My Joes ancient mead

[zhubbell]

So, I followed Joe Ancient mead forum, just came across it...
Brewed 22 weeks ago, last time I checked it was around 12 weeks, and fruit was just barely starting to drop, is it okay that I'm just now gonna rack to bottles to condition it or has it been in the fruit too long??

Also, thinking of cutting in a about 1/3 gallon of blueberry juice to the one gallon batch, I think this would be the right time to do this. Right?


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[Descender]

If it's been that long, adding additional sugars will make for a very long secondary fermentation. Not really a secondary per se, but a primary. You're yeast count is pretty low by this point, but there's still enough to ferment all the sugar eventually. That will take a long time. I think you should just rack it and let it clear more.

 

[zhubbell]

I guess I was thinking of the addition of the juice concentrate as adding alittle fruity sweetness to the beverage rather than increasing the alcohol content, and requiring additional fermentation. It probably doesn't work that way though, huh?


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[fatbloke]

JAO is made using bread yeast as it poops out eariler (about 12% ABV more often than not), allowing some residual sugars to balance any pithy bitterness that is extracted from the orange pith.

It's why making JAO with wine yeast doesn't work. It metabolises all the sugars and focuses the flavour on the bitterness.

If your batch has finished, it will likely already be sweet enough and adding juice or concentrate then it's quite feasible that you would drop the % ABV enough to restart fermentation, it would depend on the level of dilution and the level of fruit sugars in the juice/concentrate etc.

If you just wanted to add some colour/berry hint to it, then you could rack it off the fruit/sediment and then stabilise it with sulphite/sorbate. Then adding the juice/concentrate would just dilute it some/add berry hint etc........

 

[zhubbell]

JAO is made using bread yeast as it poops out eariler (about 12% ABV more often than not), allowing some residual sugars to balance any pithy bitterness that is extracted from the orange pith.

It's why making JAO with wine yeast doesn't work. It metabolises all the sugars and focuses the flavour on the bitterness.

If your batch has finished, it will likely already be sweet enough and adding juice or concentrate then it's quite feasible that you would drop the % ABV enough to restart fermentation, it would depend on the level of dilution and the level of fruit sugars in the juice/concentrate etc.

If you just wanted to add some colour/berry hint to it, then you could rack it off the fruit/sediment and then stabilise it with sulphite/sorbate. Then adding the juice/concentrate would just dilute it some/add berry hint etc........

Thanks for the suggestion! Would the sulphite/or sorbate be a specialized item only found at a brew store or is there somewhere else I might find a passable substitute?


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[fatbloke]

No, most likely home brew shop. The materials are used in other things but industrial uses mostly.

The sulphites maybe found as campden tablets, and either potassium metabisulphite or sodium metabisulphite (potassium is better but usually more expensive).

Also available as powder too.......

The sorbate is potassium sorbate.

You'd use them together to stabilise or just sulphite for anti-fungal/anti-oxidant etc. It also inhibits MLF (malolactic fermentation) bacteria which can metabolize sorbates into geraniols ruining a batch - hence never sorbate alone.....

 

[fuelish]

It's why making JAO with wine yeast doesn't work. It metabolises all the sugars and focuses the flavour on the bitterness.

Indeed it does....I have an orange/ginger mead, not technically a JAOM, but, yeah.... definitely bitter orange flavor, which I don't really mind, as I'm a hop head, but might be a bit much for some folks....my wife will drink half a glass, saying "MMMmmmm," then hand me the half empty glass saying "Here, finish this...." Of course, I do For folks that haven't tried it yet, I say "Think bitter orange" .....it's good, and all, but, I have some set aside for the future......it's lightlty carbed and beautiful, just a bit bitter at this point (made in November), and may never go away, I don't care...it's good to relax with, with my baby, and she'll at least drink half a glass...LOL