Hello everyone,
I am in the US and usually do only one or two small (5 gal.) batches of cider from my back yard black twig tree.
I recently stored my small batch of apples for about two weeks in a shed until I had time to juice them and discovered that mice had gotten in one box and helped themselves to a few apples and left droppings on the shelf next to were they were stored. I threw out all of the apples that had evidence of mouse damage and washed them more carefully than usual and went ahead and made juice. I froze the juice until I can set up my plastic fermentation bucket in a couple of days for cider. Now I am beginning to have reservations about the condition of the apples and whether the alcohol content will take care of any contamination from the mice.
I only make one or two small batches of cider a year and usually do a half dose of sulfite based on the pH and then do a partial wild ferment. Is the partial dose of sulfite O.K. given the issue with the mice or should I do a full sulfite treatment and then use a commercial yeast? Or should I simply toss the juice and take better care of the apples the next time?
Thanks,
Bill C.