Ok. I've got a hard cider that was in the primary for 30 days, and has been in the secondary for 30 days now. I also have a blueberry hard cider that has been in the primary for 23 days and is probably going into the secondary soon. The temp of the location that I keep them has recently dropped from 70F to 66F because of the lack of insulation in the basement and our crappy Ohio winters, and might keep dropping to the lowest at about 60F during the coldest part of the season. For the hard cider, is it ok to bulk age or even bottle age(after carbing for a 2 week period of 70F, of course) at these temps? For the blueberry hard cider, same question...is it ok to keep in secondary at these temps? Any suggestion on how long I should do this? I'm not opposed to waiting 6 mos to a year for a good final product. I also have some Apfelwein going on 2 mos now and I know EdWort says bottle and drink after 4-8 weeks, but will this improve w/ age as well? Keep in mind I have enough empties of either carboys or bottles to age all of these appropriately. I am aware of Brewbelts, but these are glass carboys I'm using which I don't think they will work with. I would also really like to avoid moving these upstairs to a warmer location...although as a last resort it could be done. Thoughts anyone?
Conditioning/Aging...
- Thread starter Pyro
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zoebisch01
Well-Known Member
I ferment my cider in the basement. The one section is usually between 65 and 68 during October when we go to the press. It stays there for a month or two in primary. I just bottle it and condition like that when enough of the sediment has settled out.
Last year's cider didn't change much for me flavorwise after it hit like the 6 or 7 month mark. I just left it bottled, in cases, in the basement. Oh and my basement drops to about 50 °F in the winter.
So in answer to your question, yes the temps are fine and probably preferred for bulk aging, and secondly if you do secondary, do so after the bulk of sediment settles out in primary (about 6 weeks or so from the start) and you can leave it in secondary easily for a few months. I just choose to bottle sooner and let it condition in there as it frees up my carboys for lager season.
Last year's cider didn't change much for me flavorwise after it hit like the 6 or 7 month mark. I just left it bottled, in cases, in the basement. Oh and my basement drops to about 50 °F in the winter.
So in answer to your question, yes the temps are fine and probably preferred for bulk aging, and secondly if you do secondary, do so after the bulk of sediment settles out in primary (about 6 weeks or so from the start) and you can leave it in secondary easily for a few months. I just choose to bottle sooner and let it condition in there as it frees up my carboys for lager season.
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