Fig Mead

So started fig mead back on Aug 25th.

16.5 lbs of dark local NC honey
Nutrient
LV1116
topped up to 6 gallons
Warmed water enough to get honey dissolved and added nutrient and pitched yeast when cooled. No fermentation chamber but ambient temps in the low 70's.
SG 1.096

after 3 weeks racked into 2 5gallon buckets adding 9 lbs of fresh local NC figs to each bucket. Frozen, thawed, frozen, chopped and thawed, then added.
SG 1.010

after 2 weeks racked off of figs back into 6.5 carboy for bulk aging and clearing.
SG- 1.00

Tasted pretty good, fig is a subtle flavor but there nonetheless.

Now the wait begins for clarity and bottling and aging.

Anyone done any fig meads before?
How did they taste? Did it take a long time to clear?
I guess technically it is a melomel?

It has a nice pinkish color to it.


Also have a 6 gallon batch of fig wine going with 27lbs of fresh figs in it.
Wine recipe based off of a Jack Keller recipe. It is nice a pinkish red color too~.

Just recently started making meads and wines so have a lot of stuff aging but nothing to drink/try yet.

Luckily the beer goes from start to glass a lot faster. And have a friend who share his last 3 years worth of meads regularly!

Well, other than it being, IMO, a little light on honey, and because I generally like a very fruity flavour, would have upped the figs to at least 2lb per gallon, it looks like you've got a good handle on things.

I'd guess this should turn out fine. The only thing I can't guess, is whether the chopping of the fruit, may have split/damaged enough seeds to impart a hint of bitterness. I generally do the freeze and thaw, then as little else as possible with fruit.......

Oh and maybe it might benefit from some Pectic enzyme, which would have worked better of it had gone in with the fruit - it should still help some.....

I made a fig melomel in summer 2011. It is quite delicious dry, and I backsweetened some also. A toasted golden color, looks like sherry to many. I froze my figs, thawed them in straining bag, then used a kitchen tool to break the fruit apart. In the future just freezing and thawing is all I will do. Oh, and I did use pectic enzyme. Will bottle this in January.

Per gallon:
3.5# fresh, frozen figs-thawed
2.5# honey +/- (target OG 1.085-1.095)
Yeast nutrient
1/2 tsp pectic enzyme powder
1/16th tsp k-meta
6" vanilla bean, split
1 Darjeeling black tea bag
5 random pieces candied ginger
2 lemon slices on the round
1 orange slice on the round
Epernay II

Figs were washed, destemmed and dosed with K-meta, then frozen overnight.
Poured 8 cups boiling water over tea, ginger, lemon, orange...add honey after 30 minutes, stir well, allow to steep with lid covering until room temp. Remove tea bag, cut rind off citrus and discard rind. In primary, pour tea thru straining bag, keeping citrus and ginger in bag, now add thawed figs and any thawing liquid, toss in vanilla bean, secure closure. Top up with water, add pectic enzyme and nutrient, and after at least 12 hours pitch yeast--adjusting SG if needed. Dose with additional nutrient at 1/3 sugar break, remove straining bag by day 5 or 2/3 sugar break-whichever is earliest, but put vanilla back in primary. Transfer to carboy, attach airlock when SG has decreased by 2/3. Rack in a month and repeat every 60 days til clear and no sediment drops for 60 days. Bulk age for at least six months before bottling, stabilize with k-meta or k-meta and sorbate if backsweetening. Wait 10 days after stabilizing, rack one final time if sediment present, then bottle.

I made a fig melomel in summer 2011....droid screen froze, created duplicate...sorry