Hi all! i'm very new to the mead making world and i currently have a JOAM style batch fermenting right now. My question is i would like to start a batch of mead once i get my carboys and equipment in the mail that would be ready for the next holiday season. I was thinking of doing a peppermint flavored mead. If anyone has any insight on how i would go about flavoring it or if anyone has a recipe they would be kind enough to share that would be awesome!
newbie christmas mead question
- Thread starter BaronIV
- Start date
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well i dislike peppermint, but you definitely would need real peppermint leaves, or possibly try dissolving some candy canes, just don't go too crazy as too much peppermint will overwhelm the honey flavors and it'll seem more like a thin peppermint liquere than a metheglin.
don't try using anything like peppermint extract for candy making since its going to be an oil base which might not react well in the mead.
if it were me i'd get real peppermint and steep it to make a tea and rack onto it in secondary. that way its not going to add fermentables like the candy cane idea.
don't try using anything like peppermint extract for candy making since its going to be an oil base which might not react well in the mead.
if it were me i'd get real peppermint and steep it to make a tea and rack onto it in secondary. that way its not going to add fermentables like the candy cane idea.
I think that there are extracts that are alcohol based in the spice section of the supermarket- as those little tiny bottles of loraine flavoring oils would probably just float on top. But the extracts that are made by McCormick do have green food coloring in them.
Now I do know that several different tea companies make peppermint tea (Celestial Seasoning for one) you could use a couple of the boxes to make a very strong peppermint tea and then add your honey and ferment it out. Others on here have had good luck with making tea meads. But it seems that there is a post on here somewhere (mead forum) about them (tea mead)taking a while to age before they tasted great. So starting now would probably be a good idea.
Now I do know that several different tea companies make peppermint tea (Celestial Seasoning for one) you could use a couple of the boxes to make a very strong peppermint tea and then add your honey and ferment it out. Others on here have had good luck with making tea meads. But it seems that there is a post on here somewhere (mead forum) about them (tea mead)taking a while to age before they tasted great. So starting now would probably be a good idea.
vulture1963
Active Member
I'd use a recipe such as this one http://www.utahpagans.org/SVUUS2010.html
and about 18 months down the road add some peppermint extract such as these http://www.nielsenmassey.com/vanillainformation.htm before bottling.
BaronIV
Well-Known Member
what about during the secondary adding a tea bag full of real peppermint leaves? i dont know if that would be tougher/easier than making a tea out of it and fermenting with that...
and @ vulture, i would really like to get it started by the end of the month and have a drinkable product by next christmas
thanks for the replies also! its nice that im gunna be able to frequent this forum for information!
and @ vulture, i would really like to get it started by the end of the month and have a drinkable product by next christmas
thanks for the replies also! its nice that im gunna be able to frequent this forum for information!
brandong
Member
I'm a novice mead maker also, but my bet is that adding a peppermint tea bag during secondary wouldn't be much different than adding it during the primary (or the boil). That is a good bet for making a nice light peppermint flavored mead, but like Emerald said, it could take a while to ferment out.
Adding peppermint extract after aging might be a safe way to experiment with the taste so you could try light and heavier flavors before flavoring the entire batch. Just a thought. I'll be anxious to see what you do and how it turns out.
Good luck
Adding peppermint extract after aging might be a safe way to experiment with the taste so you could try light and heavier flavors before flavoring the entire batch. Just a thought. I'll be anxious to see what you do and how it turns out.
Good luck
gratus fermentatio
Well-Known Member
I think 'd make a 1 gallon batch & make a "teabag" type of sachet with dried, crushed mint leaves; that way you could taste it from time to time & remove the teabag when the flavour was strong enough. Two things come to mind on this peppermint metheglin: 1: I think the mint leaves will add a green tint to the mead. 2: I'd be concerned about the finished product tasting like mouthwash. Then again, it might turn out to be the tastiest thing since mead was invented too. If you try it, please post your progress, I'm curious to see how it turns out. Regards, GF.
BaronIV
Well-Known Member
mmk so i made my mead today.
I made a one gallon batch with 4 pounds clover honey. I warmed up some water to about 100 degrees and took a small amount off to rehydrate the yeast (used ec-1118). From there i added a small bottle of real peppermint extract (found an alcohol, not oil based) to the water, mixed in the honey, added a tsp of yeast nutrient and 1/5 tsp of energizer and stirred the crap out of it to airate it. Once the yeast was ready i pitched it in and airrated the batch a litle more and now its sitting on my desk bubbling away like crazy.
I was unable to get a SG reading because while i was sanatizing everything, my girlfriend got home with groceries and set a case of pop onto my hydrometer, needless to say, it didnt survive.
I plan adding nutrients to the must tommorow, on day 5 and day 10.
I would like to leave it in the primary for about 3-4 weeks, rack to secondary and bulk age it about 7-8 months. Once its done bulk aging i'll bottle it and it will get another 3-4 months before i pop them open for next christmas!
The must smelled very much like peppermint, but i tasted in and it had a hint of peppermint, but was by no means overpowering.
edit: i did some calculations and the OG should be around 1.106
I made a one gallon batch with 4 pounds clover honey. I warmed up some water to about 100 degrees and took a small amount off to rehydrate the yeast (used ec-1118). From there i added a small bottle of real peppermint extract (found an alcohol, not oil based) to the water, mixed in the honey, added a tsp of yeast nutrient and 1/5 tsp of energizer and stirred the crap out of it to airate it. Once the yeast was ready i pitched it in and airrated the batch a litle more and now its sitting on my desk bubbling away like crazy.
I was unable to get a SG reading because while i was sanatizing everything, my girlfriend got home with groceries and set a case of pop onto my hydrometer, needless to say, it didnt survive.
I plan adding nutrients to the must tommorow, on day 5 and day 10.
I would like to leave it in the primary for about 3-4 weeks, rack to secondary and bulk age it about 7-8 months. Once its done bulk aging i'll bottle it and it will get another 3-4 months before i pop them open for next christmas!
The must smelled very much like peppermint, but i tasted in and it had a hint of peppermint, but was by no means overpowering.
edit: i did some calculations and the OG should be around 1.106
