rocket fuel taste

[stretchmurph]

Hi folks i'll apologise in advance I'm sure it has been answered somewhere but hell i'll ask again.
I've two melomels brewed up one bottled and the other nearly clear enough to bottle too, my question is both taste like rocket fuel, even though they should be about 14%.
will this age out and if so how long will it take ?

 

[BrewFrick]

Yes it does age out but I takes a good while, most people will advise a year plus on a mead of that abv. I would try at 6 months and them again at a year to see how it changes.

 

[MarshmallowBlue]

yeah, it will age out but it takes a long time. Some recommend 1 month per ABV as a general guide.

 

[stretchmurph]

is there a way of avoiding this happening ?

 

[MarshmallowBlue]

fermenting cooler can help a bit, making lower abv meads (around 10%) can make a big difference too. You can also try back sweetening to mask some of the hotness.

 

[stretchmurph]

should i try back sweeten with more honey ? one batch is bottled but the other is close to being ready for the bottles

 

[fatbloke]

should i try back sweeten with more honey ? one batch is bottled but the other is close to being ready for the bottles

If you want to yes. That's what I do, but equally, you might get a bit of a haze, it depends on the honey.

I usually ferment dry, then rack, then stabilise, then back sweeten to taste (usually so it's in the 1.010 to 1.015 range), then clear it.

So far, when I've back sweetened like that, I just mix the honey with water 50/50. it makes it easier to mix in.

When I've had a haze, I've just degassed the batch fully and any further sediment has dropped out.