Cake series meads

[SouthMainMeadery]

In the planning stages of a series of meads with the flavor a of popular cakes and pies.. Apple pie, key lime pie, pumpkin pie, carrot cake, strawberry rhubarb pie, birthday cake, etc... Looking for more interesting flavors as well as ways you think you would go about this... Should be a fun experiment for all

 

[saramc]

Sweet! This is right up my alley and I may have been better off never reading this. Need to add upside down pineapple cake, german chocolate.

 

[fatbloke]

Ha ha! Good luck with your efforts.......

The nearest I've come to something like that is using the "christmas pudding wine" recipe but using honey instead of sugar.

It's still clearing ATM, and a bugger to make as the pud mix and dried fruit meant a lot of racking loses and the fats used made a nice thick layer on the surface.

Tests suggest its a good one. Not that that matters as you'd have a bit of a game tracking down British Christmas puds anyway and certainly not at this time of year........

 

[MarshmallowBlue]

@Fatbloke I read your Christmas pudding mead blog one day, then 2 months later come home to find my fiance reading your Christmas pudding mead blog. She makes one from scratch every Christmas. Why someone would want to spend all that time in the kitchen making it, I'm not sure but they do turn out nice. I know .

how about some Boston Creme Pie? I think the carrot cake will come out well if you can some-how get the cream-cheese frosting aspect, that's what really makes carrot cake shine, In my opinion.

Red Velvet Cake (its just chocolate and vanilla cake with red dye.)

Also, in America, they don't even sell British Christmas Puddings any time of the year, not even at Christmas! Most people don't even know what they are around here.

 

[00radio]

Fruitcake! We order some from Monks out in California every year. One of the highlights of Christmas time for me. Get the real stuff and it's far and away better than what Costco sells.

 

[SouthMainMeadery]

Great responses so far and pineapple upside down would be excellent.... My basic idea is to do a bunch of test batches with about a half gallon or so must to see if I can dial in the flavors than up to a big scale batch

 

[MarshmallowBlue]

Well to throw my 2 cents in for German Chocolate, Maybe Bochet part of the honey and use dried coconut flakes and cacao in some way?

 

[SouthMainMeadery]

I believe the easiest way is to ferment a 2 gallon batch with the starting ingredients after I get the flavor down and since a lot of the flavor will fade during fermentation... I will back sweeten with a gallon if the original flavor in order to compensate and keep the flavor apparent... Any thoughts?

 

[SouthMainMeadery]

And about the chocolate I'm sure you would have some clarity issues unless by some strange happening you were left with a translucent dark brown after the wax and other things used to make the chocolate was able to be racked off but having drank chocolate red wine I don't think that will happen lol only a delicious murky brown mead... Not a bad problem tho

 

[MarshmallowBlue]

Use cacao nibs, they're 100% the bean itself, so no wax there. They help more with the Aroma than the flavor actually. But you can get a close chocolate flavor by using Chocolate Malt in combination with Cyrstal malt. I used both techniques in my chocolate bock and it came out pretty good.

 

[saramc]

Chocolate is easy: dutch processed powder, syrup, nibs, high cacoa content wafers...many options.

 

[SouthMainMeadery]

Chocolate is easy: dutch processed powder, syrup, nibs, high cacoa content wafers...many options.

Wait you have used chocolate syrup? And how did that come out?

 

[Bluespark]

This is not 'natural' by any means, but they make a 'cupcake' syrup that would definitely add a cake flavor.

I have a chocolate mead that is clearing nicely...

 

[SouthMainMeadery]

This is not 'natural' by any means, but they make a 'cupcake' syrup that would definitely add a cake flavor.

I have a chocolate mead that is clearing nicely...

Do you have any pictures you could post of it? I would love to see it

 

[jak1010]

With respect to chocolate flavor, you'd be surprised how many strange combinations can taste like it. For example, as a bartender, I make a shot called"Chocolate Cake" and here's what it is.

Chill 2 parts Frangelico (which is a hazelnut liquor) and one part vodka. Pour into a shot glass.

Coat a slice of lemon with sugar.

How to drink.

Bite into the sugar coated lemon, shoot the alcohol, swish it around in your mouth and swallow. By the ingredients it's hard to image but, this tastes like you're eating a slice of chocolate cake with icing and all.

Maybe something like this can be thought of for creating a chocolate tasting mead without actually using chocolate.

 

[SouthMainMeadery]

With respect to chocolate flavor, you'd be surprised how many strange combinations can taste like it. For example, as a bartender, I make a shot called"Chocolate Cake" and here's what it is.

I was thinking about that since I have made them at party's myself and when you brought it up it def gave me a few things to possibly try

 

[saramc]

Wait you have used chocolate syrup? And how did that come out?

I have used basic Hershey's syrup(they even make a Special Dark now--awesome), adding 1 cup/gallon, once wine is clear. If you want to maintain the residual sugar then stabilize with k-meta and sorbate. So this is done closer to bottling window when I do use syrup. The syrup drops clear in less than 2 weeks and you just rack to remove off the sediment that formed. You can enhance with a bit of really good quality extract at bottling if you desire, I have even added instant espresso dissolved in a bit of the wine and added it at the same time as the syrup.
I have talked with others who have used fudge topping, or other brands of syrup....I would use another syrup like Godiva if I could find an affordable source. I make a nice chocolate mead using syrup, but I also like working with the powder added in primary (especially with fruit combos).

 

[fatbloke]

@Fatbloke I read your Christmas pudding mead blog one day, then 2 months later come home to find my fiance reading your Christmas pudding mead blog. She makes one from scratch every Christmas. Why someone would want to spend all that time in the kitchen making it, I'm not sure but they do turn out nice. I know .

-----snip-----

Also, in America, they don't even sell British Christmas Puddings any time of the year, not even at Christmas! Most people don't even know what they are around here.

I suspect that if you looked at the US suppliers who sell the Brit specific stuff to expats online, probably from about say September/October you'd likely find them or even just a recipe.

It's just like a "heavy" fruit cake that gets a few other bit in it and is steamed not baked.

On a cold crimbo day after you've been stuffed with a massive plate of turkey dinner (goose is more traditional but what with US marketing etc turkey has become de rigeur) with all the extra trimmings, the last think you want is a heavy cake like pudding served with the richness of double/heavy cream and brandy/rum butter.......

But it just has to be done........

 

[MarshmallowBlue]

Last years got messed up because they didn't have string to tie the pot off (Her mother insisted that it wasn't necessary, and water got in it and made it really soggy and not cook. My fiance was pretty peeved at that). The one she made the year before was beautiful. I had a picture of it somewhere, but I can't find it.