Aging in carboy vs bottle aging

From what I read on here, It is best to let the cider age for several months prior to drinking it.
Right now I have a batch that is in the carboy and has clarified nicely. I plan on priming it at bottling time. Would it be better to age it in the carboy or bottle it and let it age? What are the pros & cons?

parrothead600 said:

From what I read on here, It is best to let the cider age for several months prior to drinking it.
Right now I have a batch that is in the carboy and has clarified nicely. I plan on priming it at bottling time. Would it be better to age it in the carboy or bottle it and let it age? What are the pros & cons?

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Well, if you let it age in the carboy, it will clear up in there and you won't have as much sediment in the bottle.

Lots of folks here don't bottle for several weeks to several months.

I've bottled several of mine after a week or two of aging, but they were low ABV ciders (~ 4%). They dropped clear in a week with S-04 yeast. Depending on yeast, and ABV you may not need as long a aging period.

Some of the higher ABV ciders need a bit of time to age. I had a Higher ABV cider (~ 6 - 7%) that tasted like ass until it sat in the carboy for a few weeks. I then bottled and conditioned and it was great. The stuff really changes with time thats for sure.

I'm interested to hear what people have to say.

I have a couple of carboys I want to clear to use. Both have been going for 2 months now. Each had different juice. One has cleared, the other has not. Like the OP asked, what's the advantage of aging in -0bulk vs aging in the bottle?

RukusDM said:

I've bottled several of mine after a week or two of aging, but they were low ABV ciders (~ 4%). They dropped clear in a week with S-04 yeast.

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How do you get a 4% abv cider? Most juice is between 1.045 and 1.055. At 1.045, you will probably end up with 6% abv, possibly more.

It was 4.5% to be exact. I used Frozen Concentrate, not real cider from a mill on those couple of batches. I stopped it at 1.020
Specific Gravity
1.054
1.032
1.030
1.027
1.020

How does one take a sample of beer out of the carboy without letting air in?... I'm no expert but it seems rather impossible...

The Complete Joy of Home Brewing advices me to measure the gravity for 2-3 consecutive days to make sure it's bottling time...How do I do this without letting air into the carboy?

Go ahead and bottle it. Bulk aging is beneficial for quality wines not cider.

Haha...I'm brewing a nut brown ale... didn't know this thread was about cider...sorry