Joe's Ancient Orange Mead

[Bigbeavk]

Woohoo mine is ready to bottle!. I'm going to use 12oz beer bottles but do I need those oxygen absorbing caps or just use regular caps?

 

[BigKahuna]

I've used both. I've never seen a difference. If you have o2 caps, use 'em. If not.... Who cares! It's all good!

 

[Stung]

Newbie. I started a three gallon batch of this last night and scaled up the ingredients proportionally. Having since investigated this thread more thoroughly, I've encountered some warnings about the amount of cinnamon sticks and cloves that go into this.

I've got 3 cinnamon sticks and 4 cloves in there. The batch is 24 hours old. Is it likely that these will have an averse effect on the end product? Should I open the carboy and attempt to remove some of these (chop sticks? Long spoon?)?

 

[BigKahuna]

Here is the thing: you're a noob, you don't know what's going to happen. Leave it alone, adjust your next batch. Even if it's a total drain pour, you've got what... $9 wrapped up in it?

 

[NineMilBill]

I've got 3 cinnamon sticks and 4 cloves in there

That's less than 2 cloves per gallon - you're still in line with Joe's proportions. You're going to have a good mead. Make sure you bottle a few 12oz'ers and hide them for a year or more - regardless of what you think of the quality. Mead improves with age.

 

[Bigbeavk]

Leave it alone. It will be fine. I just bottled my first batch and followed the recipe as written. Next batch I might add more spices. I think the spice level as written gave it a great starting point and is definitely not overpowering.

 

[Stung]

Thanks for the reassurance. I'm looking forward to bottling this in a few months.

 

[huesmann]

Whether you think there's too much cinnamon, or too much clove, you'll still drink it all.

 

[opus345]

So uhh, I've cleaned out the airlock twice now as it has been full of kräusen both times. Very active fermentation, and it's still bubbling up. Is it safe to leave it like that, or should I keep cleaning it out until it stops? The airlock is off for no more than a minute both times, and I figure it's pumping out enough co2 that I don't have to worry about oxidation.

You could always put a blowoff hose in a container of water.

I like having Starsan in a spray bottle that I can use to spritz everything whenever I'm cleaning out the airlock.

Hmmm, I usually don't use words like spritz.

 

[static]

I read something about not using the bread machine yeast in another JOAM thread. That's what i had so i used it. Pro's/Con's ??? My search skills left me wondering....

So no word on the "bread machine" yeast? I'm not dumping it as it is doing it's thing and ill bottle it up as soon as it clears and the fruit drops but i was curious to know why not that particular yeast.

 

[Alien1099]

So no word on the "bread machine" yeast? I'm not dumping it as it is doing it's thing and ill bottle it up as soon as it clears and the fruit drops but i was curious to know why not that particular yeast.

Somebody on another forum said their quick rise yeast worked ok. Of course I make no guarantees.

 

[static]

There are no guarantees in this life. The batch i started seems to be chugging away and doing its thing. It's clouded up the way it should, there is a small amount of foaming, Its not as vigorous as has been described but as long as its fermenting I'm good with that. I was just curious as to the reasoning.

 

[TattooedViking9]

Has anyone here used the Lalvin KV1-1116 yeast for this recipe. If so, how did it turn out? Any considerable differences worth noting, or any other input? I appreciate any responses. Thank you.

 

[Tnoodle]

Has anyone here used the Lalvin KV1-1116 yeast for this recipe. If so, how did it turn out? Any considerable differences worth noting, or any other input? I appreciate any responses. Thank you.

I have used D47 and it turned out good but it was not as drinkable as soon as my batches with the bread yeast were. The batches I have done without the white pith of the orange were the best,. The pros of using D47 were that it was easier to bottle and keep it clear. The cons of using it were the higher ABV which means it will take longer to age out the heat, and the temp range of D47 is very low so I can only use it during the fall and winter.

 

[tulsabrewdaddy]

Made this on 4/1 and it's still cloudy, should I leave it alone and wait?

 

[cincybrewer]

So if you leave out the white pith, do you also leave out the whole peel? Or do you zest it?

 

[Kampo]

So if you leave out the white pith, do you also leave out the whole peel? Or do you zest it?

Zest it. If you don't have a zester use a potato peeler... That's what I did for mine. Started it s little over a month ago. Tasted a bit and pretty damn tasty, and I went a little overboard on spices, but will be great for xmas

 

[Tnoodle]

Made this on 4/1 and it's still cloudy, should I leave it alone and wait?

You still need to wait if it is cloudy.

 

[cincybrewer]

Zest it. If you don't have a zester use a potato peeler... That's what I did for mine. Started it s little over a month ago. Tasted a bit and pretty damn tasty, and I went a little overboard on spices, but will be great for xmas

Thanks, I may try it like this for my next one. I made one a few months ago but left the peel completely intact so it'd be good to compare. Though I thought about doing a slight variation of JAOM with maybe something like vanilla beans. If anyone has any suggestions of some good variations, please feel free to let me know but I can search these threads as well as I'm sure there are a number of posts with the same thoughts I'm having.

 

[TattooedViking9]

After the first 24 hours.

 

[MikeR]

Coming up on week three, fermentation has slowed down to what I'd call a "normal" level. Cleaned out the airlock one last time just now, total of four times altogether. There was a single fruit fly in the airlock when I pulled it off, and I haven't seen any around the house at all. Considering the mead is in a closet far away from the kitchen or any other source of food, I figure it was just a brave soul who wandered to his death.

Smells amazing though, and I'm patiently waiting for the orange to drop so the raisins floating on top will fall.

 

[sweed]

I'm at week 3 also. I also had a few fruit flies hanging out at the top of the mead bar. None got drunk inside my airlock though. I need to clean it out again, hopefully the last time. I forgot to get some honey at the lhbs yesterday. So I may make a quick trip to the store in a little, maybe I'll just go after work tomorrow. Ya, I'm being lazy now after a busy day.

 

[cincybrewer]

I'm at week 3 also. I also had a few fruit flies hanging out at the top of the mead bar. None got drunk inside my airlock though. I need to clean it out again, hopefully the last time. I forgot to get some honey at the lhbs yesterday. So I may make a quick trip to the store in a little, maybe I'll just go after work tomorrow. Ya, I'm being lazy now after a busy day.

I just made my second JAOM yesterday and I have about a thousand fruit flies nearby but I don't think they'll be able to get in, especially during active fermentation. But man do I hate those little creatures.

 

[snidro]

Just finished bottling mine, tasted great! My first batch, will have another started soon.

 

[salli4102]

Just wanted to post a thank you to DeadNuts Brewing for the blueberry vanilla variation idea. Just bottled a 5 gallon batch and man is it good! Just lovely. We loved it so much we will be starting another batch soon. Cheers!

 

[DeadNutsBrewing]

Quote:
Just wanted to post a thank you to DeadNuts Brewing for the blueberry vanilla variation idea. Just bottled a 5 gallon batch and man is it good! Just lovely. We loved it so much we will be starting another batch soon. Cheers!


Hey glad you liked it! I have one bottle left myself. I need to make some more!

 

[salli4102]

Thanks, I may try it like this for my next one. I made one a few months ago but left the peel completely intact so it'd be good to compare. Though I thought about doing a slight variation of JAOM with maybe something like vanilla beans. If anyone has any suggestions of some good variations, please feel free to let me know but I can search these threads as well as I'm sure there are a number of posts with the same thoughts I'm having.

I did a blueberry/vanilla bean variation (an idea I got from a poster on this forum) and just got it in the bottle. There was a little left over in the bucket so my husband and I had a taste and it turned out very good. Here's what I did:
15# Sue Bee honey (equals about 144 ounces)
4 gallons of store bought spring water
5.25# frozen blueberries (7-12 ounce packages)
7 vanilla beans halved and split
1pack of Fleischman's
This batch took 6 weeks to ferment. The fruit never fell and it didn't get crystal clear like the JAOM does but the yeast had definitely stopped so we bottled. Tested a bottle one week later and it was delicious. Though, next batch I think I will add more vanilla. Hope this helps. Happy meading!

 

[cincybrewer]

Thanks salli. I ended up brewing a regular JAOM the other day because it turned out that I didn't have vanilla on hand like I had thought. But I may go with your recipe for my next one. Right now I have two JAOM's going and I have yet to try a mead, so maybe I should make sure I like it before making another.

 

[sweed]

I made another one Monday night. I was going to do orange and strawberries, but when I got home and cut into my 'orange', it was a grapefruit! haha
They blast those grapefruits with that gas or something that made them really orange, and they weren't big like grapfruits either. Anyways, it went crazy after an hour from pitching. The rubber stopper popped off, so I put it in the laundry room sink for the night. The next morning it was still foaming over, so I left it for the day. When I got back from the gym after work, 14 hours later, it stopped foaming, so I cleaned it up and put the airlock on it again. The opast few days its messy again, but not as bad as the first night. This will be an interesting one, and I am thinking about making another one, or a cider, or something, because these little guys are fun to make, and im sure will taste great!

 

[ollie]

Started my first JAOM last night. No oranges so I used 5 clemintines, based on the previous 81 pages I've read since last night I'm not too worried about that modification. Only thing I didn't add was cloves or all spice, didn't have any in the cabinet and the two stores I went to were out. Side note, I'm known for missing the obvious but the workers there must be in the same boat.

Woke up this morning, 12 hours laters, and my airlock was full of eventually soon to be heavenly juice. Cleaned her out. Four hours later I need to clean the airlock out again. Looks like I'll be perusing the forums for some help on alternatives that won't require me leaving my house as any of my tubing is too big for the corks I have.
When it comes to drinking, sips or big drinks? Any particular glass ware that complements a mead?

First pic is from 9PM last night, second is 9AM this morning prior to the cleaning. Yes, I sanitized everything like an OCD monk.