cheers.

 

[gonetopilbara]

Looks like it is just above 1 on the gauge.

I'd have to say it doesn't taste good. Something about cats comes to mind, but its not really appropriate to say.

 

[Bomber Watson]

Cats Piss is roughtly how mine tasted to.

Just over 1.000 is fermented I recon.

Your call, bottle it and try to drink it, or dump it on the garden.

I'd probably pick the garden.

Cheers.

 

[superstock]

Made it per the instructions, fermented @ 20'. The ladies seemed to like it.

 

[gonetopilbara]

Thanks Superstock - legend for the photo

 

[Deep End]

I hold an opposite view of Brigalow's products, apart from when I juice apples, every batch of cider I have made has been based on a can of their concentrate.
However I have not once followed the directions on the pack, I replace a considerable portion of the water content with bottled juice and also top up to 23 L with more juice and occasionally I swap the yeast, although there is nothing wrong with the pack supplied.
I simply cant justify spending and extra 20 bucks for the other branded concentrates.
The end result, I find, is great and the judges at a country show I entered a particular brew in agreed, I got 1st place overall in the section and the judges asked where they could buy it and commented that they had just judged a huge cider show in the mornington peninsula and nothing there compared to my backyard brew, they drank the whole bottle!
Not bragging, just saying at the end of the day its apple concentrate and a bit of artificial sweetner, if you follow the directions it may not be much chop, but experiment and you'll find it can make a decent cider that is quite palatable if you add a few extra bits and pieces.
As far as brewing temp is concerned IMO Low and slow is good for cider 16-18 is a good temp, might take 2 or 3 weeks to ferment out.
That is just my thoughts on the matter.

 

[gonetopilbara]

Ok,

thanks for the help.

I might try 4 litres of apple juice as a substitute for 4 litres of water and add/subtract from there until happy.

Is just a normal supermarket style apple juice ok or is there a particular apple juice I need to go for?

In total I left it to brew in the fermenter for 7 days.

I have now added sugar and bottled in 750ml PET bottles and stuck in the cupboard.

Thinking about trying them in 3 weeks or should I wait longer?

 

[manticle]

Preservative free, the better the juice, the better its contribution. I like preshafruit.

 

[sp0rk]

Aldi apple juice works quite well

 

[Grott]

Personally I'd leave for 6 weeks plus for drinking but have a bottle at 3 weeks to see how it is going. If your not entirely happy with the resulting taste you can perk it up quite well by buying a slab of say Mercury cider and mix 1 part mercury to 2 parts your brew in the glass, this could avoid the 'garden".
Cheers

 

[Deep End]

Also, personally I'd bottle in glass if you can, those pet bottles arent much chop in my opinion, things always seem flatter when they are in plastic.