How Applejack & Honey Jack are made! Easy freeze-distilled cider or mead using a salad spinner

Let’s start off with a basic warning: this video is not a how-to. It is for informational purposes only. Always check your local laws before producing any fermented alcoholic beverage. Applejack is an alcoholic beverage made from apples using a method called fractional crystallization or freeze-distilling. It was popular in the American colonial days because of how easy it was to make. Applejack is, technically, a type of fruit brandy. Applejack was regularly consumed by America’s forefathers, including President George Washington!
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#cider #howtomakeapplejack #homebrewing #applejack #howitsmade

[@tylerhughes5420]

People that are worried about methanol poisoning: adding pectic enzyme to your cider drastically reduces methanol production during fermentation, one should also not that apple jack will only contain methanol equal to the amount that was already in the cider, so unless you're drinking a ton of the stuff you'll be fine

[@MicaS145]

Will I get poisoning from simply getting drunk?

[@furrycircuitry2378]

@@MicaS145 getting drunk is the side effect of ethanol consumption

[@Heisenbrick]

I always use pectic enzyme. But I was told it was to make it clear to see through and not cloudy. I also add yeast nutrient and some raisins. Drinking some now, Delicious and pretty Damm buzzed.

[@imakevideos5377]

What if I was to heat up the hard cider on a stove at extremely low heat (60-80 Celcius) before doing this? Would I be able to remove a decent amount of the bad stuff?

[@tylerhughes5420]

@@imakevideos5377 heating to 150 f for 30 should help reduce methanol

[@Unsub-Me-Now]

Thats the most apple jack ive ever seen anyone make! living up to your channel name.

[@DointheMost]

Go big or go home! haha.

[@bababendot]

this use of salad spinner and having it on the same bucket is game changer! i used to make apple jack having to invert a large plastic waterjug/pet carboy into an industrial colander and that just made too much mess and used too much space. One thing that's undesirable with applejack is the oxidation and resulting acetaldehyde, but doing this method, you are not exposing it to air (in room temp) for too long thus also slowing down the oxidation process. Genius

[@DointheMost]

If you’re quick enough, the enhanced acid concentration in the first few days should help ward off oxidation too, if my research is accurate. Glad this was helpful!

[@shadowtheimpure]

You can always fortify the finished product with an antioxidant like ascorbic acid. That also does wonders for preventing oxidation, though it does require a lot of care to prevent it from negatively impacting the flavor.

[@jamesthomas8481]

Still though aren't there volatiles created through the process such as methanol? How would one extract that out so as not to get hangovers ect.? I just resort to Distilling it by vapor eventually.

[@trustn01rs]

​@@jamesthomas8481 apparently using pectic enzyme on the apple juice before brewing it greatly reduces the methanol in the end product

[@jamesthomas8481]

@Hyper Wolfe that makes alot of sense. As ever since I started using pectic enzyme in my brews I haven't had the effects of trace amounts of methanol. I will be adopting this information to my sake project.

[@rubducksu9245]

Nice information. And I will be sure to never try this myself at home and I definitely wont enjoy it if I do 😉

[@DointheMost]

‘Murica!

[@CarlPapa88]

"Hypothetically"

[@Brakdayton]

I concur. I will not be making several gallons of this and will never, repeat never, invite my friends round to partake.

[@Backroad_Junkie]

I smell a Good Eats presentation vibe here... Alton would be proud...

[@TheBruSho]

Nice this is definitely on my list to do next time I make a big batch of cider!!

[@DointheMost]

It is such a great holiday treat!

[@kb2vca]

Nice video, but I think that there may be another method that avoids the use of a salad spinner. You freeze the cider for as long as it takes the cider to freeze solid and then you simply invert the bucket or carboy into a second bucket or carboy so that the frozen cider gently thaws. The residual sugars, flavors and alcohol will thaw before the water and so you are left with frozen water (aka) ice but you will have collected the alcohol and flavor. If you aim to collect 1/3 of the starting volume you will have achieved the same amount of alcohol but with less effort. The one possible problem might be being able to freeze solid a volume of hard cider as large as 5 or 6 gallons so you might want to begin by dividing up your total volume into gallon carboys. They can freeze in a home freezer without much difficulty but it may take more than 48 hours for each gallon to freeze solid.

[@DointheMost]

Good info! I’ve always trusted my thrift shop salad spinner to do the trick!

[@andrewburchill5212]

It's like you're reading my mind! I just started a one gallon batch a few weeks ago!

[@DointheMost]

Let us know how it goes!

[@danielanthony1054]

I see you used a lot of raisins. Your yeast must be so happy floating in all those nutrients I kid of course

[@mitchspurlock3626]

Thanks for spreading the good word! I brewed up some bananas foster wine that has so little banana flavor I'm just going to jack it and use it to make bananas foster!

[@DointheMost]

Nice plan! Haha

[@paulalarocca8315]

Solid video!! I like the bucket and salad spinner idea!!! I am gonna have to give this a try....

[@DointheMost]

It’s a workout!

[@countrymousejewelry]

That looks amaaaaazing. I just made some no heat rhubarb syrup that I bet would be good in this! Do u happen to have any reciipes for hard root beer? I'm check out your channel some more. My grandfather made his own root beer. I'm in the great NorthernCatskills of NY.

[@simongrushka983]

thanks! i wish applejack would be commercially available in the UK :)

[@luminousunicorn]

Thank you for this! I never knew what applejack actually was. I have a recipe for pork chops from Emeril Lagasse that calls for applejack. When he did the recipe on his show, he said to use apple flavored brandy if you can’t find applejack, which I do. It’s nice to know what what the intended ingredient is. If I can get my hands on some one of these days, I’ll have to try the recipe with it and see how the end result differs.

[@jamesthomas8481]

Remember that this applejack is a 2-3yr. In the making kinda project. If you don't plan to age your hard apple cider then it prolly won't carry the apple notes over very well. Making the urge to sweeten it more and just creating a super Apple Jacked Dry drink w/35-43% abv.

[@tylerhughes5420]

@@jamesthomas8481 I've made apple jack from 2 month old dry cider and it was very "appley". But I did back sweeten later with apple juice concentrate cause I was going for an apple liquor.

[@theweekendwarrior6355]

Great informational video! 👍

[@DointheMost]

Edutainment, one might say! Hah

[@Noble1200]

We do this all the time in Vermont

[@PeterHollingshead]

Que aldehyde and methanol debate... You're the best at quelling common misconceptions within this community. Thanks bud!

[@DointheMost]

If I haven’t gone blind or grown hair out of my palms in eight years of making this stuff, I presume it’s just fine! Just have a pint of water by your side ha ha

[@WLTruth]

I’m already starting an applejack from another content provider. I’ll try yours after.

[@DointheMost]

Nice! Details are in the description. I like EdWort's apfelwein recipe as a base to begin with.

[@damienirwin9102]

breaded and bored

[@handsomedevil7072]

If you gonna freeze distill, better add your extra stuff for aroma later while bottling. Just use sugar wash and create vodka (if it's legal of course). Cause methanol mainly formes with degredation of plant fibers in our case. So your vodka gives you less headache than store bought wine. Way less methanol and no sulphur they use as a preserver

[@Murlockingqc]

You should thaw and refreeze the ice to extract even more cider. That's a recommendation I've seen popular in forums.

[@jamesthomas8481]

To eliminate the headaches and there by reducing the concentration of methanol you want to heat the concentrated liquid to about 160. Methanol evaporation : 148⁰F Ethanol evaporation : 173⁰F

[@Dartagnan753]

If I may ask, how long should I sustain this temperature for optimal methanol extraction?

[@jamesthomas8481]

@@Dartagnan753 I am researching this information as well. I have decided to just by a cheap inexpensive 2 pot w/copper tubing still. As it all comes down to that in the end. Amazon $60⁰⁰usd. *The Time to vapor off isn't exact as it depends on the amounts and other variables. So they do it by a way of calculations with the volume of the liquid and figure out % what will be your heads , your heart & your tails. Again im just a beginner but that's what I have researched so far.

[@jamesthomas8481]

@@Dartagnan753 update on methanol extraction. I bought an airstill and it works wonders. You can get away with buying an inexpensive water distiller though I can't guarantee it's end results like I can with the airstill. To my point is just to refortify your apple cider. I'll go on to explain amounts if you like.

[@stuartallen2001]

Wow what a great video! I first learned about apple jack from an adam ragusea video. My roommates decided to get me a cider kit for Christmas and im making my first ever brew now. Id be very interested in making apple jack after some practice with cider first. Can you tell me why the apple wine takes so much longer to ferment than apple cider?

[@daxhill1]

This was amazing

[@markcrume]

great vid!

[@shadowcatX2000]

If you start with a 20% brew and remove 2/3rds of the volume, what's your approximate alcohol percentage? Also, have you ever used frozen apple juice as the sugar source, just to really pack in apple flavor?

[@captainmurphy66]

After the first ferment, I add 1 container per gallon of frozen Apple concentrate and 1 cup of brown sugar. make a wonderful heavy apple flavor.

[@peady64]

This has been an education. Retirement will be educational...lol

[@kylek7523]

When making the apple wine would you recommend adding acid in the form of lemon juice or acid blend as you might when making a cider? I added 1lb raisins to a 5 gallon batch but am unsure if I should add some lemon juice and/or additional powdered tannins prior to bulk aging? Just trying to get an idea of balancing the wine and how that balance could turn out once concentrated as in freeze distillation.

[@jamesthomas8481]

Did you ever figure it out? I too am interested, & you can find alot of these answers on the discord server DTM has out. See ya there.

[@mutantryeff]

My preferred method when making Eisbock is to freeze in a Corney keg, then use CO2 pressure to transfer to another keg without exposing it to oxygen.

[@fatttony9156]

If you gently heat the apple jack with a open lid the methanol will come off first leaving behind the ethanol as they both have two different boiling points

[@pl0p3]

Great video! What is the point of the extended aging? I have a batch fermenting at the moment and thinking of freezing it outside this winter.

[@alexthomas6602]

Been looking foward to this

[@DointheMost]

Enjoy!

[@scroogemcduck1462]

In order to get rid of methanol and other things, couldn't one just heat the apple jack to 65/150 degrees and keep it there for a little bit, or would that be detrimental to the taste?

[@miguelquiroga4]

i think it could be done, but be sure to do it in a well ventilated area. You wouldn't want to breathe methanol vapor. Also, some of the flavour would probably also boil off (esters, aldehydes, and other flavour compounds). This is all speculation from my part though.

[@imbored742]

You'd end up boiling off a fair portion of the more volatile flavour compounds, and a decent amount of the ethanol as well. Remember that a substance's boiling point isn't where it starts to evaporate, it's the point beyond which the liquid form can't exist at standard atmospheric pressure.

[@jamesthomas8481]

So I too have recently been wondering these same questions. As freeze distillation comes a little simpler for safety sake. However in the end your still going to use heat to vapor off your methanol and thereby your flavours , esters , and even ethanol... so I had just bit the bullet and bought a cheap (no doubt real cheap) $60⁰⁰ 2 pot distiller set with copper tube. So at least I can attempt to keep some of the flavours and release the methanol safer. If using the freeze distill method one may only make and drink small quantities like a mixed drink or two before bad ill effects take place or so I understand. Any up2date infos please do tell. I'm on discord at their dtm server. & MMM

[@Bamaboompa]

One suggestion I've done with cheap alcohol is "Nuclear Aging". Put it in a quart mason jar and microwave at 50-75% power checking with a thermometer every 30-45 seconds until it hits 150 degrees. Let it air for 30-60 minutes then put the top on. To "age it", add about 1/4 toasted oak chips as you nuke & repeat the process for 3 days. Store your jack with the chips in the jar, taste it ever few days until it's what you like. Use your own judgement but I've done this with 80 proof spirits turning vodka into homemade "aged" gin.

[@themanwithallthewrongopini3551]

I’ve always put it on the stove and heat it up until I could feel “steam” on the surface. I’d keep it there for about 5-10 minutes and usually that was enough for me to notice a difference if a hangover hit.

[@spikelove9533]

I've always been interested in trying this but I have 2 stills maybe someday I'll give it a whirl.

[@daro9582]

How does one calculate the final ABV after jacking? I assume it doesn’t triple by cutting the volume in 3, as this would land a ~20% apple wine at about 60%, which seems a little too much

[@MichaelAnderson-df2hj]

Ok I just finished your apple jack vid. My question is..... Will the hydrometer measure the final abv?

[@Dogstickfetch]

BRILLIANT!!!

[@DointheMost]

Right back atcha 👈😎👈

[@ruffmansavageveteran1345]

What I have learned today? There is such a kitchen device called a "salad spinner".

[@avimiller1263]

My favorite drink to make. I make mine a little differently. Everyone loves it. Is there a way to measure the alcohol of the final product? I make apple wine to 12.5% abv Then I freeze it till it reduces by half, and the leftover ice is almost completely clear. So does that double the alcohol or is it less?

[@DointheMost]

That gives you a rough estimate, yeah

[@Knightcommander69]

While you probably won’t go blind from methanol poisoning, as the ethanol will likely protect your optic nerve, the hangovers are like nothing else. Limit how much you have drastically lol

[@javierchirinos28]

I would substitute granular sugar with invert sugar so that the yeast can more easily digest it... Purely in a theoretical scenario *cough cough*

[@DointheMost]

Fair point, though this method has served me well since 2012 or so - with some minor tweaks here and there. Once the yeast are really at cruising altitude they can do some serious work.

[@rockinbobokkin7831]

Seeing anyone with a Singha shirt thrills me, though I prefer Chang

[@donblack541]

If I heat up the apple jack to 145 degrees and burn off the methanol for 15 minutes do you think it will help stop the hangover 🤔

[@willdwyer6782]

Jacking was the method used to make bathtub gin during alcohol prohibition.

[@nicholaskarako5701]

So I am guessing this is how these high abv beers get up to forty to sixty abv instead of just simply adding a distilled spirit to them. Makes me also wonder if graf from the Dark tower series is just a stout, port or dark style beer with applejack in it...?. Making a dark golden color brew that is high abv with a tart apple taste. Kind of like a high octane version of a Snake bite with half n half Guinness and apple cider.

[@antonioj.2147]

Would it be good enough without aging the cider? I've heard from Bearded and bored that it's good to jack and drink right after fermentation.

[@nizvkfb7vsbvrsct723]

Sure you can, but don't expect it to taste good.

[@bookbadabo7040]

Can grain or sugar fermented liquids be distilled

[@bosherba]

Hi, well, this apple jack still have methanol in it, right? Is there a way of removing it before or after freezing it? Just wondering, what will happen to the flavor if: 1. One partially distil cider to 158 F, cool down the rest and continue with freezing process. Boiling point of ethanol is about 170 F and everything depend on barometric pressure and ones position above sea level. That way one can get rid of foreshoots and heads, keep all the Ethanol but what will happen to flavors? As I know, apple juice pasteurization is made at 176 F for about minute and preserve all flavors of apple juice, will partial distillation do the same? 2. First do freezing portion, concentrating apple jack to up to 40% alcohol, put in the still boil it to 158 F, get rid of foreshoots and heads and cool it down. Will this affect the rich flavor of apple jack? I mean, never did practical distillation, but process of it is telling me that this is possible and for same reason not aware of impact to cider in first case or apple jack in second. Cheers.

[@existentialcrisis9757]

Should I worry about Methanol concentration?

[@bybeezguepe6557]

Doesn't having that much white sugar added instead of pure apple juice (or apple juice concentrate) fermented impact the flavor of the final apple jack ? (or maybe since it's concentrated the apple doesn't end up overwhelming)

[@DointheMost]

I’ve heard tell of folks who believe that white sugar produces off flavors - but I have never had that issue in applejack. Recently I did a sugar wash, 5 gallons with 10 pounds of granulated sugar, and it’s one of the most lovely things I’ve ever had come out of primary! Was almost a shame to dump Kool-aid powder in it. So one has to wonder how much truth there is to the off flavors rhetoric. But back to the question - this thing is hard-core apple all the way down. Now, I used brown sugar one year, and that definitely changed the flavor profile.

[@bybeezguepe6557]

@@DointheMost good to know ! My next batch will cost less ! Did you add nutrients ? Maybe people got off flavors from a lack of nutrition

[@DointheMost]

Yes I used both DAP and ferm-o. YMMV!

[@crakkbone]

I like your video :) I’ll sub

[@Puddleford]

Sorry if it's already answered but it's so hard to search this many comments... What was the cider recipe you used to start with?

[@chaseyoungblood1494]

Oh shoot... peep that fancy wax dipping. Do I foresee a future video about this???

[@DointheMost]

Cheese wax and a dedicated crockpot! Blow dryer if it clumps anywhere. Boom - you’re in business!

[@mshilko]

How many freeze cycles do you typically have to do? Have my first batch in the freezer.

[@ryanriebel7711]

I did around 3 or 4 freezes. I'm just to bottling it now.

[@TheOldBlackShuckyDog]

Was looking at doing this with some homebrewed mead (perfectly legal as I live in the UK). Pretty new to it but a bit hesitant as I've seen some people call it dangerous, anything I should be looking out for?

[@antonioj.2147]

Don't drink too much of it, 2 shot glasses is just enough, also I like to backsweeten with honey so that it's even smoother to drink.

[@sam11182]

how does this freezing method relate to the bad chemicals as opposed to heat

[@sam11182]

bad chemicals meaning the Mega hangover

[@Tarzisme]

How would this work with mead?!?!?!

[@paulhammons7077]

Methonal sounds awesome... .. .

[@onesyphorus]

lol i just wanted to find the cereal process e😂

[@ahmelmahay]

mental alcohol content id say enjoy, nice history lesson

[@Brandon-jw5cv]

Dude. Duuuuuuuude. How long did you age that batch of apple wine before you did the freezing process? 🍖

[@DointheMost]

Was started about a year and 8 months ago!

[@Brandon-jw5cv]

Do you notice a big loss in quality if you don't age it? Or is it just way way more of a hangover?

[@DointheMost]

@@Brandon-jw5cv It definitely gives time for fusels to break down and the whole thing to smooth out. But 9 months is my usual. This got extra time since we moved and I didn’t want to mess with it last winter.

[@Brandon-jw5cv]

Cool I'll start one today for next Christmas :)

[@claytondoty9512]

Can you take gravity readings after freezing to get an abv?

[@DointheMost]

There isn’t a super reliable or simple method of measuring it on the home scale, but you could do some math based on the water volume removed to get a rough estimate.

[@IAMDARTHVADERBITCH]

It wouldn't work with a hydrometer but you could get an alcohol meter to check

[@DointheMost]

@@IAMDARTHVADERBITCH my understanding is that only works on pure spirits and this is not a pure spirit. There's a lot of other stuff in suspension (it's almost syrupy) that could dramatically throw off the reading.

[@IAMDARTHVADERBITCH]

@@DointheMost that's fair, we work with hot distillation..... Totally different. I wonder how an alcohol meter would behave 🤔

[@DointheMost]

@@IAMDARTHVADERBITCH I have a feeling it would get you in the realm, but I think there’s also a lot of extra stuff in there that is going to throw it off by some margin.

[@RavnerRavner]

jersey lightning.... that stuff will make you feel sideways in no time

[@Marrebrylle]

Final abv?

[@DointheMost]

That depends on process, yeast nutrition, and some other factors. My batches generally clock in at an estimated 40% ABV. I do not have the tools to measure it precisely, though.

[@IAMDARTHVADERBITCH]

@@DointheMost you could get an alcohol meter

[@DointheMost]

@@IAMDARTHVADERBITCH my understanding is that only works on pure spirits and this is not a pure spirit.

[@28ebdh3udnav]

Is it bad that I keep laughing every time you say you're going to "jack it"? Lmao

[@hideouseblob955]

It's worst hangover of my life I wanted to die.

[@danielgodfrey4415]

FYI freeze distilling is a pain in the @$$.

[@mikecarver4322]

Think I’ll not give this a go in the new year once I’ve bottled the skeeta pee and have a spare brew 🪣

[@DointheMost]

It’s a winner!

[@wfqsfg]

There is another guy on KZbin with an apple jack video. He claims the hangover from apple jack is like nothing else because of the methanol and fusals. He calls the hangover apple palsy. I'm just going to stick with hard cider.

[@DointheMost]

One should never get drunk on applejack - and always hydrate. With proper aging ahead of time the fusels will be minimized, but as I mention in the video: hydrate hydrate hydrate.

[@waantut]

This video is basically blocked by you tube

[@roberthaines4221]

No offense -- and it's a useful video -- but starting off with a filtered, denatured apple juice like that, which lacks ANY character or complexity, is going to produce some pretty sorry applejack . . .