Storing applejack ?

I've got 5 gallons of cider going that I plan on making into applejack and was wondering what the best way to store it is. I've read on here recently to use small containers because the flavor changes quickly after opening.
Is oxidation really that big of an issue?
And what type of containers do you guys use? I'm trying to think of something other than beer bottles.

It does change quickly if left open or large amount of head space. I store mine in 125-500ml mason jars.

If you don't plan on drinking it right away i would store in larger alc. glass bottles but would transfer to small jars once opened.

You can use any air-tight container to age your applejack in.I guess everything is relative drinking/storage wise. I have put opened bottles of well aged applejack in the freezer after opening and then felt in a rush to drink it as I have had applejack "turn" in the bottle before.
I use beer bottles for a variety of reasons: a 12 oz bottle is more than enough for 4 people to enjoy in one sitting and I usually have less than 4 people around when I want a winter warmer anyway. The other reason for using 12 oz bottles is it is much easier for me to control proof bottle to bottle; I pull two 1/2 gallon jugs out of the freezer and the first 6 oz from each jug is going to be the highest proof, followed by the second and/or third pour offs progressively having less and less flavor and less and less alcohol. I have a labeling method that always tells me which bottle is which strength and from which batch it came from. Even with the same juices and concentrates and the same yeast variety used, no two batches are exactly the same. They are very similar, very close, but not the same. I am at the point now where I bulk ferment in the largest bucket I have and then break it down into 1/2 gallon jugs before I put it into the freezer. The 1/2 gallon jugs are a lot easier to manage, and my ending product has become very predictable defrosting 1 gallon at a time as opposed to 5.5 gallons at one time.

I thaw all of my 5 gallons (2Liter pop bottles) and mix all the concentrate back together to keep the same bottle to bottle before re-freezing. I also took mindenman's advice and kept some of the ice waste, thawed and re-froze for some good (seconds and thirds) applejack.

BILITIT, the only 2-liter pop bottles I have are the Coke brand ones. The problem is they have a ridge at the bottom of the bottle that prevents the initial melt from draining out; there is 3/4" of a "pond" that can't get past the ice block, so I have switched to 1/2 jugs with straight sides like juice jugs.

Ya i dont have many juice jugs. I did try a 4L milk jug, didnt work well. Also tried a few different style large mouth jugs but didnt like them.

12 oz. for 4?

I used 16.9 oz. green sparkling water bottles. Drank one all by myself on more than one occasion.

BILTIT said:

Ya i dont have many juice jugs. I did try a 4L milk jug, didnt work well. Also tried a few different style large mouth jugs but didnt like them.

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The plastic milk jugs used down here have straight sides and work well for applejack when placed upside into glass measuring cups

BILTIT, I believe I read you putting your applejack in Mason jars and storing it in the fridge, is that right? If that is true it will take years for for your a/j to properly age. In the dark at 21 C is the ticket. I opened a bottle the other day that was only 3 months old and was very drinkable; I had put 1 tablespoon of white sugar into a 12 oz bottle before filling it with a/j and it was really smooth and not noticeably sweet. One of the ladies that was sipping it commented they was more alcohol than was noticeable... I reminded her that is why we call it panty dropper; women's panties tend to fall off fast after drinking this stuff the first time.

Yes i have been putting in fridge at the moment but i will start taking them out as i dont have room anymore! (have another 5 gal ready to freeze tonight).

Thanks for the tip mindenman!

I did applejack last year froze it in 2L soda bottles and drained them off in mason jars. I refroze some of that in another soda bottle and drained that in mason jars. I only have a few oz of that batch left but I've stored it in a mason jar in a closet. The flavor has changed over the year, and the color has darkened. I imagine this is the oxidation you're trying to avoid. The flavor is very boozy, and numbing on the palette. It has a subtle apple flavor and nothing in the way of sweetness. I've got another 11 gallons going in 2 separate fermenters that I started about a month ago. I just hopped one of the fermenters today so we'll see how they turn out.

truth be told, I believe mason style jars have too much surface area but i could be totally wrong on this one. Considering the fact I only pull 36oz of jacked cider out of each gallon-- three 12 oz bottles isn't that big of a hassle. After my carboy full of hard cider finishes I break it into 1/2 gallon jugs (usually) and then put everything in the freezer; no two bottles defrost the same even though they are the same volume right next to each other defrosting. My usual way is I put two 1/2 gallon jugs into heavy glass measuring cups so I can see when exactly 6 oz has drained out and I pour two 6 oz "first running's" into one 12 oz bottle and label it with the batch number and which "pouring" it is, i.e. first 12 oz--A, second 12 oz--B, and third--C. The third pouring still has a lot of alcohol in it and generally enough apple flavor to know it is made from apples so I won't throw it away. After the third pouring there is still noticeable alcohol left but little left flavor wise. I have recently put 3 oz of FAJC into 12 oz bottles and topped it up with the tailings and put it away to age. After a month the flavor isn't bad; it is a little sweet and not very complex tasting, but maybe after 3 or 4 months it might taste more complex and even if it doesn't I still didn't pour the "left over" alcohol down the sink...

MindenMan said:

truth be told, I believe mason style jars have too much surface area but i could be totally wrong on this one. Considering the fact I only pull 36oz of jacked cider out of each gallon-- three 12 oz bottles isn't that big of a hassle. After my carboy full of hard cider finishes I break it into 1/2 gallon jugs (usually) and then put everything in the freezer; no two bottles defrost the same even though they are the same volume right next to each other defrosting. My usual way is I put two 1/2 gallon jugs into heavy glass measuring cups so I can see when exactly 6 oz has drained out and I pour two 6 oz "first running's" into one 12 oz bottle and label it with the batch number and which "pouring" it is, i.e. first 12 oz--A, second 12 oz--B, and third--C. The third pouring still has a lot of alcohol in it and generally enough apple flavor to know it is made from apples so I won't throw it away. After the third pouring there is still noticeable alcohol left but little left flavor wise. I have recently put 3 oz of FAJC into 12 oz bottles and topped it up with the tailings and put it away to age. After a month the flavor isn't bad; it is a little sweet and not very complex tasting, but maybe after 3 or 4 months it might taste more complex and even if it doesn't I still didn't pour the "left over" alcohol down the sink...

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Any guesses at what ur ABV multiplier is for ur different 12oz pulls?

Cheers! [emoji111]

For at least the first 6oz per jug, the a/j is liquid at -10*F so I know I am in excess of 40% ABV. Past that I don't know as every batch is different even with the same ingredients and temperatures.

I just do an average. I mix all 3 thawings together and am left with 30-35% when comparing to commercial stuff (how frozen it gets in the freezer). I cannot get it to freeze the 4th time around at -23C.

MindenMan said:

I use beer bottles for a variety of reasons: a 12 oz bottle is more than enough for 4 people to enjoy in one sitting...

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LOL! I drink 1/2 liter bottles just for myself...

How long are you guys letting ur applejack age? ...and are u bottle or bulk aging it? Curious how it differs 3, 6, 9, 12months out.

I dont really keep track all that well, mostly small bottle aged. I had some that was 12 months + and it definatly is better/smoother than when young.

would you guys recommend bottle aging apple jack in room temperature but in the dark. Then when ready to drink put it in the fridge? how do you guys drink your jack ?

Majority of mine ages at room temp.

BILTIT said:

Majority of mine ages at room temp.View attachment 571460

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Ecletic mix of AJ containers[emoji41]

Haha yes, that is my wall of experiments. The good stuff is usually kept in small containers for quick drinking.

BILTIT said:

Haha yes, that is my wall of experiments. The good stuff is usually kept in small containers for quick drinking.

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How long do ya typically age for your best results? I'm curious what the happy spot is....3,6,12 months?

As long as it lasts lol, that stuff in the pic is 12 months plus. I find after 6 months it gets better and better.

BILTIT said:

As long as it lasts lol, that stuff in the pic is 12 months plus. I find after 6 months it gets better and better.

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Lol...[emoji111]

I've only done 1 small batch so far & its only a couple months in the bottle. Time to crank out some more [emoji41]

BILTIT said:

As long as it lasts lol, that stuff in the pic is 12 months plus. I find after 6 months it gets better and better.

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So for ur AJ what ABV cider do ya start out with...and what's ur jacking methodology?

For me....took a 7% cider...froze 1gal...thawed it and bottled the 3hrs thaw and 6hrs thaw....ended up with about 40z total.

Trying to guesstimate my ABV multiplier...[emoji57]

bmd2k1 said:

So for ur AJ what ABV cider do ya start out with...and what's ur jacking methodology?

For me....took a 7% cider...froze 1gal...thawed it and bottled the 3hrs thaw and 6hrs thaw....ended up with about 40z total.

Trying to guesstimate my ABV multiplier...[emoji57]

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Whoops....here's the pic...mobile app won't let ya update an existing post & add a pic

I start with apple wine, so ~15-18%. I freeze at -23C for atleast 24hrs, usually longer. Thaw until only white ice left or i get impatient lol. I freeze/thaw 3 times. I have put it in the freezer at -23C and it does not freeze, commercial rum at 40% wont freeze either so i guesstimate at 35% end product.

BILTIT said:

As long as it lasts lol, that stuff in the pic is 12 months plus. I find after 6 months it gets better and better.

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I have some that has 18 months of age on it, and it is amazing; everyone that has tasted it has been highly complimentary and most wonder if there is any for sale.

MindenMan said:

I have some that has 18 months of age on it, and it is amazing; everyone that has tasted it has been highly complimentary and most wonder if there is any for sale.

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How many gallons (aggregated across the various containers) do guys tend to have aging at any given time? How often are ya cranking out a new batch to start aging?

[emoji111][emoji111]

I havent been making too much lately. Usually do 5-10 gallons of wine in the fall (fresh apples in august/sept) and turn it into apple jack, start drinking it around jan? I try to keep a few quarts to age for the next year but rarely keep much around that long.

Anyone adding anything to ur AJ flavor-wise prior to aging?

Got some 100% fruit juice concentrates (no h20) & cinnamon sticks I plan on adding to some [emoji111]

I have added nutmeg and cinnamon, gives it a good christmas taste. Leaves a mess at the bottom though unless you can put it in a tea bag or something.

Tossed 1gal of my S04 10.8% ice cider in freezer last nite for jacking [emoji111]

Are you guys bottling your AJ cold or letting it come up to room temp first?

Cheers! [emoji111]

I usually put it in the bottle cold but crack the cap occasionally to equilize pressure as it warms up.

Do ya find the higher the ABV the faster the melting process?

Yes, starting with the highest abv makes things much faster.

So, I found my applejack oxidized and turned bitter shortly after making it. I did not bottle it so much as just fill a mason jar almost to the brim and put a new lid on it in the fridge. Definitely got a bitter taste, to the point it was not enjoyable to drink anymore, in maybe 1-2 weeks. Can you think of anything I need to watch out for in the next batch to prevent this? I got it so that it was liquid at -10 F, and tasted super good, but it turned bad so fast... what a bummer