Adding blackberries to a Mead that's 3 1/2 months old

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devaspawn

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So I've got a 5 gallon Mead that I made on 4/27/08. I transferred it off the yeast on 7/5/08 with SG of 1.011. This had 15 lbs of honey, water, and whitelabs sweet mead yeast and started at 1.116. My wife just got 2 lbs of blacksberries and I was wondering if it is too late to put those in another carboy and transfer the mead on top of it? Would it ferment out those sugars in the fruit? Is it too late for the blackberry flavor to get into the mead? How long should I leave the mead on top of the blackberries if you think I should do this?

Thanks


:tank:
 
From everything we've done, this is the perfect time to put the mead on fruit.... in the secondary.
 
Well technically I would be racking the mead onto the fruit in Tertiary. There gonna be enough yeast you think to be able to handle that? Is 2 lbs of blackberry enough? I mean I know some fruits give mellower tastes based on volume than others. Should I pop those berries into the freezer now and how long should I do that for?

:tank:
 
technicalitys, the 2lbs wont add that much sugar goto gotmead.com and use their mead calculator to get a rough idea of how much it will add. as for how to add them I would get a spice bag, one of those cheese cloth things, and put your berries into a blender or food processor then pour into the bad and add that to your mead. leave there for 3-4 months or so then remove the bag a couple days before you want to bottle. the bag should keep all the seeds contained and make clearing much easier. As for fermenting if you move to a tertiary most of your yeast should have fallen out so you could aggitate it when you transfer to maybe get more fermentation and as to quantity I would suggest at least 6lbs and closer to 8 if you have the space.
 
Well maybe this will be a multi-berry mead if you don't think 2 lbs will add anything at all to the flavor. I plan on getting a 6.5 gallon carboy this week. I got the cheesecloth thing but how do you get it in the neck of the carboy? Also, should I freeze before using the blender? I have read a few times (I think) that the freezing process ruptures the skin of the fruit. I guess now that I think about it blending it would shred the skin. Durrr...

Anyway, can you get a cheesecloth from the local grocery store, you think?

Thanks,

:tank:
 
I never said it wouldnt add anything just that it would be really faint, what kind of honey did you use?

dont freeze it esp if you are gonna blend them, im not sure what other methods would rupture more walls. and to get the bag in I would stuff the bag in the carboy then use a funnel and pour the juice into the bag, the bag should only really be there to help keep it relatively clear by removing the seeds from the mead.

By the way doing this while "sampling" my grapefruit and holiday spice mead.
 
Well technically I would be racking the mead onto the fruit in Tertiary. There gonna be enough yeast you think to be able to handle that? Is 2 lbs of blackberry enough? I mean I know some fruits give mellower tastes based on volume than others. Should I pop those berries into the freezer now and how long should I do that for?

:tank:

Hi devaspawn: I'd pop those berries in the freezer for a couple days & thaw them & let them come up to room temp, and put them in the blender. I'd probably add some pectic enzyme too, though only about 1/2 a measure. I've never used blackberries, but I've used blueberries & I was pleased with the use of 5lbs of frozen, pureed blueberries in secondary, though the berries did sort of overwhelm the honey, it was still tasty. I never took any SG readings after I added the fruit, but if I'd been smarter, I would've used a cheesecloth to keep the seeds & such contained. Hope you find this info useful, GF.
 
This is great info guys. I really appreciate all of it. I used Clover honey from Costco or BJ's I believe.

What's the Pectic Enzyme supposed to do and is it necessary. Getting that is a trip for me and my SWMBO is already looking at me with that "This is becoming an expensive hobby," look.

:tank:
 
The gas would cost more than the pectic enzyme. I wouldn't worry too much about it. Pectic enzyme is more important if you heated the fruit. Pectins set (think jam and jelly) when fruits are heated and can cause haze. Pick some up next time you go to your homebrew store for your next melomel. It's only a couple bucks.
 
Start with 2 weeks and go from there. It has always been the time frame I like. Longer isn't always better.

I think you should do this, and actually would like to see Pictures of it when you do.

Good to know. I would have left til bottling in December otherwise. I will do a little taste test after two weeks and then every week after. Oh the things we must suffer through for our creations...:rockin:

Now that I am a premier supporter I will be able to comply with your request...again...:rockin:

:tank:
 
15 lbs of honey, water, and whitelabs sweet mead yeast and started at 1.116. My wife just got 2 lbs of blacksberries and I was wondering if it is too late to put those in another carboy and transfer the mead on top of it? Would it ferment out those sugars in the fruit? Is it too late for the blackberry flavor to get into the mead? How long should I leave the mead on top of the blackberries if you think I should do this?

Thanks


:tank:

I made this exact melomel a few years ago, only with 4 lbs instead of 2 lbs of blackberries. I don't think 2 lbs will be enough, 4 will be better. I froze and thawed 4 lbs of blackberries, then pureed the gloopy mess and racked it into a carboy. Be prepared for blackberry guts to try and escape from the carboy due to CO2 production. I left the fruit in there two months and it was still really good.
 
Allow plenty of headspace when adding pureed fruit, they clog up airlocks and get be quite explosive, as I learned the hard way...
6511-Picture043small.JPG


6511-Picture040small.JPG


mike
 
That one had pureed blueberry mixed in with the primary, the fermentation pushed the puree into a kind of krauzen which clogged the airlock. Lesson very painfully learned :p

mike
 
Looks like I have to change my plans a little. I was going to pick up a 6 or 6.5 gallon glass carboy but the prices have doubled. I have a 7.9 gallon bucket that I have only used for bottling beer twice. I bought a lid for it today so I am going to have to use it.

On the bright side it looks like I had a little over 5 lbs of blackberries. I am going to use 5 lbs. They are in the freezer as of today and I am probably going to pull em out on Saturday and puree them in the blender and then add then to the bucket and then rack the mead on top after stirring the yeast up.

I noticed that blackberry is a rather tart fruit. 5 lbs won't lend too tart a flavor to the mead will it. It's 15 lbs of clover honey in a five gallon batch.

:tank:
 
Ok...I did it. Froze them for 48 hours and let them over the next day. Just liquified them and funneled them into another 5 gallon glass carboy. Racked the mead on top of it. Gonna leave it for a weak and then check out the taste.

I know I should have used a bigger vessel but that bucket may be needed this coming weekend. I brew once every weekend and my Wee Heavy is throwing me off schedule. It didn't ferment down anywhere near where it needed to be. So that bucket, which was supposed to come free this coming weekend is stimeying the flow, as it were. Gonna have to use that bucket I was talking about above for my brew this coming weekend. Sucks too, cause I wanted it as a just in case bucket for non-beer brews.

:tank:
 
Ok...I did it. Froze them for 48 hours and let them over the next day. Just liquified them and funneled them into another 5 gallon glass carboy. Racked the mead on top of it. Gonna leave it for a weak and then check out the taste.

I know I should have used a bigger vessel but that bucket may be needed this coming weekend. I brew once every weekend and my Wee Heavy is throwing me off schedule. It didn't ferment down anywhere near where it needed to be. So that bucket, which was supposed to come free this coming weekend is stimeying the flow, as it were. Gonna have to use that bucket I was talking about above for my brew this coming weekend. Sucks too, cause I wanted it as a just in case bucket for non-beer brews.

:tank:

5 gallons a week....WOW MAN! That's fun! You should have a full and overflowing pipeline Right?
 
This thread motivated me to run to the store and pick up some blackberries. I've had a mead sitting for over 3 months now and have not known what to do with it - add fruit or don't add fruit? what kind of fruit and how much? I grabbed 4 pounds and they're thawing out right now and I'm going to toss them in later tonight.
 
Devaspawn, how long do you plan on leaving your mead on the blackberries and when do you plan on bottling? This is my first mead and its been sitting for about 3 months before I added blackberries. I'm thinking about leaving it for 3 or 4 weeks before racking and maybe bottling it around Thanksgiving.
 
I tasted it Friday night. I think I am going to leave it on the berries til next friday. It was recommended that you check the taste after the first week. Then keep checking until you are satisfied with the taste. Once you are satisfied, rack to another carboy.

:tank:
 
I tasted it Friday night. I think I am going to leave it on the berries til next friday. It was recommended that you check the taste after the first week. Then keep checking until you are satisfied with the taste. Once you are satisfied, rack to another carboy.

:tank:

I've left mead on fruit in secondary for 4 months & was not sorry I did. I honestly don't think you'll get much flavour after a few weeks, but then maybe light/mild fruit flavour is what you had in mind from the beginning. Just thought I'd mention that. Regards, GF.
 
That's good to know. I do want it to still have a distinct honey taste so maybe I will just check once a week for the next few weeks and see where it goes from there.

:tank:
 
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