02-21-2013, 09:26 PM
Hello.
First, I have to say that so far, everything looks super legit on these things. I am quite impressed at the ease of use and the low overhead cost. At first, I was somewhat worried about the output quality (not the ez cap integrity.. all seems fine there) as I had tried a bit of a cider after a few weeks and was a little disappointed in the taste. However, I decided to give it a few more weeks, and now the cider is crystal clear and it looks like it's probably ready to be bottled.
Everything I've read suggests that it is OK to leave the alcohol in the plastic bottles, so I think it's fine in terms of the safety aspect. So, I guess my question is... how long can you leave these to age? Is oxygen going to be a problem after a while? Does anyone have any experience "setting and forgetting" these? I'd like to leave my stuff in the 2 liters for several months if possible, as aging is going to help with the taste and smoothness. I'm not in a particular hurry, I just want a good final product more than anything. If I don't have to buy glass to secondary, then all the better as far as I'm concerned. 2 liters are so cheap that I'd obviously rather use them.
Also, I had a quick question about the viability of the yeast over time: I haven't really touched the yeast since I first did a few 2 liters. How long is the yeast expected to remain viable? So far, I think that the ez caps are well worth the price alone without any yeast, so I suppose if it's dead then I won't be too disappointed!
Thanks for your help!
First, I have to say that so far, everything looks super legit on these things. I am quite impressed at the ease of use and the low overhead cost. At first, I was somewhat worried about the output quality (not the ez cap integrity.. all seems fine there) as I had tried a bit of a cider after a few weeks and was a little disappointed in the taste. However, I decided to give it a few more weeks, and now the cider is crystal clear and it looks like it's probably ready to be bottled.
Everything I've read suggests that it is OK to leave the alcohol in the plastic bottles, so I think it's fine in terms of the safety aspect. So, I guess my question is... how long can you leave these to age? Is oxygen going to be a problem after a while? Does anyone have any experience "setting and forgetting" these? I'd like to leave my stuff in the 2 liters for several months if possible, as aging is going to help with the taste and smoothness. I'm not in a particular hurry, I just want a good final product more than anything. If I don't have to buy glass to secondary, then all the better as far as I'm concerned. 2 liters are so cheap that I'd obviously rather use them.
Also, I had a quick question about the viability of the yeast over time: I haven't really touched the yeast since I first did a few 2 liters. How long is the yeast expected to remain viable? So far, I think that the ez caps are well worth the price alone without any yeast, so I suppose if it's dead then I won't be too disappointed!
Thanks for your help!