Looking for feedback - next mead recipe

[Srimmey]

Good evening!

I’m planning my next brew and am looking for some feedback. I want to do a blueberry mead, but am not sure if I want to do all blueberry or a mix of blue berry and black currant. Here is what I was thinking…

16 gallon recipe, target OG 1.110

Carrot honey (probably 12-14lb)
1 quart black current juice concentrate
2 quarts blueberry juice concentrate
Water to 6 gallons
MLF culture?
71B yeast

https://flyingbeeranch.net/product/raw-carrot-honey/

https://colomafrozen.com/shop/blueberry-industrial-product

https://colomafrozen.com/shop/black-currant-industrial-product

 

[Miraculix]

Du yourself a favour and use a proper nutrient protocol.

This one is my preference: https://www.omnimead.com/mead-batch-builder

 

[madscientist451]

Make a base mead, stabilize, then add the fruit concentrates to taste.

 

[Miraculix]

Or you could add the fruit part after main fermentation with only the honey finished. That's what I'm doing atm with a session melomel. I don't like messing with all these chemicals necessary for stabilizing it.

 

[Johnny2]

You asked opinions of your recipe, I would not mix currants and blueberries. I would either make a black mead or a mixed berry mead (blue and raspberry). I would add all or most of the juice concentrate at the beginning and add more after if needed for flavor.

I don't know much of the commercial MLF products, but if your gonna try MLF, know that you can't chemically stabilize afterwards. If you use sorbate with a wine which has gone MLF or has LAB, you'll ruin it. If you want to MLF and back sweeten with honey, you'll likely have to do pasteurization.

 

[Srimmey]

You asked opinions of your recipe, I would not mix currants and blueberries. I would either make a black mead or a mixed berry mead (blue and raspberry). I would add all or most of the juice concentrate at the beginning and add more after if needed for flavor.

I don't know much of the commercial MLF products, but if your gonna try MLF, know that you can't chemically stabilize afterwards. If you use sorbate with a wine which has gone MLF or has LAB, you'll ruin it. If you want to MLF and back sweeten with honey, you'll likely have to do pasteurization.

This was the answer I was looking for, thank you!

100% blueberry it is.

 

[Srimmey]

Or you could add the fruit part after main fermentation with only the honey finished. That's what I'm doing atm with a session melomel. I don't like messing with all these chemicals necessary for stabilizing it.

I always do fruit in primary.

I let the flavors settle out and then decide if I want to back sweeten with either honey or more fruit or both. Usually honey will reconstitute some of the fruit flavor while adding more complex honey flavor. Usually depends on how much honey was used in primary.

 

[Srimmey]

Du yourself a favour and use a proper nutrient protocol.

This one is my preference: https://www.omnimead.com/mead-batch-builder

I always use Tosna 3.0 with gofirm and fermaid O. It’s just a given so I don’t bother to include it in my recipes.

 

[Miraculix]

I always use Tosna 3.0 with gofirm and fermaid O. It’s just a given so I don’t bother to include it in my recipes.

Would help though to at least indicate that. Otherwise people spend their time answering which they could have used elsewhere.

I always do fruit in primary.

I let the flavors settle out and then decide if I want to back sweeten with either honey or more fruit or both. Usually honey will reconstitute some of the fruit flavor while adding more complex honey flavor. Usually depends on how much honey was used in primary.

If stripping off parts of the delicate fruit flavours during peak fermentation is none of your concern, than that's certainly possible

 

[MightyMosin]

I don't know much of the commercial MLF products, but if your gonna try MLF, know that you can't chemically stabilize afterwards.

The bacteria for MLF will use ascorbic acid as a food source, so using k- sorb is where you can get into problems.

When the MLF conversion is all done, you can use k-meta.

I have used MLF on a Cabernet Sauvignon pyment. I gave it somewhere in the area 4 months to complete. Afterwards, I racked It off sediment and stabilized with k-meta and waited about 2 weeks for it to have a chance to work on any of the MLF bacteria that might be left. I then used k-sorb and backsweetened about a month later. In my specific case, there was no issues with MLF bacteria trying to eat the ascorbic acid.

On a Pinot Noir based one I have done MLF but I did not use k-sorb as that one was left dry

A red wine pyment is the only time that I've used MLF to date.

 

[Johnny2]

I meant geranium off flavor when lactic bacteria eats sorbic acid (potassium sorbate). It can happen when aging wines. K-meta doesn't kill the lactic acid bacteria, only puts them to sleep. Once sulfite levels drop during aging to a level where some lactic acid bacteria wake from their slumber, ML-bacteria can start eating sorbic acid present in the wine from the sorbate. Someone with a "Verified Master" badge on that morale destroying website told me this.

Name of that off flavor is geranium taint.

 

[MightyMosin]

Someone with a "Verified Master" badge on that morale destroying website told me this.

morale destroying... how fun.

 

[Srimmey]

Would help though to at least indicate that. Otherwise people spend their time answering which they could have used elsewhere.


If stripping off parts of the delicate fruit flavours during peak fermentation is none of your concern, than that's certainly possible

The bacteria for MLF will use ascorbic acid as a food source, so using k- sorb is where you can get into problems.

When the MLF conversion is all done, you can use k-meta.

I have used MLF on a Cabernet Sauvignon pyment. I gave it somewhere in the area 4 months to complete. Afterwards, I racked It off sediment and stabilized with k-meta and waited about 2 weeks for it to have a chance to work on any of the MLF bacteria that might be left. I then used k-sorb and backsweetened about a month later. In my specific case, there was no issues with MLF bacteria trying to eat the ascorbic acid.

On a Pinot Noir based one I have done MLF but I did not use k-sorb as that one was left dry

A red wine pyment is the only time that I've used MLF to date.

I’m not sure how much malic acid is actually in blueberries. With my decision to forgot black currants I will also skip the MLF.

 

[Raptor99]

I think that the primary acid in blueberries is citric acid. I don't see any reason to do MLF on blueberry wine.

In my opinion, you should only use MLF when you have a specific reason to do so. MLF only affects malic acid, and sometimes it can make your wine or mead taste worse rather than better. Maybe someone who does MLF can share the use cases in which MLF is helpful.

 

[Srimmey]

I think that the primary acid in blueberries is citric acid. I don't see any reason to do MLF on blueberry wine.

In my opinion, you should only use MLF when you have a specific reason to do so. MLF only affects malic acid, and sometimes it can make your wine or mead taste worse rather than better. Maybe someone who does MLF can share the use cases in which MLF is helpful.

I’ve found it helps soften highly acidic wines. So far I’ve done it on an 11% apple cider (starting PH3.2) and a Pinot noir wine (starting PH3.0). Both benefited greatly from the reduction in malic acid.

I would agree though, if there isn’t a substantial amount of malic acid to begin with, it can only add problems.

 

[Johnny2]

I think that the primary acid in blueberries is citric acid. I don't see any reason to do MLF on blueberry wine.

In my opinion, you should only use MLF when you have a specific reason to do so.

What is a good reason to do MLF? I want to do it some day. I don't mean for acid reduction, there are other methods.