Bulk ageing vs. bottle conditioning

Still new to this and I have heard both terms. I understand one is bottled and on is in a carboy but as to quality of finished product which is better and why?

it all depends on preference, the style of beer, when you need the fermenter again.

i skip doing secondaries and just do really long primaries up to 30 days, bottle after that and let it sit for 4 weeks. then ill chill it down and try a few, if i like it i drink em, if not i either cold condition some and then also leave some at room temp a few more weeks.

hope this helps.

Actually made a batch of Apfelwein. Been in the primary for a month. Sampled it today got a gravity reading of 1.0 and it tastes wonderful. I want to carbonate half and leave have alone. I was wondering what the advantage to bulk aging is or if I should bottle it soon? It needs to clear a bit more and from what i have read it has a bit more to go as it ends at something like .99 or something like that which I am close to. I may not end up with the exact number and that doesn't matter it tastes good to me. To bulk age or to bottle? That is the question. Next question is how long do I wait? next question is when do I start the next batch? Oh wait I can answer the last one.. Tomorrow.

I think wcarter1227 forgot they were in the wine forum, not the beer forum. That time schedule is way too fast for wine, but acceptable for beer.

I've been pondering again in the bottle vs bulk myself.

So any insight into this? Which is best and why?

yeah i did overlook that this was a wine forum,

in that case when i have made ciders and wines, i typically like to bulk age them. i do cold crashing and multiple rackings to overwhelm the yeast. the last cider i did i used brett b and i let it sit in the carboy after multiple rackings for about 6 months. at that point i have botttled it up and it is now sitting in my wine cellar.

I wish I could remember the really good (scientific) explanation about why bulk aging is better than aging in bottle. I know from experience that it makes a better product but can't give you a reason.

well how long does one bulk age wine? Is there some rule of thumb people go by? I know when I brew beer I go 1 week primary 2 weeks secondary 3 weeks in the bottle and all turns out fine. Is there something like that for wine or is each type of wine different? If they are different how does one go about figuring out how long?

There really isn't a rule about the length of time. The rule is more about the clarity, the amount of sediment, the ABV of the wine, etc.

Usually, I rack every 60 days or so, as long as the wine is throwing lees. This is NOT aging- it's just what you do with the wine. Once it's completely clear, and no longer dropping fresh lees after 60 days, the aging can begin. If it's a lighter wine, not high in tannins or oaked, it can be bottled at that time but it's generally better if it's aged a bit. I'd probably age it 3-6 months, then bottle it and keep at cellar temperatures. If it's a big bold red, high in oak and tannin, I'd keep it in the carboy up to a year or so and probably even do some cold stabilization on it. (The cold causes excess tartaric acid to precipitate out, and then you can rack off of the crystals). You can definitely do it in the bottle, but the wine seems to age more evenly in the carboy.

Sometimes, I just let the wine sit because I'm lazy not because I intended to age it that long. I just bottled my 2008 rhubarb last month. I meant to bottle it last year, but I didn't. It won't harm the wine, and in fact probably helped it, but it didn't need to bulk age that long. It was smooth and clear, with no "hot" alcohol quite a while ago!

Wines that taste "hot" and uneven and a bit harsh can benefit from more aging.

Thank you. I was wondering when aging actually starts and you answered that as well. Again thank you.

My Apfelwein did not mature until 6 months or so in the keg. With Apfelwein I see no advantage to bulk aging after it has cleared. Go ahead and bottle or keg it and let it sit at least six months, with some sampling every few weeks so you can see how it changes.

I have about 2.5 gallons left that I made a year ago. I really don't drink it much because I prefer the beers. I am keeping it for long term sampling and as gifts to "real drinkers".