Question about honey & first mead

[mjcoss]

Made something that was very similar a recipe that I saw

3 lbs Manuka Active 16+ honey
12 oz. fresh raspberries
2 lemons, juice of + zest of the lemons
2 limes, juice of + zest of the limes
a few raisins
1/4 cup brewed earl grey tea
Wyeast 4632 for a dry mead

+ Poland spring water to get to a gallon

Just transferred to a secondary after 5 weeks in the primary. All the fruit had lost all color, and the mead has a nice pink color.

So now that I've made it, and transferred it I'm think that I probably made all kinds of mistakes. Not the least of which is didn't I transfer it too soon. I'm also curious if others have tried Manuka honey and what kind of flavors I should expect, and does the recipe look ok? I suspect that I probably should have added yeast nutrients/enegrizers but didn't have any when I started it.

 

[fatbloke]

Well your biggest mistake is likely to be how much you paid for the honey and then used it for a melomel.......

 

[MarshmallowBlue]

Just to elaborate on what FB said. When you spend big $ on rare varietals, it's best to let the honey shine by making a traditional.

 

[skadalajara]

And to further clarify...
Seems that's the only "mistake" you made.
It's your mead. Make it how you like. Learn from it.
Who knows, it could end up being the best mead ever.
As to racking too early, only your hydrometer knows for sure.

Sent from my SPH-D710 using Home Brew mobile app

 

[mjcoss]

I got a decent deal on the honey so it wasn't all *that* expensive. I'm curious about the flavor that that honey will impart to the mead. I know that there are plenty of other factors but was wondering if anyone had an opinion on what to expect. Also, how long should it sit in the secondary before being bottled? From what I've read, it seems to be that you wait till it's clear.

 

[fatbloke]

Sorry chap, its a bit of a "how long is a piece of string" sort of question........

you could try for a commercially made one but that only tells you what the flavour is like from that brand or maker.

You can do the basic make to finish the ferment. Then maybe top up with AJ, but you might still need some acid to give it more "bite" or use honey to back sweeten, etc etc......

Maybe some tannin or oak to give it depth ? Or just get it fermented and clearer then bulk age it to mellow.......

So many possible things can vary the end result.......