Honeybush Vanilla B3DM (Bray’s 3 Day Mead)

[Scientific hippie]

I was reading a few weeks ago that there was a shortage of vanilla beans and the rise in price is affecting bakeries.

 

[NeverDie]

I ordered this:
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B003BGRUPI/?tag=skimlinks_replacement-20
and
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B07HP8LC49/?tag=skimlinks_replacement-20

I hope the Palmetto is different from what you ordered, since it sounds like you were disappointed by it.

Maybe you couldn't taste the vanilla because the tea you got wasn't Vanilla Honeybush?

I think I'd prefer something sweet rather than dry, so I may have to refigure the recipe a bit. Maybe a higher OG and FG would get me to an equivalent sweet version. Maybe using Hornindal yeast I could blast through it in just one day:
https://docs.google.com/spreadsheet...S1_8cQ6QuJ3nnqCdy_S1g0pSUk/edit#gid=189348009

Reporting back: the tea I ordered from Amazon doesn't taste like honey or like vanilla, so I'm not too optimistic about moving ahead with it.

 

[Scientific hippie]

My first batch was with some kind of citrus honeybush from Whole Foods; I couldn't find pure honeybush in stores. But the first batch was a success, anyway; I would go with it. Most of the flavor comes from the honey and the tea; as I said, I stopped using the vanilla beans because I couldn't taste them (possibly due to my preference for darker honey). Make a couple of batches; try the tea I recommended; see if you like the palmetto honey (most people do; I'm just weird).

 

[NeverDie]

Just when you thought I couldn’t make mead any faster... Bray’s 3 Day Mead.

8/24/2018
1. Brew vanilla honeybush tea by adding 1/4 cup honeybush tea and 1 broken vanilla bean to a French press.
2. Allow to brew until cool.
3. Add 1.5 lbs Palmetto honey, 1 tsp Wyeast Beer Nutrient and strained tea to a carboy.
4. Add water just shy of 1 gallon and mix.
5. Add 1 activated smack pack of Wyeast 1388.

8/26/2018
The gravity hit 1.010, so I put it in the fridge to cold crash and stop with residual sweetness. I also added 2 more vanilla beans.

8/27/2018
I’m drinking it straight out of the carboy now. It has a nice body due to yeast, vanilla and tea tannins. The honey like flavor of the tea enhances the honey aroma far beyond what a short mead would be capable of. The tea also has a nice spiciness to it that complements the overall beverage. A wonderful and blazing fast summer quencher!

Specs
SG 1.060
FG ~1.005
7.2% ABV


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Does your honeybush tea taste like honey? I'm debating whether to scrap the tea I sourced from amazon (which I find doesn't taste like honey at all) and use your tea source instead.

 

[loveofrose]

Nope. It has a spicy note with heavy tannins when brewed as described.

 

[NeverDie]

At first I was truly disappointed with the tea I received from amazon. It seemed too weak to be worth anything, let alone the basis for a mead. Then last night I tried it with honey and lemon, and wow, then it soars to a much higher level.

 

[Scientific hippie]

I really haven't tasted the tea alone; I don't know how much the tea contributes and how much the dark honey blend contributes, but together they make a fantastic drink.