2nd batch ever, any suggestions???

[brandono]

12 lbs amber honey
4 oz. hibiscus petals
white labs sweet mead yeast
northern brewer yeast nutrient

-steep hibiscus petals to make a tea, then bring the water to a boil 10 minutes to boil out any chlorination
-add honey and let dissolve when heat has been turned off to pasteurize it
-ferment around 65-70 degrees

I was hoping to make a 4.5 gallon batch of something close to Viking Blod (except this will only be 15% ABV.) I love it and cannot get it where I live. I was thinking about adding potassium sorbate and campden tabs when fermentation has finally ended and giving a taste test 24-48 hrs later and deciding then whether or not to back-sweeten?

Any opinions or something I should do differently please let me know.

 

[ffire5]

How did this turn out? I assume it is still fermenting but did you taste any samples by any chance? I saw some bulk hibiscus flowers and was curious how they taste and how out turns out in a mead. I think I want to do a similar recipe to this. I might not steep the flowers and just toss them in the fermentor. Sort of like a dry hop. But more because i'm lazy.

 

[brandono]

Ha, I know the lazy feeling.

This is still fermenting but when I racked into my secondary today I tasted it. The hibiscus is too subtle. I may use the remaining 3 oz I have in my freezer on it now and "dry hop" it.

Thankfully a friend on mine has a hibiscus plant inside his house so it's just a matter of harvesting more if this is not enough!

 

[ffire5]

Did you ferment it on the flowers? Or strain it off after steeping it?

Any updates on how it turned out after dry hopping it? I'll be grabbing ingredients next week I think.