Joe's Ancient Orange Mead - JOAM

[illinois_mike]

Hello, I just started this recipe a few days ago, 11-11-14. This is my second mead making venture. My first mead was plain ole honey wine with orange and lemon peels. Turned out pretty good. Still drinking it.

My question is about the sliced oranges. On the first day, the yeast started working pretty good. I got foam that went nearly to the top of my carboy, about an inch from my air lock. After the foam settle, it left a orange brownish residue inside the glass of my carboy above the floating oranges. Is this something I need to worry about? If I had water, will the mixture cause the residue to fall to the bottom or should I leave it alone?

Thanks for your help.

 

[CreamyGoodness]

Just leave her alone for now (you can top off post ferment if you want). That goo is just what I like to call "yeast schmutz". Nothing to worry about. Later, when you bottle it, you are going to want to rack from underneath the schmutz.

 

[Bender]

If you leave it long enough the solids will drop to the bottom. Once you rack off save the raisins. They make a nice snack.

 

[illinois_mike]

Thanks creamygoodness and bender. First time I tried with fruit. I was a little concerned. Next year, ill have mulberries, blueberries, and raspberries to try in place of oranges.

 

[CreamyGoodness]

Thanks creamygoodness and bender. First time I tried with fruit. I was a little concerned. Next year, ill have mulberries, blueberries, and raspberries to try in place of oranges.

Always a lot of fun. I like to experiment with different fruits etc... more often than not it comes out. See my JA?M thread for details on what I've tried and how it went.

It really is difficult to botch this recipe up too badly.

 

[Brett_Bellmore]

Started my batch Nov. 1st, and aside from zesting and juicing the orange, instead of throwing it in entire, and using a Lalvin yeast with a bit of nutrient on the advice of the brewstore owner, it's pretty much to the recipe.

It peaked at about a bubble a second a few days after being started, hummed along at one every 3-4 seconds for about a week, and then started slowing down. It's now down to a bubble every 10 seconds or so.

I'm guessing this is not a "stuck" fermentation, but instead just naturally slowing down? So I could plan on racking it to secondary next weekend? How slow should it be perking before I do that?

Also, loved the orange smell coming out of the airlock early on, but now it's kind of subdued. Would it be excessive to rack it onto some more orange zest?

 

[CreamyGoodness]

Started my batch Nov. 1st, and aside from zesting and juicing the orange, instead of throwing it in entire, and using a Lalvin yeast with a bit of nutrient on the advice of the brewstore owner, it's pretty much to the recipe.

It peaked at about a bubble a second a few days after being started, hummed along at one every 3-4 seconds for about a week, and then started slowing down. It's now down to a bubble every 10 seconds or so.

I'm guessing this is not a "stuck" fermentation, but instead just naturally slowing down? So I could plan on racking it to secondary next weekend? How slow should it be perking before I do that?

Also, loved the orange smell coming out of the airlock early on, but now it's kind of subdued. Would it be excessive to rack it onto some more orange zest?

Right. Think of it this way... when youve been doing manual labor all day and come to a dinner table full of food, you eat a lot fast at first, but as dinner goes on you are able to slow down and take your time more. Plus, there's now less food to gorge yourself on. Kind of sort of the same theory.

I wouldnt rack it (big no no) nor would I add more citrus. Part of why this stuff tastes better the longer it ages is that the citrus is sharp and in your face at first but mellows over time.

 

[bluewithenvy]

This sounds amazing...hat would be the best way to carb this? Would I go about it the same way as carbing cider?

 

[illinois_mike]

Well, its been two months since I started this batch. I am going to rack this into three 1 gallon wine jugs. When I lifted up the 3 gallon carboy, all the oranges started shedding lots of small bits of oranges everywhere. So I am going to let it settle again for a few hours before I siphon the mead into my jugs. Looks like I am going to have to come up with a filter to separate the bits of oranges.

Do coffee filters work well as wine filters?

 

[illinois_mike]

Coffee filters a no go. I switched to a soft white cheese clothe and a metal sifter. I removed all the orange bits. Its about 2 1/2 gallons of mead from a 3 gallon carboy. I have my 3 one gallon jugs sitting in a dark cabinet and will open them up in 4 to 6 months. Its already pretty tasty just from 2 months. I joked to my wife i think i am gonna get drunk siphoning the stuff.

I am definitely gonna make more. Yummy!

 

[Dee1961]

I made a batch of JAO starting 3/21/16, the airlock stopped bubbling. should I be concerned?

 

[Dee1961]

I made a batch of JAOM, started it March 21, 2016. The airlock stopped bubbling about two weeks into it, should I be concerned? I haven't done anything to it.

 

[nitack]

Nothing to worry about. It just means that most of the off gassing is done. If it never bubbled noticeably then you worry. stopped bubbling after two weeks, you're fine.

 

[Bender]

Patience Grasshopper.

I used to rush JOAM. It's better if you let it sit for a few months. It will be fine. My yardstick (meterstick?) at this point is to let it sit until the oranges have sunk. Usually 3 mo. Bottle and let it age for a few more months. JOAM can't be rushed.

 

[rwgaro]

Made the version of this using the linked recipe below - bottled after a month of fermentation - it's got a bit of alcohol burn but wow, love the rich orange and spice flavor! Bottled in 6oz bottles which look really cool...

Edited to add the link - duh.

https://www.denardbrewing.com/blog/post/JAO-bomm/

 

[Bender]

Made the version of this using the linked recipe below - bottled after a month of fermentation - it's got a bit of alcohol burn but wow, love the rich orange and spice flavor! Bottled in 6oz bottles which look really cool...

Let it age. It mellows out.

 

[rwgaro]

Oh and the version above is a BOMM (one month mead)..

 

[Bender]

Oh and the version above is a BOMM (one month mead)..

Give it 6 mo.

 

[rwgaro]

Give it 6 mo.

Bender check out the linked recipe (it's different from the original recipe) and doesn't need 6 months to age. It's a BOMM which is designed to be drinkable in 1 month...

 

[rwgaro]

Give it 6 mo.

Check the link I posted, it's a BOMM (meant to be ready / drinkable in 1 month)...

 

[Deafmeadmaker]

Second batch of JOAM and I decided to experiment a bit. First I peeled Mandarin oranges and ran them through the mead making process. Bottled them in March of '16 and opened one last week to see where it was taste-wise. It was a very subtle orange flavor, in other words, not orange enough for me. I'm thinking of opening the bottles into a five gallon bucket, adding five to six lbs. of navel oranges, then treating the mead as if it were in secondary stage and re-bottle it after a month or two.

My second option: mix with orange juice at the time of serving and have some mimosas.
Anyone ever open a bottle to add flavor to it before?

 

[Divebumor]

How long does it take for the oranges to fall to the bottom? It cleared up just like you said it would and this was a fun experiment but I am trying to wait so it smooths out t before this summers camping trips. Thank you for this recipe and I hope it is as good as I have been told it will be. Under the sink and forget about it is my kind of brew

 

[Deafmeadmaker]

Orange slices can fall anywhere between 3 and 6 months. YMMV. Depending on when you started can make all the difference between serving it in the summer, fall, or even next summer. Try as we might there is no way to hurry the process. I still have a bunch left from my Mandarin orange experiment. All I can say is the flavor improves over time. When in doubt, make a mixed cocktail. Mimosa mead is actually pretty good.

 

[RPh_Guy]

This is a duplicate thread of https://www.homebrewtalk.com/showthread.php?t=49106

 

[TexBow]

I really didn't care for this mead. It was to dry for me. So I changed it a bit. I add 5lbs of honey instead of the 3. I also am doing a blackberry the same way.

 

[Maylar]

I really didn't care for this mead. It was to dry for me. So I changed it a bit. I add 5lbs of honey instead of the 3. I also am doing a blackberry the same way.

If that's for 1 gallon you'll never get it to ferment. JAOM is not dry if you follow the recipe exactly.

 

[GeneDaniels1963]

My JAOM has been in the bottle for 6 months. I just opened one and I was not impressed. Still too much of the orange peal taste. Is that just the way this batch will be, or should I wait another 6 months before opening another?

 

[Bender]

I leave it in primary for 6 mo. Secondary (to clear) for a few weeks and let it age in the bottle for a year or more.

 

[Maylar]

A typical JAOM takes about 70 days for the fruit to fall and is clear enough to bottle at 90-100 days. This was mine at 65 days -

Fresh from the fermentor it's all orange and clove. After 2 months it mellows enough to be drinkable and keeps getting better with age. At 8-10 months it's an awesome mead.

 

[RPh_Guy]

I'm pretty sure temperature changes are the diving force for dropping the fruit. Higher temps drive the CO2 into the headspace, and lowering the temp allows the CO2 bubbles on the fruit to dissolve. Differences in day/night temperature variation likely accounts for why people's fruit drops at differing lengths of time.

I followed the recipe exactly including fermentation temperature and mine is clear as glass after about 30 days. I moved it from mid 70s ambient to mid 60s and the fruit dropped within a day. Still waiting for full 2 months to bottle.