Juniper berries?

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Rule of thumb is 2-3 lbs of fruit per gallon of mead if you are trying to get the flavor to shine through.

If you want it to be subtle and in the background of the honey flavor, I would just use 1 lb.
 
Rule of thumb is 2-3 lbs of fruit per gallon of mead if you are trying to get the flavor to shine through.

If you want it to be subtle and in the background of the honey flavor, I would just use 1 lb.

Are you sure that rule of thumb would remain true for Juniper berries? Are they not more like a spice than a fruit?

No offense Brandon, but I think I'd wait for an opinion from someone who has used juniper before.

Craig
 
Just a thought-where in the hell are you going to get 3 lbs of juniper berries? I usually see it for sale online and LHBS in 1/2 oz measures ($1.99). If it is even palatable. Blegh.

You'd be better off just buying the gin than potentially piss all that money away.

Jason
 
So that counts it in Grams...7.5 L is um um 2 gallons? so about 10 Grams per gallon and 10 grams is about ...... .3 ounces?
 
Just a thought-where in the hell are you going to get 3 lbs of juniper berries? I usually see it for sale online and LHBS in 1/2 oz measures ($1.99). If it is even palatable. Blegh.

You'd be better off just buying the gin than potentially piss all that money away.

Jason

spice store sells it 10$ an LB
 
Are you sure that rule of thumb would remain true for Juniper berries? Are they not more like a spice than a fruit?

No offense Brandon, but I think I'd wait for an opinion from someone who has used juniper before.

Craig

none taken. it's just a rule of thumb for making fruit flavor come through in mead. i didn't come up with it.

it may be different for certain things, it's not an absolute rule, just a rule of thumb. Common sense will tell you how to adjust it.
 
So that counts it in Grams...7.5 L is um um 2 gallons? so about 10 Grams per gallon and 10 grams is about ...... .3 ounces?

That is more inline with what I would expect. I think 1/2oz per gallon would be pretty strong, 1 oz as an upper limit. However I have not used it so I don't know.

Your best bet may be to make a mead with 1/3 to 1/2 oz of the berries. Taste it after a month or so and see how the flavor is. If you want more then add additional berries. Repeat until you get the strength of flavor you desire. Several parallel batches may allow you to find the correct amount faster.

Craig
 
Don't use 2lbs for one it will cost a fortune and for two it will taste like crap. I like the taste of gin as well but let me tell you 2 lbs will taste like your eating pure pitch. I made a juniper berry extract with a couple of ounces of gin and a couple of ounces of crushed juniper berries I then added this extract(after steeping for a couple of weeks) into 5 gal of brown ale at kegging. The beer had more juniper flavor than most gins so I'm thinking that less than a ounce of extract would more than likely make a gallon of mead very junipery. I recommend going the extract route so you can adjust the flavor accordingly, if you put too much juniper in your not going to like it, believe me.
 
Sorry I'm late to the party but, PLEASE DO NOT use that much Junniper berry in your beer. First of all, you will have a hell of a time finding any fresh junniper berries. They will be dried and you will only need about 1 oz. grinded in a coffee grinder per 5 gallons of beer. I would use sparingly in late boil and even more sparingly in dry hopping. Of course if you are looking for GIN then let her rip man!!!!

Eastside
 
Wow, I am really glad you are trying this out, not sure if it was my post you were referring to, but I do plan on making some juniper mead. Love a good gin and think this will make for a fantastic mead. You might want to do a citrus zest tea to add some of those flavors in too.
 
I found an interesting recipe I think on GotMead for a Lithuanian Mead (for mom) that calls for Juniper berries and HOPS.

Wonder how that turns out...
 
Gin botanicals include juniper berries (primary flavoring, and required to be called a gin by law), then also angelica root, anise, coriander, caraway seeds, lime, lemon or orange peel (sweet or bitter), licorice root, calmus, cardamom, cassia bark (American's know it as most commercial cinnamons), orris root, and bitter almonds.

Each producer of gin uses their own choice of botanicals in their own unique amounts, but you can get an idea for what herbs to use and in what amounts by what type of gin you prefer. Bombay is a lighter flavor, less overall botanicals, more citrus flavor. While Tanqueray or Beefeater require heavier botanicals, more herbs then citrus and probably a bit more juniper berries.

Looks like an essence could be a good way to go. You could do a essence distillation with water and the botanicals on your stove, much like you would make rose water. Put a large metal bowl on top of the pot with your herb and water mixture, then put a collection bowl inside the pot. If you add ice to the large bowl on top, the herb "tea" will evaporate to the large bowl, cool down on it running down into the collection bowl. Then just add the essence to a show mead fermented pretty dry I would imagine, in increments till you get the gin profile you are looking for.

Note for moderators, I really am talking about distilling water and herbs, no illegal methods used or intended. You can use this method with rose petals and water to produce rose water for cooking as I mentioned.
 
How many would u put in a gallon? got this idea from Jezterz Xmass meade thread... and it is very tantalizing!

I'd limit those juniper berries to 2 or 3 in a 5 gal batch & take samples at regular intervals till you get the amount of saturation you want. Maybe make a tea by simmering in water. Might make a difference between using dried berries & fresh too. Better to use too little & have to wait longer or add more than to add too many. Regards, GF.
 
That sounds more reasonable to me. I have spent the last few days or so researching online to try and find out different concentrations of garlic and/or juniper berries used in palatable wines. In general, I have found a few recipes that suggest approximately 4 ounces of juniper berries for 1 gallon of wine. Now, I am still working out how to utilize these berries. From what I think I understand, the juniper berries are actually coniferous fruits that have a soft outer shell like that of a berry. I believe the outer shell is flavorless and therefore, it maybe necessary to lightly crush the juniper berries to extract the flavor during the fermentation process. I am still concluding whether or not heat treatment is beneficial or a deleterious step that would destroy possible delicate flavors.

This is all the knowledge that I have acquired so far on the subject :(

Edit:
I've been talking to local people who have used juniper berries in gin making and beer making and they say for gin, berries are used in the pounds because the distillation process mellows out some of the flavors. If your are planning to ferment it and not distill, then I'd suggest 1/2 oz per gallon as a strong flavor. No experience in fermenting with them yet, but hopefully soon :)
 
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