Too early for Thanksgiving???

[Ahade]

This is my first attempt in making hard cider and I need a little help. I started my fermentation on October 9th (5 gallons of cider straight from the orchard with White Lab's English cider yeast WLP775). On October 25th, I racked it (I took a gravity reading at that time and I believe it was .998 but I never took one to begin with so I don't know if that is at all helpful) I tried it at that time and I thought it tasted pretty good. It has been sitting since and I am anxious to start bottling some of it. I really want to have some to share on Thanksgiving. I have coopers carbonating tablets that I was going to try with some and leave some flat. I was also thinking of maybe back sweetening a few. What direction should I go? Any advice would be great.

PS - I have another batch fermenting right now which I plan to let age longer.

 

[WilliamSlayer]

Go for it!

Try each type that interests you.

The awesome thing about cider is t hat you can have it young or aged.

If you want carbed cider for thanksgiving you will need to bottle it in the next few days. Even then it may not be fully carbed in time, but try it if you want.

 

[Ahade]

Is it okay not to bottle it all, leaving the the carboy half full? bottle it and age it in the bottle? Should I refrigerate it?
Thanks

 

[WilliamSlayer]

Is it okay not to bottle it all, leaving the the carboy half full? bottle it and age it in the bottle? Should I refrigerate it?
Thanks

No leaving the carboy half full is a recipe for acedobactor (vinegar) to happen. Any bottles or carboys should stay full until consumed. With that in mind, you should think about what size bottles or portions are likely to consume, and then bottle your wine in that amount. Refrigeration is not strictly necessary after bottling. Hope that helps!