Fìon-Céiteanach

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Nath

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Jun 12, 2010
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I've been experimenting with a recipe from the 1800's I found on Jack Kellers Website.

The original recipe was called May Wine, but to ovoid any confusion with the German beverage of the same name, I've been calling it Fìon-Céiteanach (Scottish for May Wine)

For a 1 gallon batched I used:
3 pounds of honey
1 11-oz. can Welch's 100% White Grape Juice Frozen Concentrate
2 lemons
1 pt rhubarb
1 fresh ginger root (about 8 oz)
1 qt Dandelion petals
1½ pt Wild rose petals, Wild Columbines flowers, and Honeysuckle blossoms
1 cup Mint leaves
1 cup Sage blossoms and leaves
1 tsp yeast nutrient
1 tsp yeast energizer
1/8 tsp tannin
1 Campden tablet, crushed
1 packet EC-1118 yeast

I started by tying up the herbs(Rhubarb, ginger, mint, and sage) in cheese cloth, and boiled in a 1/2 gal water for half a hour. Meanwhile, I tied up the flower petals in a fine mesh jelly bag and placed in primary, then added the boiling water and herbs; added a crushed Campden tablet and covered and left to steep.
The next day, I made a yeast starter with a pint of water and half cup of the honey.
Then on the 5th of June, I removed bag of herbs and drained, added the drained liquid to pot with ½ gallon of water, added honey, heating mixture, skimming off any foam, then poured into primary. Also added the White Grape Juice Concentrate, the peels, juice and pulp of the lemons, and tannin. Allowed to stand until cool. Added yeast, yeast energizer, and yeast nutrient. The OG was 1.110.

When I checked on it today, the airlock had completely stopped bubbling, I was pretty sure I didn't have a stuck fermentation, as it had been going strong as of a couple days ago, so I checked and the SG was already down to 1.001, so racked to a secondary. I didn't really notice any fusel alcohols, we've had a lot rain here the last couple weeks, keeping the temps here in the low 70's; so I think that thanks to the yeast nutrient and energizer plus all extra ingredients(citrus peels, grape juice, rhubarb) in this recipe, I had plenty extra nutrients available to keep things going strong.

My hay-fever is acting up, so can't really give a good report on how it has turned out so far taste and aroma wise, but seem well balanced, very dry, very slight honey taste.

So far the two things I'd omit for next time, the wild flower petals which were just completely overpower by everything else and the tannin, I think the sage, rhubarb, and ginger alone would given it enough astringency for my taste.

Any comments and feedback appreciated, Thanks
 
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