Honey Vinegar

[Branman1986]

Do any of you have any experience making Honey Vinegar? I was introduced to it in Central America where it's pretty popular, and since found it is popular in Eastern Europe. It is insanely good! Looking at recipes online, they're nearly all recipes for mixing ACV and honey, which is not at all what I'm trying to do.

My first question I guess is, if I'm converting some mead into vinegar, do I need to wait awhile and rack and rerack, or can I put the mother in right after primary fermentation is done? Thanks in advance!

 

[bernardsmith]

If you make wine or mead then I think you want to make sure that you are not introducing large colonies of aceto bacteria into your wines or wine making equipment. You want to make wines (and mead) in one room and make your vinegar in a different part of your house.
That said, all you need to make vinegar is wine (or mead) at a level of alcohol the bacteria prefer (I think, about 6%) and oxygen. If you are adding a mother you are kick starting the process but the process will take place even without a mother.
Should you wait to have a finished mead ? Your call, but the better the wine the better the vinegar.

 

[Branman1986]

Oof, so if I'm making mead at around 13%, I'll have to dilute it to make vinegar?

Thanks for the advice about keeping them in different rooms, I would have never thought of that!

 

[Branman1986]

Also, I need to use only glass, right?