At what point does bottled cider "go bad"?

[cottonwoodks]

I'm only asking because last year (2020), I pressed 32 gallons of cider, bottled most of it that autumn, and then only a couple months ago bottled the last two 5 gallon carboys (didn't have enough bottles before then), and have a huge stockpile of bottled cider. If there hadn't been a pandemic, we would have taken probably most if not all of it to social gatherings, and it'd be drunk by now, but we have a huge amount left. It still seems like it's getting better with aging, but is there a certain point when it'll start deteriorating? What is people's experience with when that happens? (ie, how dedicated should I be to getting it drunk soon?)

 

[ncguire]

I have always consumed my home made stuff after about a year, but that's because I've usually only had enough apples for a few gallons supplemented with store bought juice. Finally had a good crop this fall and have about 17 gallons fermenting, so will try aging some longer. I've had commercial ciders in 750 ml bottles 3 years old and they tasted great. So I wouldn't be too concerned if I were you, unless it becomes obvious its going downhill.

But from what I understand, how long it lasts depends on several factors. Acid and tannin act as natural preservatives, as does higher levels of alcohol. Adding sulfites will also help it keep longer as well, especially if the cider is low in acid. So I'd expect a cider made with high sugar cider apples having a good balance of acid and tannin to last several years without any ill effect. In fact, depending the fruit, it may actually need at least a year to be drinkable.

On the other hand, if you made a batch of cider with something like red delicious, you will have a very bland cider with high PH. I wouldn't expect it to taste great from the get go, and will probably not age well at all.

Also depends what you mean by "go bad". Even cider made with ideal fruit can develop faults and taste off, depending on how it was made and stored. And more subjectively, there has to be a point with any cider where it's gone past its peak and is perfectly drinkable, just not as good as it once was.

 

[cottonwoodks]

I have always consumed my home made stuff after about a year, but that's because I've usually only had enough apples for a few gallons supplemented with store bought juice. Finally had a good crop this fall and have about 17 gallons fermenting, so will try aging some longer. I've had commercial ciders in 750 ml bottles 3 years old and they tasted great. So I wouldn't be too concerned if I were you, unless it becomes obvious its going downhill.

But from what I understand, how long it lasts depends on several factors. Acid and tannin act as natural preservatives, as does higher levels of alcohol. Adding sulfites will also help it keep longer as well, especially if the cider is low in acid. So I'd expect a cider made with high sugar cider apples having a good balance of acid and tannin to last several years without any ill effect. In fact, depending the fruit, it may actually need at least a year to be drinkable.

On the other hand, if you made a batch of cider with something like red delicious, you will have a very bland cider with high PH. I wouldn't expect it to taste great from the get go, and will probably not age well at all.

Also depends what you mean by "go bad". Even cider made with ideal fruit can develop faults and taste off, depending on how it was made and stored. And more subjectively, there has to be a point with any cider where it's gone past its peak and is perfectly drinkable, just not as good as it once was.

Ah, thanks for your response. I don't know about acid or tannin levels, but made them with Enterprise, Liberty, and Freedom (or Jonafree) apples. Yes, perhaps not ideal cider apples, but it's what was growing in my yard, and it was the best year for apples I've ever had. I fermented it at too high a temperature for the yeasts (couldn't have been helped anyway, and I didn't know any better at the time and at least for the first half of it all didn't get yeasts that are happier at higher temps), so there were some unpleasant flavors/aromas. After a year plus, most of those seem to have disappeared.

But I'll make an effort to get it drunk this winter!

 

[Newsman]

I made my first ever 5 gallon batch a few years ago with store bought cider. As I recall I used both sugar and apple juice concentrate. Fast forward a couple years and I gave my sister a bottle and she raved, saying it tasted a bit like chablis.
I finally drank the last bottle a week or so ago. Still drinkable.
I wasn't a huge fan as it fermented out pretty dry, so I'm not sure if it was past prime or just not a fan because it was dry. Still, it was ok with no nasty flavors or anything

 

[TurnipGreen]

I’ve had ciders in my basement for going on 5 years now. I’m an absolute novice with cider, but I can tell you most of them taste better after a few years and some tastes the same. But none have gone bad. Most have more apple flavor after some time.
I don’t know enough to say why.

 

[madscientist451]

I recently cracked open some cider I made in 2015, so 6 years old. It hadn't gone bad. The label read "tastes good" so not sure if it got better either. I usually don't use sulfites, but that will help preserve your cider. Most of my cider ages at least a year before I drink it because I have a large inventory. If one batch is really exceptional, I'll drink it all ASAP out of concern it will go bad if I let it sit around.

 

[mashpaddled]

As long as the bottles are capped and the cider is fermented it's not really going to go bad. It might age in a way you find bland but fermentation is a way to preserve food--in addition to any preservatives you might have added.