ctalbot
Active Member
After searching around for all the ingredients I needed (the honey was the hardest to find -- go figure), I finally got everything I required last week to start brewing my first mead. On Saturday, I had cobbled together a basic recipe, which I hope will work out in the end.
My ingredients list:
9L of bottled spring water
3kg of clover honey
5 cinnamon sticks
5 Campden tablets
3 tsp. of yeast nutrient
1 packet of Lalvin 71B-1122 wine yeast (recommended by the guy in one of the local make-your-own-wine stores -- I couldn't find any D47)
After cleaning and sterilizing, I poured the water into my brew pot and heated until it was boiling. Then I took it off the heat and poured in the 3kg of clover honey, stirring it into the water. Then I put it back on the stove and brought it back up to a boil.
I had just purchased some cinnamon sticks for a winter/Christmas ale I plan to make, so once the mix was boiling, I threw in a few. I thought two or three would be too few, so I tossed in five. Within ten minutes, I was barely smelling the honey anymore. The cinnamon smell was overpowering.
I boiled it all for 45 minutes, stirring frequently and occasionally skimming the foam off the top and discarding it. After 30 minutes of boiling, I fished three of the cinnamon sticks out (I was worried it would end up too cinnamony).
Then I cooled it all and let it sit until it got to room temperature.
I added five Campden tablets, as I was a bit concerned that maybe there would still be some unwanted bacteria. This is the part of the process I'm most worried about, as I only barely understand the purpose of the Campden tablets (having never made wine).
I poured everything into a carboy and let it sit over night (I can only hope enough oxygen got back into the mix). The next afternoon (yesterday), I prepared the packet of yeast and 3tsp of yeast nutrient, and then pitched it into the mix. I put the airlock in place and moved the carboy to the storage room in my basement.
It doesn't look like the fermentation has kicked in yet, and I'm worried I made a mistake somewhere that will ruin my batch. How long does it usually take before I start seeing fermentation activity? Granted, it hasn't even been 24 hours yet, but I'm a worrying sort.
Chris
My ingredients list:
9L of bottled spring water
3kg of clover honey
5 cinnamon sticks
5 Campden tablets
3 tsp. of yeast nutrient
1 packet of Lalvin 71B-1122 wine yeast (recommended by the guy in one of the local make-your-own-wine stores -- I couldn't find any D47)
After cleaning and sterilizing, I poured the water into my brew pot and heated until it was boiling. Then I took it off the heat and poured in the 3kg of clover honey, stirring it into the water. Then I put it back on the stove and brought it back up to a boil.
I had just purchased some cinnamon sticks for a winter/Christmas ale I plan to make, so once the mix was boiling, I threw in a few. I thought two or three would be too few, so I tossed in five. Within ten minutes, I was barely smelling the honey anymore. The cinnamon smell was overpowering.
I boiled it all for 45 minutes, stirring frequently and occasionally skimming the foam off the top and discarding it. After 30 minutes of boiling, I fished three of the cinnamon sticks out (I was worried it would end up too cinnamony).
Then I cooled it all and let it sit until it got to room temperature.
I added five Campden tablets, as I was a bit concerned that maybe there would still be some unwanted bacteria. This is the part of the process I'm most worried about, as I only barely understand the purpose of the Campden tablets (having never made wine).
I poured everything into a carboy and let it sit over night (I can only hope enough oxygen got back into the mix). The next afternoon (yesterday), I prepared the packet of yeast and 3tsp of yeast nutrient, and then pitched it into the mix. I put the airlock in place and moved the carboy to the storage room in my basement.
It doesn't look like the fermentation has kicked in yet, and I'm worried I made a mistake somewhere that will ruin my batch. How long does it usually take before I start seeing fermentation activity? Granted, it hasn't even been 24 hours yet, but I'm a worrying sort.
Chris