End-of-the-World Mead recipes - Mayan inspired

Maybe a bit of maple syrup would help, but I'm more stabbing in the dark... I'm combining flavors that I already know what the combination will bring. Mocha is a pretty set combination. What you made is more in the unknown area... It could, very well, age into something very different, and extremely good. I just think it's far too early to mess with it more. I think it would be better to let it ride for a good amount of time and then start tweaking it...

Just my take on it... I'm sure there are more people that have done wild things with mead that can help... At least I hope so...

Seeing where you are, that could be difficult... Although you should be able to pick up a newer keg without too much issue. Or just keep it in a glass carboy while it ages. I do hope you have someplace with stable temperatures that you can store it... Hopefully in the 40-70F range (better in the 60's for a high if possible)...

I do think the tea you used is the cause of the flavor issues... Although it could just be because the batch is still so very young...

There are no flavour issues, well, none that I know of (I haven't tasted it since last week, but it was tasting nice a chocolate-y with a sort of citrus-y taste to it). I was describing the smell in my last post

I will definitely leave it alone for a good few months, there is a chance (.. a high chance I hate to admit) that this will be terrible. But I'm a scientist, and another experiment is fine by me!

If it's just smell, I believe it will pass given enough time... What yeast did you use in it? That's probably what you're getting the odor from, which can be normal depending on the strain...

SO, just RDWHAHB and let it do what it needs, for as long as it takes... After all, it's not the end of the world... yet...

I used EC-1118, and did the usualy degas/nutrient addition until the 1/3rd break. It started smelling sulfury after that so I added some more nutrient a few days apart which allowed for a chocolate smell to come back.

I have no doubt that it's the yeast, it's the first time I've used EC-1118. I usually use a no-name wine yeast I picked up at my local brew shop because no one wanted it. It's the best yeast I have ever used. It eats through anything, no sulfur smells and I've even pitched it dry into a lemonade must with no problems at all.

I would be RDWHAHB, but I'm at work. Just trying to pass the time trying to work out how to get that cookie-type flavour. I remember reading about it somewhere, but i forget where. I guess I'll do some research when I get home on Got Mead?.

I didn't have that smell from EC-1118 when I've used it... Must be something else in your recipe that prompted it...

I will say that it's generally not advised to feed after the 1/3 break.

Research on Got Mead? about sulfur smell post 1/3 break to see what they advise...

I'm starting to try the other Lalvin strains, to see what they bring to the batches. Hard to really say until the batches are actual done, and ready for drinking though. Which will be months away for most of them.

I know it's not generally accepted, I only did it twice then I thought screw it, I don't want to keep opening up anymore just in case.

I'll report back in a few weeks when I rack it over as to the taste and smell. (this sulfur better dissipate!)

Just blame the smell on the household pet... Or family member...

Personally, I wouldn't really worry if it's just the smell... Check with the Got Mead? guru's to see what they come back with... I suspect they might just tell you to rack sooner than you were thinking. If it's already hit FG, then there's not much harm in racking a little earlier than you were planning to (so unlike with beer)...

I'm so very tempted to take taste samples of my mead batches... I'm holding off so that I cam be even more impressed with how they've developed since last tasting...

Golddiggie said:

I'm so very tempted to take taste samples of my mead batches... I'm holding off so that I cam be even more impressed with how they've developed since last tasting...

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I'll go on Got Mead? tonight when I get home from work. My Banana mead/metheglin whatever you want to classify it as was borderline undrinkable when I got it out of the primary. I've only tasted it once since then but damn, the change was amazing. It went from a watery, bitter burning (from ABV) drink to a almost reasonable white wine with a banana background. I can't wait to see how it goes in a few years (supposed to take around 2 years to age out).

My blackberry melomel already passed the HOT stage... To me, it was a bit tart, so I've blended it with my traditional mead (topped it off from the 5 gallon batch, which is why I now have three 3 gallon batches, when I started with two 3 gallon and one 5 gallon batches)...

My traditional was sweeter than I wanted it to be about two months ago... I think it's almost time to take samples of both of those, plus the madness batch... They'll be 5 months old pretty soon...

Do you think using cocoa nibs will work in place of the cocoa powder as well as whole vanilla beans. Not sure how much to use.....

I'm using vanilla beans. 1 split and scraped in primary and 2 in secondary as well as an oak cube. I actually want a very prominent vanilla taste. I've heard of people using cocoa nibs on the Got Mead? site, check out the group brew they did. It's very handy seeing as though they post a step by step brewlog as they go.

oldmate said:

I'm using vanilla beans. 1 split and scraped in primary and 2 in secondary as well as an oak cube. I actually want a very prominent vanilla taste. I've heard of people using cocoa nibs on the Got Mead? site, check out the group brew they did. It's very handy seeing as though they post a step by step brewlog as they go.

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Man that sounds good!!!!
Thanks for the heads up about the GotMead site. I did find the info and I will be going with the cocoa nibs instead of powder.

Let me know how it turns out. from my taster, mine has a mouthfeel which is actually quite nice. Kinda, creamy (I don't know how to explain it) from all of the dissolved powder!

Spent 3 weeks in primary, racked to secondary today. FG was sitting at around 1.002. Took a sampler.. Dear god. This is TERRIBLE. Little to no chocolate flavour, bitter as all hell and kinda citrusy. I'll stabilise and backsweeten at next racking (which by the looks of it will be within the next month or two, the cocoa settles out leaving it a dull brown colour). It better age out or else I've wasted a 5gal batch Racked onto vanilla beans/oak chip. A LOT of trub at the bottom, mostly cocoa I guess. This has until next december to age into something miraculous. But hey, who cares. If it's the end of the world, at least I'll be drinking something, right?... Right?!

For giggles I started a cider on the cocoa trub which I will backsweeten with some honey or caramelised sugar.

It's interesting that mine tasted nothing like yours. I was only able to degass twice a day due to time restrictions, but that is the only thing I did differently! Also, I tasted mine at a week before you tasted yours, maybe in that short time it had mellowed out just a bit? I'm hoping that racking onto the extra cocoa and aging will give a better taste, but it definitely needs to be sweetened to counter the bitterness mine has.

I was kind of expecting it to be bitter, so I was prepared to add some lemon juice to counteract it. It wasn't bitter, but it definitely wasn't very good. I dunno what it will taste like after 2 months in secondary – but I expect to play with it some.

Like it says in my video, SG = 1.014 after 1 month in primary. After I racked it, some activity started up for a week or so, so I expect the gravity to drop further.

Again – from everything I've read about chocolate meads, they're supposed to taste terrible for 6 months, bad for a year, interesting in the second year, and orgasmic at 2+ years (at least for the ladies). I have my fingers crossed.

In keeping with the “End-of-the World” theme – there's some christian cult predicting that the rapture will take place on 5/21/11 and that Armageddon will be 10/21/11. I'm thinking of taking what I've learned from this batch and making a “Rapture Mead” on 5/21/11... and then coming up with an “Armageddon Mead” to be brewed on 10/21/11. Anyone have any recipe suggestions? (the only caveat is that I generally only make high-gravity, “big” meads)

OneCerebralSamurai said:

Again – from everything I've read about chocolate meads, they're supposed to taste terrible for 6 months, bad for a year, interesting in the second year, and orgasmic at 2+ years (at least for the ladies). I have my fingers crossed.

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That kind of reassures me. There's hope yet! How long are you planning to bulk age?

A rapture mead sounds like something off the Bioshock video-game, so i would go a hydromel with some really good honey. Either that or a caramel-apple cyser, I've heard good things about it. There's a recipe on here for it by SummerSolstice.

My plan for bulk aging is to rack every 2-3 months until it's clear. If it's not clear at 1 year, I'll start to explore other options to clear it.

I'm thinking of doing a vanilla mead for my “rapture” recipe. The chocolate seems to overwhelm the vanilla in my Mayan mead – so I think I'd like to make something that tastes of vanilla.

The caramel-apple cyser sounds interesting for an “Armageddon” mead, given it's in October. I always associate apples with autumn.

Edit - I forgot to mention Brochet. I've wanted to try one of these, so maybe I'll use this excuse...

OK - it's been 2 months in secondary (after 1 month in primary) for this brew and I've been mulling over the idea of making this a REALLY end-of-the-world Mayan-inspired brew by adding some hot peppers. After many sleepless nights (and the fact that I've started another chocolate mead, so if I screw this one up all is not lost), I decided to pull the trigger and add some peppers.

I added 6 habaneros (seeds, veins, and all) sliced, in a hop bag.

I have to run, so I'll just post what I wrote in my brew log:


@3 months SG = 1.013. Tastes much more chocolatey and bitter. Maybe the chocolate in secondary added much more chocolate flavor. Interesting, but definitely not good. I think it has promise though. Chopped and placed 6 habanero peppers in a hop bag – and racked on top. Topped off carboy with 2 pounds of honey and 1.5 cups of water. Most of the honey settled to the bottom (I hope it dissolves) – but I gave it a stir with a racking cane. I then pulled a very small taste that had some of the undissolved honey – and OMG!!!!1!111!!! does that make a difference!!!!1!1!! The sweet and the hot and the bitter chocolate go fantastic together! Holy crap, I might have discovered the best thing EVAH!

:rockin::rockin::rockin:

OK - after 1 day, there was still honey in the bottom of the carboy so I decided to give it a stir and take a small taste to see how the habaneros were doing. It still tastes great, but the pepper hottness is coming on very strong. So strong that I decided to pull the peppers out after only 1 day. I still think the peppers were a great idea, but if I were to do it again, I might add only 2 peppers and leave them in a month.

Now to age another 2 months...

Hopefully the chilli mellows with age, and becomes well rounded with the cocao!

OK, I had a great deal of sediment in the carboy, so I decided to rack (plus I wanted to see how the habaneros are aging in). SG = 1.022, and still has pronounced habanero heat up front. It tasted kind of “interesting” (funky), and it seems quite bitter. After racking, I topped up with 0.5 cups of Reallemon juice (acid to balance the bitterness) and ~1 lb of honey. The most common chocolate mead recipe I've seen floating around the net (liquid sex) indicates an FG target of 1.030. My experience so far indicates that this is reasonable.

If I were to do this again, I'd add much more lemon juice up front (I have a second batch going where I added 1 cup of Reallemon in the primary), and I'd probably start with an OG ~ 1.160.

OneCerebralSamurai said:

OK, I had a great deal of sediment in the carboy, so I decided to rack (plus I wanted to see how the habaneros are aging in). SG = 1.022, and still has pronounced habanero heat up front. It tasted kind of “interesting” (funky), and it seems quite bitter. After racking, I topped up with 0.5 cups of Reallemon juice (acid to balance the bitterness) and ~1 lb of honey. The most common chocolate mead recipe I've seen floating around the net (liquid sex) indicates an FG target of 1.030. My experience so far indicates that this is reasonable.

If I were to do this again, I'd add much more lemon juice up front (I have a second batch going where I added 1 cup of Reallemon in the primary), and I'd probably start with an OG ~ 1.160.

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I think you're always still better off adding acid later on to taste rather than up front. The lower pH can sometimes negatively affect your fermentation.

Regarding the Liquid Sex chocolate mead recipe, I personally have made it and I kind think 1.030 would be way to sweet (at least for my tastes). I let mine go dry, then backsweetened...I went back up to lightly semi-sweet (~1.012), which was just enough sweetness to temper the cocoa bitterness.

Any of you tried to make Xtabentun?

huesmann said:

Any of you tried to make Xtabentun?

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Not I.

I always thought that the Mayans saved space in there use of memory by only using 12 instead of 2012, 12/21/12 might be like the 9/9/99 bug in our ye olde software programming. Thats why the world will end, just ike it did with Y2K!

Getting ready to rack mine. Have had some vanilla in vodka for a few weeks which I'll be adding to it as well. From the looks of it there is a whole heap of lees, but it hasn't cleared at all.

Wanted to say thank you for this recipe, I included a batch of this in my brewing weekend this past Saturday. The tempered yeast starter worked brilliantly and the yeast has been very happy from the start. I'm tempted to split it into two 3-gallon carboys during the secondary stage and add peppers to one of them while leaving the other unheated.

Ended up with an OG of right about 1.150. I was only able to take an updated reading 13.5 hours later (1.144) because the krausen (I don't know the mead's equivalent name, I'm normally just a beer brewer ) is so thick and foamy that I can't actually dig my way to the surface of the mead now. I also learned just how much CO2 ends up in this thing when I went to degas it the next evening and it erupted like a delicious chocolate volcano. Hooboy!

Can't wait for this to finish late next year!

Fyi – I hit my batch with some bentonite a couple months ago, and then just hit it with some SuperKleer-KC this morning (I need the carboy). It's looking pretty clear.

This ended up being a habanero mead with a tiny bit of chocolate. The 6 habaneroes that I put in for only one day completely overwhelmed the other flavors. It's not too spicy to drink – and is actually pretty interesting and good... but definitely has very little detectible chocolate.

I will continue to tweak this recipe – next time I'm going to up the chocolate (powder and nibs) and vanilla (powder and/or beans), and use only one habanero.

Wow, this sounds awesome!

I've gotta get me an End-Of-Times Mead!

hmmm... i'm thinking of coffee, chocolate, vanilla, royal jelly and "burnt honey" (Bochet?)

I guess this idea died...


but FYI - I am drinking a batch of this that is 1.5 years old and it's great!

Brew what you want. If you want to drink it in 6 months, then brew something that will be ready in 6 months. If you want an EPIC brew that will take years to mature and taste awsome - then grow up and brew an epic brew!

Cheers - and if I'm alive on 12/22/2012, I'll start another batch of this!

Going to be making the flavor additions to my second mocha madness mead this month. Should be about 21% ABV. Got to get the coffee and cacao nibs added in steps. Should have 3-3.5 gallons going to bottles next year. If the world hasn't ended at least. Might start the base mead for a 25% batch soon too.

For the record, the 21% batch was started last December. I'm not planning to bottle for another 10-12 months. Will see how it is at that time, but I suspect it will need some more aging time. Got some 14% batches started the same time (first week of December 2011) that I'm going to start bottling. The maple gets bottled first.

The Mayan's made no such prediction, but it's a great excuse for a mead anyway.

I live right in the middle of El Mundo de Maya and something that figured heavily in Mayan culture, and still does, was Cocoa. In the highlands of Guatemala pure handmade chocolate is readily available and inexpensive. One of my favorite things, which I like more than chocolate, is roasted cocoa "nibs". These parts of the cocoa pod are roasted as part of the chocolate making process and they are way yummy. I've used cocoa in Stouts and it was delicious, but maybe more sparingly in a mead...possibly in combination with some vanilla sounds good!

A cartoon attached which you really should work into the label.

They also made a hallucinogenic substance from the excretions of a particular type of toad here...another idea for ingredient just in case the world does end...at least you won't care!

And, I even hate to mention this, but corn (maize) is central to everything Mayan. They still make a fermented drink from it. A bit of corn would certainly be appropriate, but I hate to think of it in a mead, maybe just work it into the label.

LexxTalon said:

... and I'd like to put a vial or two of my blood into it. Come on... if you're going to do an apocalypse brew... gotta go all the way!

I will have it medically drawn...

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Come on! "Medically drawn". That's not "going all the way" nor is it historically accurate! If you really want to do it right then you should research Mayan bloodletting rituals. These involved piercing the tongue or penis with a stingray spine while under the influence of psychoactive drugs.

Don't be a wimp -- go all the way!