GoldenShowerGladiator
Well-Known Member
Because there aren't enough of these threads..
So I've brewed beer for the last 5 years or so and have a great understanding of the process. Been a big fan of my father-in-laws meads but the other day I drank some of his cherry mead that he'd forgotten he had racking that was sitting in a closet from 7 years ago. It absolutely blew my mind. The cherry had faded (which I'm fine with as I'm not huge on cherries) but the sweetness and minimal tartness mixing with the honey immediately had me switching gears and wanting to jump into the mead game.
Tomorrow he's taking me out to buy some local honey from someone he knows. 15 gallons (lbs / not gallons) for $60 (not sure what the going rate is). Anyways. I plan on using the info in the link I've seen floating around (https://www.homebrewtalk.com/current-mead-making-techniques.html) for my first batch. My main questions are:
1.) Is it best to start off with a 1 gallon batch? I'm used to 5 gallon batches. Is the mead from that link worthy of 5 gallons?
2.) If I instead went with 1 gallon; how reliable is fermenting in a milk jug? Will the mead oxidize the way beer does if it stays in a plastic primary bucket?
I've been drinking a lot of New Day (local meadery in Indianapolis) and absolutely love their Breakfast Magpie (coffee and blackberries) and their Live Currant. I'd love to experiment with different fruits but want to nail down a good base mead. Any help and guidance is much appreciated.
So I've brewed beer for the last 5 years or so and have a great understanding of the process. Been a big fan of my father-in-laws meads but the other day I drank some of his cherry mead that he'd forgotten he had racking that was sitting in a closet from 7 years ago. It absolutely blew my mind. The cherry had faded (which I'm fine with as I'm not huge on cherries) but the sweetness and minimal tartness mixing with the honey immediately had me switching gears and wanting to jump into the mead game.
Tomorrow he's taking me out to buy some local honey from someone he knows. 15 gallons (lbs / not gallons) for $60 (not sure what the going rate is). Anyways. I plan on using the info in the link I've seen floating around (https://www.homebrewtalk.com/current-mead-making-techniques.html) for my first batch. My main questions are:
1.) Is it best to start off with a 1 gallon batch? I'm used to 5 gallon batches. Is the mead from that link worthy of 5 gallons?
2.) If I instead went with 1 gallon; how reliable is fermenting in a milk jug? Will the mead oxidize the way beer does if it stays in a plastic primary bucket?
I've been drinking a lot of New Day (local meadery in Indianapolis) and absolutely love their Breakfast Magpie (coffee and blackberries) and their Live Currant. I'd love to experiment with different fruits but want to nail down a good base mead. Any help and guidance is much appreciated.