Stovetop Pasteurization of Bombers?

I have a batch of the Caramel Apple Hard Cider that's ready to pasteurize (that soda bottle is hard as a rock), but I had a question...

When I pasteurize a 12oz bottle, it comes up about even with the liquid level, maybe a little below.

I've put cider in about a half dozen bombers (holiday gifts), and I'm wondering if the pasteurization process is different for those? Do I need to use deeper water, or is the less coverage going to be a problem? More time under the lid with the steam? More water? I'd hate to give someone a bomb as a "hey, thanks for hosting thanksgiving" gift.

If soda bottle is rock hard, you might've waited too long. Introducing heat might lead to explosions. Maybe not but exploding glass isn't cool. The big issue is if you pop a top on one of your bottles then you may have gushers already. This happened to me once and I had to open all bottles, let the carbonation level disperse, recap them all and then pasteurize.

I mean, not rock rock hard, still a little give. I let it get too hard once (heh), definitely know what that feels like. I'm going to put them in the fridge overnight to stop them from getting too pressurized.

Even then, i've only had bottles blow their top, not ever actually explode.

I opened the plastic bottle tonight and it had good carbonation, so I'm not concerned too much about bombs.