Noob recipe needed

[hehawbrew]

So- I'm in need of a good, simple, mead recipe for noobs. My firstborn mead attempt is sketchy b/c I used city water which seems to have effed up my first attempt.

I bought a 3 gallon carboy recently with the hopes to make mead and have it ready to give as presents for Christmas.

Let me know some thought. I'm grateful for any help I can get.

 

[Meadiator]

Search the forums for Joe's Ancient Orange Mead. Nearly foolproof recipe. Should taste great around Christmas time. Good luck!

 

[fatbloke]

All the new mead maker advice you could want or need can be found here.

The JAO recipe is in chapter 6 (I believe).

Your early/first attempt probably isn't screwed, it just needs time (aging).

People unfamiliar with meads, see it's made with honey and expect something like honey. When it's not, they presume it's gone wrong somehow. It often hasn't.

Young meads can taste pretty hideous, but with some aging, it's often surprising that the changes that occur with just age can make.

 

[hehawbrew]

Thanks!
Haven't even tasted the "bad" batch yet b/c of the smell. I'll let it sit a while, then give it a whirl!

That ancient mead looks good!

Honestly, I've never had mead before. Can it be bought commercially?

 

[johngottshall]

Joes quick Grape mead is the best i started it on the 1st of march 30 days later it was excellent stating a three gallon batch today. the wife loves it everyone that comes over to the house the wife has to give a sample its just awesome stuff

 

[hehawbrew]

Mmmm. That sounds good too

 

[hehawbrew]

Alright. Made it up tonight! Only thing I did differently was adding ground cin, instead of a stick.

 

[Bearmaul]

Looks awesome! Let us know how it goes!

 

[hehawbrew]

I guess I changed more than that. I used an ale yeast that I had on hand and 3 lbs of honey instead of 3.5.

 

[fatbloke]

I guess I changed more than that. I used an ale yeast that I had on hand and 3 lbs of honey instead of 3.5.

Oh dear....... it might be sensible if you can find out what the alcohol tolerance for the yeast is then.

The whole reason for using bread yeast, is because it poops out early and the residual sugars balance the bitterness that comes from the orange pith.

The point of the recipe is for the new mead maker to be able to produce a pleasing to taste batch with easily available ingredients from a grocery store but is also repeatable.

Now its one thing to use a bit less honey, you'd end up like I do making it to 1 imp gallon instead of 1 US gallon, but if the yeast can do a similar level of alcohol to say? D47 (and I understand many ale yeasts can) then you will likely ferment it dry and that focuses the finished taste on the bitterness from the pith.....and its not a nice tasting dry brew, the phrase "bloody horrible" comes to mind.

Don't take my word for it though, make another batch, but benchmark or as close too as possible for comparison and you'll see.

If you take gravity readings, JAO normally finishes at between 1.025 and 1.035

 

[hehawbrew]

Ugh! I did this to me! Well- good thing it's just a gallon then!

Guess ill hit the store this weekend and try to listen. This is what happens when your cheap I guess: learning the hard way when the easy way was in my face!

 

[hehawbrew]

The yeast i used was safale s05

It's what I used for my ciders.

 

[fatbloke]

Well you may be lucky, it seems it's tolerant to 12 % which is the top end of bread yeast on a good day.

If it was my batch, I'd let it finish and see what its like. Once it stops bubbling take a little taste. Don't worry too much about the actual flavour, just make sure its sweet enough. If not just chuck another half pound of honey in. Give it a stir and let it sort itself out.

 

[hehawbrew]

Thanks for looking that up! I will do that! The more I read reviews on this mead, the more excited I get!