T'ej BOMM

[loveofrose]

Finally getting around to this experiment. This will be a T'ej with a serious upgrade (I hope) to the current century. I'll be using Fermaid O for nutrient and K2CO3 for pH buffering. This is a BOMM, so I'll be using Wyeast 1388.

After some research, I decided to use gesho inchet (sticks). Apparently, the flavor is preferred over the kitel (leaves) to people in the know (thanks to pokerfacepablo for the very informative T'ej link in his T'ej Looks Nasty thread at gotmead).

I really don't want to fight natural yeast and I would like to pronounce the bittering aspect of the gesho so I'm going to boil the gesho for 10 minutes before adding it to the must. Here it goes:

T'ej BOMM

Add 8 oz of gesho inchet to a pan and cover with water.

Bring to a boil and boil 10 minutes.

Cool in an ice bath.

Add 6 lbs of Orange Blossom honey to carboy.
Add 1 TBSP Fermaid O (~10 grams) and 1/2 tsp K2CO3.
Add gesho water from boil and sticks.
Add water to 2 gallons.
Add a starter of Wyeast 1388.
SG is 1.15


I agree. T'ej looks nasty.

Secondary Options

Apparently, it was common to make a superior T'ej for royalty by adding elderberries. I'll try it like it is first and decide.

T'ej has also been stored in barrels in the past, so oak is another option.

Backsweetening will likely be a necessity.



Better brewing through science!

 

[biochemedic]

Can't wait to hear about how this one turns out... I have both leaves and sticks in my brew fridge that I've been meaning to use for a while...

 

[bernardsmith]

Can't wait to hear about how this one turns out... I have both leaves and sticks in my brew fridge that I've been meaning to use for a while...

I am onto my second batch of t'ej - using inchet and leaves (kitel). I don't think it looks bad or smells bad. However, I use the gesho only for flavoring and ferment using wine yeast (Cuvee, this time. 71B the first time). Which is to say that I pitched the yeast in competition with any wild yeasts that may be in the gesho (but given how it may be stored and transported I have no idea how viable those yeasts may be).
I used clover honey and aimed for a starting gravity of about 1.090. The source of the gesho I used had really ground up both the twigs and the leaves so my gesho this time is rather dark. I just racked this last night (after a couple of months in the primary) and it tastes nicely complex and woody. I think I will be fining with bentonite in another few days to help improve the clarity.
This batch (only a gallon) I plan to very lightly carbonate. I recently had a bottle of commercially made t'ej from a winery in the Finger Lakes area of NY and it was delightfully petillant.

 

[loveofrose]

Day 2

Typo above. SG was 1.11
Current SG is 1.09.
Smells delicious!


Better brewing through science!

 

[loveofrose]

Day 3
Gravity 1.08. Added 1 TBSP Fermaid O. I know it's a bit early, but it looks like the Fermaid O takes a bit longer to assimilate into the yeast. I just don't want my yeasties to be starved for nutrient.


Better brewing through science!

 

[loveofrose]

Day 4
Gravity 1.068. Finally speeding up!


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[loveofrose]

Day 5

Gravity 1.058. I snuck a little taste. It's quite sweet, but very tasty! I was really surprised at how nice it tastes at the point.

It has a nice woody flavor that really compliments the mead in a profound way. I look forward to drinking this on Saturday!


Better brewing through science!

 

[loveofrose]

Day 7

Gravity 1.044. Added the last of the nutrients. Smells delicious!


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[loveofrose]

Day 12

Holding 1.02. I gave it 1/2 TBSP Fermaid O in case it's nutrient starved.


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[loveofrose]

Day 15

Gravity 1.008. Hmm. I don't think Fermaid O has enough DAP for the fast ferments I'm used to for other BOMMs. I think I'll stick to my original protocol from now on or supplement Fermaid O with DAP.

Despite not finishing quickly, this is a very clean ferment. Perhaps use Fermaid O for sweet meads?


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[loveofrose]

Day 16

Gravity 1.004. Tasted some and found that some of the more milkweed notes come through from the gesho when the T'ej is dry. Added 1 lb of honey to an SG of 1.024. Let's see if it stays put.


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[loveofrose]

Day 20

Gravity is 1.018. This stuff is wonderful. Bottling? Pffft, I'm thinking about putting this in gallon jugs to drink immediately. I don't care how cloudy it is! It's delicious!


Better brewing through science!

 

[loveofrose]

Day 23

Gravity 1.012. Slowing to a halt.


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[buzzerj]

We live in San Jose now and went for dinner to the Ethiopian restaurant down on the corner. Wife tasted the homemade T'ej they had and she's a convert! Now I gotta make some T'ej for her. They said I can buy gesho at the market about 2-3 blocks away. I got to go on a gesho run and get me some sticks. Pronto! I won't be too far behind you on this one Bray. Let's go for it!

 

[loveofrose]

We live in San Jose now and went for dinner to the Ethiopian restaurant down on the corner. Wife tasted the homemade tej they had and she's a convert! Now I gotta make some tej for her. They said I can buy gesho at the market about 2-3 blocks away. I got to go on a gesho run and get me some sticks. Pronto! I won't be too far behind you on this one Bray. Let's go for it!

I highly recommend this recipe. If you don't care about cloudy, this is easily drinkable as soon as it hits 1.02. I am exercising self control because I'm curious how the gesho ages.


Better brewing through science!

 

[buzzerj]

It's interesting. I was reading the University of Pittsburgh T'ej Page and they recommended either using the natural yeast on the gesho or to prevent contamination of the T'ej, just to use a small fingernail quantity of Lalvin ICV-D47 yeast to help the process along. They recommended to ferment for 3-5 weeks total to get the full ferment for the alcoholic drink. http://www.pitt.edu/~kloman/tej.html#making

 

[buzzerj]

OK you're not going to believe this but I scored this 13 oz. bag of gesho inchet at a little market not 2 blocks from me for $10.50. At an expected price of ~$10/lb., this is not too much of a mark up considering the convenience and no postage. (The market also carried small bags of coarsely flaked kitel too.) So after reading what Harry Kloman from the University of Pittsburgh on his T'ej page, he was recommending about a fifth of a pound (~3.2 oz.) for a half gallon of T'ej. That's 6.4 oz. per gallon, while loveofrose was using ~8 oz. for 2 gallons. Using Harry's amounts of gesho, this 13 oz. bag would be used for 2 gallons; using loveofrose's amount, it would work for 3 gallons. Either way, I'm making some T'ej!

loveofrose was using a short boil step for the gesho while Harry mixes the honey and water and directly adds the gesho inchet sticks without a boil. I would think if adding yeast to this mixture instead of using the yeast already on the gesho, there would be plenty of competition with the added yeast winning easily with no boil needed. So I would think based on Harry's success, even when using the natural yeast on the gesho, there really isn't that much of a contamination risk, especially with a healthy dose of Wyeast 1388 or selected wine yeast like Lalvin ICV-D47 and proper yeast nutrition. Another option would be to add the yeast and let it get through the lag phase and start bubbling then add the gesho as Harry recommends on his page. As Bray would say, go ahead and experiment! As Harry would say, each batch is slightly different anyway but is easily drinkable.

Given the sheer amount of sticks I have in this bag, I wouldn't hesitate in using these to make a good 3 gallon batch. This actually is quite a large volume. If I was going to make a 5 gallon batch I don't think I'd hesitate to go back to the store and get some kitel, even considering I'd need to strain it through cheesecloth to remove the kitel later.

 

[buzzerj]

So Bray how is your T'ej BOMM doing? I'm going to start a T'ej this weekend.

 

[loveofrose]

It's now cold crashed and clear. It's quite good, but I think I over gesho'ed it. I can only drink one glass, then I just don't want anymore. I'm going to try mixing it with a traditional and see if it gets the gesho in a reasonable range. Perhaps cut the gesho back by half it you boil it. Or maybe I'm just not fond of gesho?


Better brewing through science!

 

[buzzerj]

I think your boil step must have been too aggressive. It might have drawn out too much from the gesho. Most recipes utilize the natural yeast on the gesho itself hence no boiling. I'm going to use yeast, in my case ICV-D47, but I don't think I will boil the gesho. Mine won't be a true BOMM I know, but T'ej can be consumed when young and sweet and my last D47 fermentation using SNA went very quickly. But I was contemplating still using 4 oz. per gallon of gesho so I will have a bit left over for a next batch. Let us know the results of your blending.

 

[loveofrose]

The blending was successful. I blended half traditional with half T'ej. This put the gesho in proper proportion. Very tasty. I could drink this till it hurts.

I figure I have 2x the T'ej I originally made. Score!

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[buzzerj]

Bray I salute you sir! When I root I root for Bray too!

 

[bernardsmith]

I wonder if the recipes that call for boiling the gesho want to treat it like bittering hops. I don't boil my gesho and I find the flavor is still deliciously evident.

 

[buzzerj]

I added another 3 lbs. of honey to my T'ej in the secondary to keep it sweet. It didn't look like any fermentation restarted. I think the next batch I do I will rely on the gesho to supply the yeast and cross my fingers.