This stuff had better be worth it - Page 2

mccann51 · 10-21-2011, 07:16 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by kc_in_wv

So far this 3 gallon batch has cost me;
$45 that I could have sold the honey for.
$15 for the Organic Cocoa
$4.35 for the Vanilla beans
$26 for the carboy I hadn't planned on getting
for a total of $90.35

If I bottle 3 gallons of mead, which I doubt, that would cost me a little over $6 a bottle.

How big are the bottles? This should be more like 3$ or 4$ for 12 oz bottles, shouldn't it? As well, the carboy is reuseable, so it's not like you can really include that in the cost of the mead; it's a separate entity entirely.

If you remove the carboy cost, and we assume only 2.5 gal of mead due to cocoa displacement, you're paying less than 2.50$ a 12 oz bottle for a ~14% ABV cocoa-mead.

kc_in_wv · 10-23-2011, 07:37 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by mccann51

How big are the bottles? This should be more like 3$ or 4$ for 12 oz bottles, shouldn't it? As well, the carboy is reuseable, so it's not like you can really include that in the cost of the mead; it's a separate entity entirely.

If you remove the carboy cost, and we assume only 2.5 gal of mead due to cocoa displacement, you're paying less than 2.50$ a 12 oz bottle for a ~14% ABV cocoa-mead.

I agree that the carboy is reusable but I had not been planning on buying another carboy at the present. It just seemed like it was the best route to take and not waste some great honey. Most of my bottles are 750 ml wine bottles with a few few 375ml stuck in.

Here are my calculations
3 gal converts to 11356 ml/750=15.14 bottles.
$90.35/15=$6.02 per bottle

Would you suggest that I use smaller bottles?

Crew · 10-23-2011, 08:12 PM

but even the crappiest mead you can find in the US is roughly $10... I have a very similar batch sitting in my basement as well.. it's been about 2 weeks for me. Mine is also black (didn't expect that) but it smells incredible. I can't wait

kc_in_wv · 10-29-2011, 01:02 AM

I checked my brew today. The sg is down to about 1.05. It looks like muddy water that has settled some. I am going to top it off with some honey/water and wait about a year.

kc_in_wv · 11-17-2011, 04:15 PM

Last night I checked the SG of this mead. It is 1.01 which I think puts it to about 15%.

I tasted to see what it was like. Under the CO2 bite there was a pleasant slight chocolate taste.

I then added about 1 quart of water to top it up. This started a lot of CO2 coming to the top.

The next time I check it I am going to stir up the chocolate etc that has settled to the bottom.

**fatbloke** · 11-17-2011, 10:00 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by kc_in_wv

Last night I checked the SG of this mead. It is 1.01 which I think puts it to about 15%.

I tasted to see what it was like. Under the CO2 bite there was a pleasant slight chocolate taste.

I then added about 1 quart of water to top it up. This started a lot of CO2 coming to the top.

The next time I check it I am going to stir up the chocolate etc that has settled to the bottom.

Ha ha! yes, that's one thing that often gets missed on recommendations. Always give it a gentle stir before adding anything. Some stuff can cause it to foam out like a fountain, making stuff very messy indeed......