I had one bottle that was 5 years old. It tasted like a apple chardonnay. It had a great apple nose and a nice buttery apple with a slight oak characteristic. It was awesome. wish I had more..
Are you going to bottle with magnum bottles or just 750ml? Have you been hitting the recycling places for wine bottles?
I will be doing mostly 750mls. But I will bulk age for at least 3-4 months prior to bottling. If I can be patient enough I will wait to bottle around 6 months from start of fermentation to get a good idea of where the cider is going. At that point I can try adding in some spices to individual bottles (i.e. mix a gallon with spices and bottle condition 5 750mls to see how the flavor profile pans out). I planned to do it for the bulk aging, but I had a lot of must to rack and got lost in the effort
I have been hitting my friends for wine bottles! I saved up and sanitized about 100 ish but still have a way to go. Cool thing is... tomorrow I am heading to a wine bottle wholesaler and picking up the rest of the bottles I need. Great prices on the bottles. They start at under $6 a case and up depending on the type if I remember right.
Can you say... dedicated room for a wine cellar?
Like you say, my ciders taste like white wines almost. More a wine than a beer by far. But when they mature they are very tasty and the apple notes come out. I have finally started adding in things to play with the flavors, but before have just enjoyed the wines. The apple blend makes the wine.
I want to continue with large pressings for several years instead of small ones so I can build up an aged cache. It helps having a friend who is interested too - adds to the fun, and helps with the costs
I would get into beer I think, but it is expensive to make. One of the reasons I got into cider was to save some money, and I love growing my apples. Love beer, but will only infrequently brew it when it costs about the same (or more) to buy it in the store.... my .02
