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motobrewer

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made my first mead about 1.5 months ago. just a straight show mead using a local honey. 1.107 OG, gravity about two weeks ago was 1.010.

it tastes like....honey flavored everclear, lol. is that normal at this stage?

i racked to secondary and was planning on letting it sit awhile, total 1-2 years. is bulk age preferred or bottle age?
 
motobrewer said:
it tastes like....honey flavored everclear, lol. is that normal at this stage?
Click to expand...

Yep, that sounds like young mead - especially if the fermentation temp was a little high. If you give us the recipe details, we may be able to say more.

Bulk vs. bottle aging has not been rigorously tested. I think you can age either way. I do bulk aging because I don't want to waste time bottling something until I'm sure it is going to be good.
 
Bulk vs. bottle aging has not been rigorously tested. I think you can age either way. I do bulk aging because I don't want to waste time bottling something until I'm sure it is going to be good.[/QUOTE said:
DITTO! Bulk age and rack at least, twice.
Click to expand...
 
I am no mead pro, but with the few batches I have made I can attest to something magical happening after 9+ months.

I tend to prefer extended bottle conditioning, but only because I lack the additional primary fermenters to keep one tied up for that long. I had good results with my JOAM in bottles for aging.
 
recipe was just 14 pounds of honey, enough water get 1.108 or so. D47, staggered nutrient addition during first 3 days. aerated like crazy as well.
 
basement was at 62F. that's all the temp control I had. bubbled pretty consistently for a good 4 weeks
 
Yep, you probably just have young mead. Age will transform it into something very different.

And just to be technical, what you have is a "traditional mead." The term "show mead" is reserved for meads made without the addition of nutrients or any other additives except honey, water and yeast.
 
MedsenFey said:
Yep, you probably just have young mead. Age will transform it into something very different.

And just to be technical, what you have is a "traditional mead." The term "show mead" is reserved for meads made without the addition of nutrients or any other additives except honey, water and yeast.
Click to expand...

oh, that's good to know. also, it was a honey blend as well. so, I think that also knocks me out of show mead category

huesmann said:
What did you do, ferment this in a 55-gallon drum? :p
Click to expand...

lol, ah, yeah, poundage. speaking of, i did ferment in a bucket, and it turned it kinda....yellowish. is this normal?
 
motobrewer said:
also, it was a honey blend as well. so, I think that also knocks me out of show mead category
Click to expand...

Actually a blend of honey can still be classified as a show mead, as long as it is honey, water, and yeast only. Using a blend can be a very helpful way of making a show mead as using some dark honey mixed in can provide a bit more nitrogen and mineral content to help the yeast.
 
motobrewer said:
oh, that's good to know. also, it was a honey blend as well. so, I think that also knocks me out of show mead category



lol, ah, yeah, poundage. speaking of, i did ferment in a bucket, and it turned it kinda....yellowish. is this normal?
Click to expand...

You mean like this? See attachment. All meads change color and clarity. Oh, and what it looks like in the carboy? Won't look exactly like that in the glass. It will change in a very short time, trust me on that one.

142.jpg
 

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