Hard Cider Part IV: The Bottling

It's judgment time for my first batch of homebrewed hard cider. If you need a refresher, the adventure begins here. In late December I did fermentation, and racking about two months after that. I haven't spoken of it since then, because nothing has happened to my cider in the past seven months, other than sitting in secondary (and hypothetically becoming more clear and refined with age).

Recently, I opened up the bucket again and bottled two fifths of my premiere beverage in one-gallon jugs. The tasting was hosted by our friends in their new home. The cider was critically acclaimed. The apple flavor is subdued, but distinctive; slightly tart, somewhat yeasty. We experimented with several additives to hack the taste--including sugar cubes and fresh (regular) apple cider--but the majority opinion seemed to favor drinking it straight.

This process has been a great first homebrew learning experiment. For my next batch, I think I'll try a more complex recipe. But before I can start, I have four gallons of cider I need to drink. Is anyone thirsty?