Recent content by halleyscomet

I checked out their web site, and they're sparse on details about what the product is, a MAJOR red flag for quackery. It claims to "remove" preservatives but there's no indication of what supposedly happens to them. There's a vague reference to using Oxygen, which suggests the product is just...

Update on prickly pear availability. It turns out the plants can grow outdoors in most of New England. All they need is a sunny spot with plenty if drainage. Protecting them with a later of hay probably wouldn't hurt. They apparently shed a lot of water to survive the Winter. I first learned of...

I bought them. I live In New England and doubt there's anyone growing them locally unless it's in a greenhouse. A few stores carry them in the Fall. I generally blanch them in gently boiling water for thirty seconds and then peel them while holding them in a dishtowel. The staining from the...

I just bottled the most recent batch. It could have done with another racking so I only ended up bottling two of the three gallons. I gave my wife a taste and she replied with "Hell yes, that's a competition mead." It came out with a hint of sweetness but not too dry. This batch is drier than...

I suspect that would be a bit like adding flaked corn to the mash. The preservatives may be an issue for the yeast. A high pitching rate should help with that. Pitching onto the yeast cake from a previous batch is a trick I've heard for making cider from juice with preservatives.

I'm currently making my third batch of Prickly Pear mead. The pulp from the pears can take a while to break down and for the mead to clarify, but it will clarify eventually. I highly recommend adding some pectic enzyme at the start of fermentation. My first batch was made with Prickly pear...

Smeone has been doing some research into the beer, and posted their results here: https://www.homebrewtalk.com/f12/anyone-have-new-belgium-abbey-clone-recipe-122610/

Well, you might need to pitch new yeast if it didn't survive the heat.

I'm going with the AHA recipe, but I'm using Agave Nectar in place of the honey. This is due in part to the fact that I have a large quantity of agave nectar on hand and can't justify another honey purchase until I use more of it up! I'm also likely to do a 2 gallon or 3 gallon batch instead of...

I started two meads on the same day, with the same base honey. To one I added just the nutrients recommended in the "Complete Mead Maker" recipe I used as a base. To the other, I also added a few kumquats during the boil and skim, which were then included in the primary fermenter. When I racked...