Hydromel Head Retention

[digdan]

I brewed a clone of a budweiser, but used pure blueberry honey for all the adjuncts and malt profiling. This might seem like an oxymoron (like using crown royal to make blackvelvet), but I'm trying to make my point that good ingredients can fit into commercial recipes.

Anywho, Its done, its awesome, and it has no head retention at all. Is it the protien that creates the head rention? if it is, can I use pollen(to fit with the bees and mead motif)?

Or do I want head retention? Does this allow me to crank the forced carbonation psi to unspeakable amounts, like found in commercial 2 liter soda bottles?

 

[summersolstice]

So is this a braggot with malt and hops? What was the final gravity?

 

[digdan]

its OG was 1.052, and its not a braggot since I used no malt. It would be considered a methaglin hydromel, since its spiced with hops and its alcohol content is too low to be considered a wine.

FG is 1.010 (target was 1.012, but it just wouldn't stop fermenting)

 

[Cheeto]

How is it a Budwiser clone with no malt ?

Sounds like a Mead with hops !

Methaglin?

You used enough hops to make a budwiser clone, so what 1 hop pellet for 5 gallons?

Sorry but I am having an issue seeing this could you post a recipe ?

-Jason

 

[Yooper]

I'm no metheglin expert, but I think I can see why there would be no head retention. Just like with champagne, you can carbonate but there wouldn't be any head. The head comes from proteins, from the co2 in solution being "trapped" by the proteins repelling water.

I don't see how you could get a head in it without any malt. Wheat would work great, I think.

 

[summersolstice]

its OG was 1.052, and its not a braggot since I used no malt. It would be considered a methaglin hydromel, since its spiced with hops and its alcohol content is too low to be considered a wine.

FG is 1.010 (target was 1.012, but it just wouldn't stop fermenting)

I see what you did - I was confused by the question. I agree with yooper that you won't be able to get a head on this, though it could be sparkling. I think it would also be good still though.

 

[travestyofnature]

its OG was 1.052, and its not a braggot since I used no malt. It would be considered a methaglin hydromel, since its spiced with hops and its alcohol content is too low to be considered a wine.

FG is 1.010 (target was 1.012, but it just wouldn't stop fermenting)

With an OG of 1.052 and a FG of 1.010 you would be at about 7 lbs honey for a little less than 4 1/2 gallons of water right? With an ABV of somewhere in the vicinity of 5.3% Did you just boil the hop pellet in a gallon of water?

Please post your recipie.

 

[digdan]

The recipe is below, and the only way it was really a clone of budweiser, is the srms and the og... but my question is : Can I use bee pollen to create head on my carbonated hydromels? Since pollen is mostly protien.

It is the malt protien that gives beer its head right?

And one thing I did not mention in the recipe below is that I boiled 2 gallons of water with the hops and let it cool down to pasteurization temps before I added the honey. The water boiled for around 15 to 20 minutes. I kept the rest of the other water near freezing temps to quickly lower the must temp after pasteurization.


Honey Blueweisen Hydromel

7lbs Blueberry Honey
2.5tsp yeast nutrients
1tsp yeast energizer
1 1/2tsp malic acid
4 1/2 gallon spring water
1/3rd ounce of Saaz Hops (added during pasteurization and filtered out afterwards)
Wyest American Ale Yeast (in activator packet)

Calculated OG = 1.052
Calculated SRM = 3
Measured pH 4.1

Brewed 4/4/09 in Secondary 2 used 2 minutes shaking method to aerate.
Had to clean out airlock so I added 1tsp of nutrient on 4/7/09.
Racked to secondary on 4/12/09, had a thick yeast bed, and smelled dry and yeasty
Won't stop fermenting... racked to another secondary on 4/29/09, smelled very very nice
FG 1.10, Racked into keg 5/6/09, lack of head, will experiment with a force carbonate at 28psi

 

[BBBF]

I've done similar hydromels for my girlfriend because she's allergic to gluten. It makes a great summer drink, but I don't think you can do anything about the head.

 

[david_42]

Basically, you've got a low-ABV mead with a little bittering from the hops. You need protein to create head and bee pollen isn't the right kind of protein, so that won't help.

 

[digdan]

Is there a way to get head retention on a hydromel?