Mead - the homebrew thread

[sliverx]

How much water were you adding to this? Using just enough to bring it up to 5 gallons?

I was just looking back through some NHC winning mead recipes for inspiration. I'm looking to make another mead in the next month or so, but not committing to one recipe or another. Some of these recipes look prohibitive to make just based on the sheer amount of fruit being used. 40 lbs of rhubarb, 36 lbs of strawberry. ****.

Pretty sure I want to stick with 71-b for yeast, but not sure on honey varietal or what type of fruit/spices I'd like to use. Anyone have any ideas floating around they'd like to share?

I have some meadowfoam honey and got the idea with b nektar doing bananas foster about trying to use a weizen yeast with it and make a banana bomb mead.

 

[Beerontwowheels]

I have some meadowfoam honey and got the idea with b nektar doing bananas foster about trying to use a weizen yeast with it and make a banana bomb mead.

Sounds delicious!

I need to check some other sources for honey varietals. My LHBS has Clover, Orange Blossom and Wildflower. They are also a bit expensive. IIRC, 1 gallon of orange blossom ran me like $55.

Also, I'm not experienced enough to really know which varietal would pair best with different fruits/spices/etc. I need to do some research on that.

 

[sliverx]

Sounds delicious!

I need to check some other sources for honey varietals. My LHBS has Clover, Orange Blossom and Wildflower. They are also a bit expensive. IIRC, 1 gallon of orange blossom ran me like $55.

Also, I'm not experienced enough to really know which varietal would pair best with different fruits/spices/etc. I need to do some research on that.

Check local farmers markets. There's a lady locally who has a bunch of weird varietals (one was sumac if I remember correctly) but often in seriously small quantities.

 

[sliverx]

Sounds delicious!

I need to check some other sources for honey varietals. My LHBS has Clover, Orange Blossom and Wildflower. They are also a bit expensive. IIRC, 1 gallon of orange blossom ran me like $55.

Also, I'm not experienced enough to really know which varietal would pair best with different fruits/spices/etc. I need to do some research on that.

Requote: we sometimes see buckwheat honey at the LHBS thats some interesting stuff. I made a braggot with it a while ago. Its a very medicinal tasting honey.

 

[sliverx]

Strawberry mead. In The carboy it looked red, bottle has no red. Smells very jammy. The fruit looked nasty.

 

[Beerontwowheels]

187ml or 375ml?

 

[sliverx]

187ml or 375ml?

375mL which is nice since 2.5 gallons of mead with fruit fits nicely in my 3 gallon Better bottles and fills a case of bottles with a bit to spare.

 

[sliverx]

Meadowfoam honey. Left is Weihenstephan Weizen yeast (trying to banana bomb it) right is wyeast 1968 London ESB since I had it around.

1 gallon of honey in about 5 gallons split.

 

[Beerontwowheels]

Got some work to do:

Thanks, sliverx for alerting me to a honey seller right in my own backyard.

 

[Beerontwowheels]

Blueberry bottled up after 3 months on the berries

Tim - how is this drinking now? Happy with your recipe? What rate did you fruit at?

I'm leaning towards a blueberry melomel once the harvest is here. Only a few weeks away now. I'm planning on going heavy on the fruit. Just spit balling, but probably something like 12 lbs of the blueberry honey (pictured above), 3 gallons of water and 16-18lbs of blueberries (all in primary?). Might up it to 18 lbs of honey, 4 gallons water and 20 lbs of blueberries. Thinking of adding some medium toast french oak and maybe a cinnamon stick. Need to get this sorted out before I pick the berries...

 

[Beerontwowheels]

I've never had a bochet, but just watched a video and now mega-interested in making one. Someone talk me out of this....

 

[sliverx]

Tim - how is this drinking now? Happy with your recipe? What rate did you fruit at?

I'm leaning towards a blueberry melomel once the harvest is here. Only a few weeks away now. I'm planning on going heavy on the fruit. Just spit balling, but probably something like 12 lbs of the blueberry honey (pictured above), 3 gallons of water and 16-18lbs of blueberries (all in primary?). Might up it to 18 lbs of honey, 4 gallons water and 20 lbs of blueberries. Thinking of adding some medium toast french oak and maybe a cinnamon stick. Need to get this sorted out before I pick the berries...

I think I did 9lbs of fruit in 2 1/2 gallons of mead (12lbs in 5 gallons). The fruit was in secondary. It was the top half of the 5 gallons so there was no refermentation with that half. It came out a bit tart for my tastes but everyone that has had some has liked it. I like my mead on the sweeter side though.



That blueberry honey looks interesting.

 

[sliverx]

I've never had a bochet, but just watched a video and now mega-interested in making one. Someone talk me out of this....

I would make enough of that for 1/2 gallon growler just so I dont **** up $$$$ worth of honey.

 

[sliverx]

I think I did 9lbs of fruit in 2 1/2 gallons of mead (12lbs in 5 gallons). The fruit was in secondary. It was the top half of the 5 gallons so there was no refermentation with that half. It came out a bit tart for my tastes but everyone that has had some has liked it. I like my mead on the sweeter side though.



That blueberry honey looks interesting.

Just looked up what little notes I have on this: 1 gallon honey, 4 1/2 water, og 1.085 , fg 0.994 in 2 weeks.

3 months on the fruit.

 

[Beerontwowheels]

I would make enough of that for 1/2 gallon growler just so I dont **** up $$$$ worth of honey.

Seems like you can use relatively inexpensive honey for this since you are caramelizing it. If I go through with it, I'll do a 2 gallon batch.

 

[sliverx]

Seems like you can use relatively inexpensive honey for this since you are caramelizing it. If I go through with it, I'll do a 2 gallon batch.

So many dead little honey bear jars...

 

[SirDickButts]

anyone in here brewed a braggot before?
if so...when do you add the honey? after cold break? high krausen?

 

[Beerontwowheels]

anyone in here brewed a braggot before?
if so...when do you add the honey? after cold break? high krausen?

Haven't had a commercial example of the style that I liked. No interest thus far in making one.

 

[SirDickButts]

Haven't had a commercial example of the style that I liked. No interest thus far in making one.

I've had 2 that I really enjoyed. The one from Lone Pint tasted like a super fruity Belgian golden strong ale. I'm guessing the brewery may have used Belgian yeast. I should ask...

 

[sliverx]

anyone in here brewed a braggot before?
if so...when do you add the honey? after cold break? high krausen?

Yes, I made the beer half like normal then added the honey in right before pitching yeast. Or at least that's what I think I remember. I suck at note taking.

 

[SirDickButts]

cool! im gonna give this a shot.
i know what not to submit as a free for all, since beerontwowheels doesn't like braggots. LOL
or maybe............theres a chance i'll make one he likes!

 

[Jb123]

Ginger |

Fermented around 1-2 months with nothing in primary. Added some ginger and then wanted to add more. After one day on the small amount of ginger u can already get it. Should sit about another month and see how it tastes.
Still a little hot but it's not even 2 months old...

 

[Beerontwowheels]

Hand picked 20lbs of Montmorency & Balaton cherries yesterday evening. Washed them up, bagged them and have them in the freezer to help draw out more color & flavor in my next mead.

I'm definitely using all the cherries in a mead, but I might split them between primary and secondary. I also don't want it to be a single note mead. I'll be using 18lbs of orange blossom honey. I'd like to add something to the batch. Thinking along the lines of vanilla beans or cacao nibs, maybe both. Any thoughts/experiences with something like this? Been scouring the internet for ratios, but it always seems to be a recipe with no review following on how it turned out.

 

[Beerontwowheels]

Just ordered Fermaid K and Go-ferm off oa Amazon. LHBS doesn't carry that stuff. Have read these two products are much better than the generic stuff found at my LHBS. Have you folks noticed any difference?

 

[rcubed1]

Just ordered Fermaid K and Go-ferm off oa Amazon. LHBS doesn't carry that stuff. Have read these two products are much better than the generic stuff found at my LHBS. Have you folks noticed any difference?

Those are what I was always told what to use for cider and mead.

 

[sliverx]

Transfered meadowfoam mead onto a couple pounds each of sweet cherries, raspberries, blueberries, and blackberries.

 

[sliverx]

Hand picked 20lbs of Montmorency & Balaton cherries yesterday evening. Washed them up, bagged them and have them in the freezer to help draw out more color & flavor in my next mead.

I'm definitely using all the cherries in a mead, but I might split them between primary and secondary. I also don't want it to be a single note mead. I'll be using 18lbs of orange blossom honey. I'd like to add something to the batch. Thinking along the lines of vanilla beans or cacao nibs, maybe both. Any thoughts/experiences with something like this? Been scouring the internet for ratios, but it always seems to be a recipe with no review following on how it turned out.

Did you pit them before freezing? Assume that will be a bitch if they're frozen.

 

[Beerontwowheels]

Did you pit them before freezing? Assume that will be a bitch if they're frozen.

Decided not to pit. Trying to decide between 18 vs. 24 lbs of honey.

 

[sliverx]

Transfered meadowfoam mead onto a couple pounds each of sweet cherries, raspberries, blueberries, and blackberries.

And it's refermenting now....

 

[Beerontwowheels]

Tart cherry melomel, 6 days in to fermentation.