Too much air in secondary fermentation vessel?

This is my first brew ever. I racked it off it's lees this afternoon. It had been fermenting for three weeks.
Is it ok to leave it like this until I bottle it? Is there too much air exposure?
My husband is bringing home some fresh pressed apple juice this evening. My plan is to add it to the cider in a test bottle first and see how long it takes to carb up and then bottle pasteurize it.



see next post for photo

Here's the photo that didn't come through the first time.

That's way too much headspace- but not a concern if you're bottling right away. If you're not, they should be combined and filled to the top of one jug. Any extra can go into a wine bottle, beer bottle, or another smaller container.

Oooooh, I thought so. Thank you. I was trying to keep them separate to see if I can tell if there's a taste difference between the one that was treated with a campden tablet or not. How long do I have before I should bottle?

venm said:

Oooooh, I thought so. Thank you. I was trying to keep them separate to see if I can tell if there's a taste difference between the one that was treated with a campden tablet or not. How long do I have before I should bottle?

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If you can't do it tomorrow, then I'm sure it will wait a few days!

Seriously ANY headspace at any time is too much, once active fermentation has slowed. If that was my cider, I would have bottled it instead of leaving that much headspace. But it will not ruin it instantly- it's all about degrees. A degree of oxidation may give you a certain "je ne sais quio" but a greater degree may taste like sherry. An even greater degree may taste like soiled cardboard.

so, I'd top up yesterday at the latest. Then bottling can wait until you want to bottle.

Thank you!