I have racked the cider from the primary to my secondary fermenter, and everything went well. I took a little cider out to sample, and while it’s a little harsher than the first batch due to it’s relative youth, it’s a bit sweeter, and already slightly carbonated. I’m going to have to be careful about how and when I bottle – I think I’m going to let it sit with it’s airlock in the secondary for at least three weeks before I bottle.

I did have one major screw-up, though. After I’d racked the cider, I went to clean the Better Bottle I used as a primary vessel – and I forgot the water in the pot was very hot. Not boiling, but hot. And I poured about a gallon of water into the bottle. It instantly started to deform. Doing some looking, I’ve not destroyed a $30 Better Bottle, but it’s going to look ugly for the rest of time. I’m just going to chalk it up to another lesson learned in my journey.