Mead - the homebrew thread

[cannonboi]

I haven't taken a gravity reading in about a month, but last I saw it was sitting at about 14.5% using 71B after 2 semi-monthly readings. I was thinking about repitching with EC-1118 to dry it out a little more too.

 

[RunninMixz]

I haven't taken a gravity reading in about a month, but last I saw it was sitting at about 14.5% using 71B after 2 semi-monthly readings. I was thinking about repitching with EC-1118 to dry it out a little more too.

What size batch?

 

[RunninMixz]

I haven't taken a gravity reading in about a month, but last I saw it was sitting at about 14.5% using 71B after 2 semi-monthly readings. I was thinking about repitching with EC-1118 to dry it out a little more too.

What was the OG?

 

[cannonboi]

What size batch?

5 gallons.

What was the OG?

I don't know, mannnnnnn. I just sort of threw cider and honey into a jug...

OG was 1.155, current FG is sitting around 1.044.

 

[RunninMixz]

It should be done if the readings were correct. You could add water, but with that final gravity I'm surprised that it would be that sweet. Maybe citric acid? Someone else might want to weigh in on that though as I haven't done that.

 

[orlowskd]

Need some help... I really love small batch mead making, but I have tried out multiple 2 gallon fermenters and they just suck. first a bucket from NB and it wouldn't seal, and next a 2 gallon ball jar with airlock that seems to leak too. All I am looking for is a reliable primary fermenter that I can easily fruit in and clean. Any thoughts mead ppl?!?

 

[FTowne1]

Need some help... I really love small batch mead making, but I have tried out multiple 2 gallon fermenters and they just suck. first a bucket from NB and it wouldn't seal, and next a 2 gallon ball jar with airlock that seems to leak too. All I am looking for is a reliable primary fermenter that I can easily fruit in and clean. Any thoughts mead ppl?!?

I've used fruit in 3 gallon glass carboys without any issue of getting it clean afterwards. The fruit will be so mushy that it'll pour right out of the opening.

 

[mjohnson171]

Need some help... I really love small batch mead making, but I have tried out multiple 2 gallon fermenters and they just suck. first a bucket from NB and it wouldn't seal, and next a 2 gallon ball jar with airlock that seems to leak too. All I am looking for is a reliable primary fermenter that I can easily fruit in and clean. Any thoughts mead ppl?!?

Check out my pic a few posts above. The carboys on the right are 1.3 gal wide mouths. I got them off NB I think (or maybe Midwest, they're basically the same in my mind since they're owned by the same people). They're not 2 gal but they're large enough to add fruit to a primary and still get about 3/4 gal of mead into your secondary, I've had no seal issues, and being wide mouth clean up is a breeze.

 

[axeman91821]

Got the scores back from my club's competition this weekend and my first batch (traditional sweet mead) is the highest scoring entry I've ever had at 44.5

Any tips for backsweetening? Batch two fermented a bit too much and went all the way down to 1.013. It's to be a melomel, I added some raspberry puree when I first made it and am planning on racking it onto some IQF raspberries in secondary shortly.

 

[Beerontwowheels]

Got the scores back from my club's competition this weekend and my first batch (traditional sweet mead) is the highest scoring entry I've ever had at 44.5

Any tips for backsweetening? Batch two fermented a bit too much and went all the way down to 1.013. It's to be a melomel, I added some raspberry puree when I first made it and am planning on racking it onto some IQF raspberries in secondary shortly.

Congrats, Bill!

 

[RLD]

Made my first mead yesterday. 3 gallon batch of standard. Here was my recipe....

15lbs dutch gold orange blossom honey
1 3/4 gallon deer park spring water
9 grams lalvin 71b yeast rehydrated with 11 grams Go ferm

SNA recipe
Blend 2.4 grams Fermaid K + 4.8 grams DAP
Add 1.8 grams of Fermaid K and DAP mixture after pitching yeast
Add 1.8 grams of mix 24 hours after ferm
Add 1.8 grams of mix 48 hours after ferm
add 1.8 grams of mix after 30% of depleted sugar.

 

[RunninMixz]

Made my first mead yesterday. 3 gallon batch of standard. Here was my recipe....

15lbs dutch gold orange blossom honey
1 3/4 gallon deer park spring water
9 grams lalvin 71b yeast rehydrated with 11 grams Go ferm

SNA recipe
Blend 2.4 grams Fermaid K + 4.8 grams DAP
Add 1.8 grams of Fermaid K and DAP mixture after pitching yeast
Add 1.8 grams of mix 24 hours after ferm
Add 1.8 grams of mix 48 hours after ferm
add 1.8 grams of mix after 30% of depleted sugar.

What's to OG?

 

[RLD]

1.22 at least. Couldn't accurately measure it on the hydrometer I was using.

 

[kscaldef]

1.22 at least. Couldn't accurately measure it on the hydrometer I was using.

hmm... 15lbs of honey diluted to 3 gallons should be more like 1.175 (based on 35 gravity points per pound).

 

[RLD]

I'm sure you are right. Need to get a new hydrometer asap.

 

[mjohnson171]

Bottled 2 meads: a moscato grape and one inspired by the cocktail French 75.

 

[Beerontwowheels]

Bottled 2 meads: a moscato grape and one inspired by the cocktail French 75.

Looks great, but I'd up the fill level a tad.

 

[RLD]

Made a raspberry/tart cherry and a black currant mead this week. Poured myself a tiny sample 20ml or so of the black currant today after fermenting for 5 days. Pretty confident that one is going to be amazing. Meads in the carboy were degassed right before the photo.

 

[Jb123]

Bottled my 'The Response' attempt. Really nice, the cocoa nibs added an amazing chocolate taste but also a little too much bitterness but I don't know how that's avoided and I'm ok with it. Finished at 1.068-1.07, super happy about that. Really nice mead, perhaps my best mead yet or at least the most nailed flavors without tasting like complete dog ****.

 

[axeman91821]

OK, I've got a raspberry melomel sitting around that I both need to add more fruit to to brighten up before packaging and backsweeten. Does it make sense to add the fruit before I kill the yeast, so that they chew through whatever sugars are present in the fruit? And then after they've had a few weeks to work on the fruit kill the yeast and backsweeten and bottle?

 

[Beerontwowheels]

OK, I've got a raspberry melomel sitting around that I both need to add more fruit to to brighten up before packaging and backsweeten. Does it make sense to add the fruit before I kill the yeast, so that they chew through whatever sugars are present in the fruit? And then after they've had a few weeks to work on the fruit kill the yeast and backsweeten and bottle?

I'd fruit first. Are you going to fruit right in the same primary or rack to a new vessel over the new fruit? You might decide not to backsweeten depending on how the 2nd fruit addition treats you.

 

[axeman91821]

I'd fruit first. Are you going to fruit right in the same primary or rack to a new vessel over the new fruit? You might decide not to backsweeten depending on how the 2nd fruit addition treats you.

I was torn on that. Right now it's in the same bucket it's been in for primary, and I think if I wasn't considering backsweetening I would probably rack into a carboy on top of the second fruit addition. I'm worried though about if I rack to the carboy and fruit and then still decide I want to backsweeten that I won't be able to stir in the additional honey and get it well mixed with the mead.

 

[mjohnson171]

Personally I would rack, just for clarity's sake. You'll want to get rid of that primary trub that may cause haziness and sediment in your mead, or even off flavors.

 

[groutgauss1]

I brewed 10gals mead for my upcoming wedding and had about 1.5 gallons left over I turned into a cyser. The mead is coming along nicely, I may blend some with whatever fruit is in season in May. And turns out it's not a great idea to use 3711 french saison for a cyser as it completely tore through my gravity...twice. I'm going to have to split it up and dose with more honey. Seems the cap on the yeast is around 12% so hopefully if I bump it above that it will settle around 1.016 or higher.

 

[RLD]

For being a little over a month old, my black currant mead is drinking amazing. Going to make 6 gallons of the same recipe next week.

 

[wittyname1]

My first attempt - went the triple berry route. I'm kind of hooked now. Probably should have picked a better background - not nearly as cloudy as it looks

 

[RLD]

I have come to the conclusion I need a large mouth fermenter. Keep having fruit explosions during early fermentation in my 3 gallon carboys. Another things I noticed, my first batch of black currant mead was fermented on mostly black currant juice and very little fruit. It didn't have nearly this active of a fermentation early on. If I want to use these carboys in the future I think I need to stick with higher juice/fruit volume because it's becoming quite a mess.

 

[Naegerbomb]

I have come to the conclusion I need a large mouth fermenter. Keep having fruit explosions during early fermentation in my 3 gallon carboys. Another things I noticed, my first batch of black currant mead was fermented on mostly black currant juice and very little fruit. It didn't have nearly this active of a fermentation early on. If I want to use these carboys in the future I think I need to stick with higher juice/fruit volume because it's becoming quite a mess.

Yeah, fruit in primary carboy is a no-go. No reason not to get a trusty bucket involved here. You can dial in your batch size so that you have 3 gallons of liquid coming off the fruit, perfect for your carboys.

 

[RLD]

Traditional mead and Chokeberry melomel both made with Mesquite honey.

 

[hornydevil]

Any of you guys enter The Mazer Cup? I've only ever entered braggots, but would be interested in what you guys have thought about the judging as of late.