Batch of MAOM

[Bradinator]

Hey all,

I never considered making Mead before, but after reading some of the recipes it seemed simpler then beer so I figured I would give it a shot. I used the recipe very similar to MAOM, with a couple minor differences:

Heres the recipe:

1.5kg (approx 3.5 lbs) of pasteurized honey from Costco
1 Orange, peeled and diced (I could not get organic so I did not want to put the peels in).
1 handful of raisins
1 Stick of Cinnamon
1 Clove
1 packet of Coopers Ale yeast (They had no Mead yeast available)

Dissolved the honey in 3L of water @ 75F, tossed in the orange, raisins, clove and cinnamon and let it steep for about 15 minutes. Cooled it in a water bath to about room temperature and moved it to the fermentor leaving the orange, raisins, etc in it and pitched my yeast dry. I gave it a shake, closed it up and placed it into my basement.

Within about an hour it was fermenting and it looks like some gunk came up into the tube due to how full it was. Should I clean this tube out? It does not seem to be blocking airflow but I am worried it may become a place for infection later. Any thoughts?

Thanks

 

[Keepounding]

I guess it's a blow off tube your talking about.
I wouldn't worry about it as long as the end of the tube is under water. it'll be fine.

 

[Bradinator]

Yes it is (sorry I did not know the name for it). I have it submerged in a bottle of water so I guess all that is left is 3 months of patience.

 

[Brandon O]

i have done something similar, it's really good.

 

[Bradinator]

That is really good to hear Brandon! I was not sure if this would turn out or not.

How long did you keep it in the fermentor before racking it if you don't mind me asking?

 

[JarrodH]

I am going to try to keep my 1 gallon test batch of MOAM bulk aging for at least 4-6 months.

 

[etp777]

One of my first batches of mead, and the only one that's made it into the bottle so far, was a batch of Malkore's not so ancient orange mead. Stuff is great. And makes a wonderful marinade for grilled chicken breast.

 

[malkore]

my only comment is that the cooper's ale yeast may not attenuate enough with 3.5lbs of honey. That's a lot of sugar...you're likely gonna stop fermenting in the 1.030's which is gonna leave an overly sweet mead that you likely won't find very drinkable.

let it play out though..and if that happens you can always pitch a stronger yeast, but you'll need a starter to keep the yeast from being shocked.

i have no idea what strain cooper's uses or its attenuation, but i've had a cooper's stout crap out on me way too early, so I don't put much stock in their yeast and higher ABV.

 

[blackwaterbrewer]

i use an open fermentation for the first few days when making mead. you need to "skim the scum that riseth"

 

[Bradinator]

Thanks for the pointers Malkore.

I have another packet of Champagne yeast sitting in my fridge just in case I need it. Would you recommend tossing it in now to be safe or is that risky mixing yeasts like that? I can certainly wait and keep checking the gravity to see if it stops changing then pitch it.

Also, what do you recommend for a starter for meads if it comes down to that?

 

[malkore]

I'd pitch in the champaign yeast now, so you don't have to mess with a starter. mixing yeasts isn't risky. the champagne will just outcompete the coopers.

it might end up being dry though, and take a year to age to peak flavor. hard to say.

 

[Bradinator]

Alright. I will pitch that yeast tonight and let you know how it turns out.

Edit:

Oh one more thing: Would you recommend rehydrating the yeast before pitching it? I tossed the ale yeast in dry.

 

[Bradinator]

I re-hydrated and re-pitched my 1118 yeast into the mead. I took a sample and measure the SC before hand as well. Tried a few sips of it and you know, its not that bad. Its still pretty sweet and fizzy, but I think its pretty much nil in the alcohol department.

Heres hoping that this new yeast remedies that.

 

[Bradinator]

I just cracked open bottle with just under a year of conditioning... And it is absolutely divine! Absolutely worth the wait!

 

[Rainyn]

Cool, thanks for coming back to let us know. Did you bottle (and if so how long did it sit in bottle?) or what have you done with it since you last posted?

 

[Bradinator]

Honestly I did not take great notes for this homebrew, but I believe I let it sit for 2 month in the fermentor and moved it into glass bottles for which they sat in my basement for around 9 months (I bottled them the day after my birthday at the end of July of last year).

This really does improve with age as I had made a habit of trying a bottle a month after the first 5 months of conditioning. At five to eight months it was still very, very raw. At this point I only wish I had made more the 2 liters of this because I think I only have 1 bottle left! That bottle is going to sit in my basement until my birthday, exactly one year after bottling.

If only I had known today what I did not nearly a year ago, I would have started another batch.