Fermented Fuit Juice -- How to turn it into alcohol?

To get a good drink with alcohol. you need yeast that ferments sugars to alcohol, the right amount of sugars in the juice, the right temperature (usually higher than refrigerator temperature), the right amount of acids, etc. Also you need to follow certain sanitation procedures, or else bacteria may produce bad tastes and smells or even give you a case of the "tourist trots". Most of us here consume rather than make wine. You might get more help in the group rec.crafts.winemaking. Also there are stores and web sites that specialize in home wine making and beer brewing and that can supply your needs. You might like to buy an introductory book for home wine making from one of them. If you can visit such a store in your area, the owner often is willing to offer advice for those new to home wine making.

Probably too much SO2 in commercial juice.

Mike wrote on Thu, 19 Mar 2009 07:15:05 +0100:

I'd agree with comments about doing fermentation under controlled conditions and using proper yeasts. Apple juice, if bought from local producers who don't pasteurize or add SO2, will ferment in the fridge but I've never kept it long enough to detect more than a slightly "hard" taste. I guess the amount of alcohol is small.

It may be that the yeast culture in apple juice is not the same as the saccaromyces cerveria (sp?) that takes grape juice to 14 %. Even on grapes skins there is a host of several different yeasts of other families that may dominate the feremntation process up to c. 5 % (vide Jancis Robinson).

Cheers

Nils

Ah, the old story of yeast on grape skins... in smaller wineries (picture Bandol Nils) the yeasts may be more likely indigenous to the cellar than to the grapes... (and if you let things get too "natural" yes that may include Brett...)

The more technological outfits simply add commercial cultures, so there again, I doubt grape critters get any chance against those body-built selected super-bacteria.

I do believe som producers try to "recycle" the yeast by spreading lees in the vineyard ... not a terribly good idea as it may enhance bacteria rather than the "natural" yeasts. What about bajanus in Veneto, then, do you mean that the reservoir is in the cellars rather than in the vineyards? It would fit neatly with what I heard about a cheese factory - to get the cheese to mature as they wanted, the old cheese cellar master had to pass through the cellars, wearing, and this was important, his old cap ... which apparently was supposed to contain the ferments needed for the proper maturation of the cheeses. If it is not true, it is still a fairly good story.

Cheers

Nils

I've often used "champagne yeast" from my friendly neighborhood wine and beer making supplies store with a fermentation lock (from the same source) on top in the original gallon bottle. Then, as apple cider time comes conveniently at the time of first frosts, after I fermented a couple of gallons, I put them in a bucket (clean) lightly covered out on the back porch. In the morning, take off the ice and toss. Do that a couple of days and the alcohol content rises to the point where it will preserve itself. Makes a delicious drink, and great addition for cooking, like a chicken liver pate and so on...

Jim

"Ronin" skrev i meddelandet news:49c272a0$0$33216$ snipped-for-privacy@news.qwest.net...

Readers of Terry Pratchett's eminent Discworld series will recognise this as scumble, which is, as everybody knows, made from apples. Well, mostly apples. And it should not come into contact with metal. Cheers Nils

I just add a shot or two of vodka to my apple juice and I get apple juice with alcohol.:-)

Make that two 1 1/2 oz shots of Devil's Springs vodka (80%,160 US proof alcohol) to a large glass of apple juice, over ice if you wish, and you will have super apple "wine". One glass of this likely will be enough, or more than enough, for most people :-). Please do not drive a car soon after drinking this.

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