Vanilla Mead

[Winejunkie]

I've just racked this up in the primary. I can't wait to see how it tastes. I had a question about specifics of the directions.

"Rack to secondary after 7-10 days straining out vanilla beans.
Rack after another 3 weeks, should be still in another 2-3 weeks."

Does that mean; 7-10 days in primary, 3 weeks in secondary, bottle?
It reads as though there's a third racking period in there.

Thanks!!

Ralphinator
Yes, 7-10 days in primary and then rack again in 3 weeks. You can bottle once clear and you are sure fermentation is complete. Or, you can bulk age for 6-12 months.

 

[Winejunkie]

Finally got around to post an updated picture of my VBM. This picture was taken about a week after racking which would be around day 65+/-.

The color cleared up loosing what some of you compared to as Mountain Dew/Antifreeze . It's now along the lines of cider.

[/IMG]

 

[Winejunkie]

Finally got around to post an updated picture of my VBM. This picture was taken about a week after racking which would be around day 65+/-.

The color cleared up loosing what some of you compared to as Mountain Dew/Antifreeze . It's now along the lines of cider.

[/IMG]

 

[Winejunkie]

Guilty of double posting.. oops

[/IMG]

 

[SCOdoubleT]

That is super clear!
Mine is still very cloudy, but it does seem to be clearing VERY slowly if I try real hard to imagine it.

I like how you busted yourself on the double-posting!
I thought I was just seeing things.

 

[Winejunkie]

It was clearing slowly but once I racked it cleared up in a few days. It needed a jolt.

 

[skankin_brews]

Day 2



Day 11 after racking off beans



3 weeks

 

[Nastynate65]

Sorry to question this, but, just want to make sure I'm not misinterpreting this. That's 8 oz of vanilla extract (1 cup), added to the primary fermentation process for ~5 gallons, PLUS 6 split vanilla beans?

First time ever planning to use vanilla extract in something that isn't cooked here, it sounds kind of rich at first glance.

 

[Stovetop535]

Thats how I interpreted the recipe. Extract plus the beans all in the primary.

I have everything I need to make a full batch of this. How is the drinkibility early on? Say around the 4 month mark? I am hoping that some of this mead will be decent around the middle of May.

 

[kellysrepairs]

do you use the lalvin 1118 dry wine or champagne yeast?

 

[Stovetop535]

Thats what the op's recipe called for. I used d47 instead, after reading some threads where people claimed the d47 produced a mead that is drinkable sooner.

 

[kellysrepairs]

is it done? how did it come out?

 

[Stovetop535]

I just checked the gravity tonight, down to 1.05 from 1.124. It's only been 8 days in the primary. Fermentation was slow to start. I had no gravity drop for the first 48 hours. I aerated with my lees stirrer and did followed the stagered nutrient additions up till 1.08. I will probably wait at least 10 days before I rack it, maybe a little longer as I don't see any harm in letting it sit a full 2 weeks on the beans.

 

[kellysrepairs]

Nice, so your around 10% abv right now. I excited to try this one next week when taxes come in, need a few more carboys. I also want to add some orange zest for a little extra flavor. how much is your fg gonna go down you think?

 

[Stovetop535]

Goal is around 1.010. Not sure if the yeast will make it that far or not, my starting gravity ended up a little higher than expected. Getting down to 1.010 would put it at 15%, just above the d47 rating of 14%.

Visibly, fermentation looks strong right now. Decent amount of krausen buildup with vey little trub accumulating at the bottom. I have been fermenting in the basement which sits around 62 degrees. I might bring the bb upstairs-66 to 68 degrees to try and keep it going.

 

[Stovetop535]

Update**

Racked to the secondary today. Gravity reading was 1.020, so sitting right around 13.6% right now and closing in on the manufacturers listed alc tolerance. I hope over the next few weeks a few more points get knocked off.

I racked to a 5 gall glass carboy and lost a lot more than anticipated. I think what I will do is make up a one gallon batch, let it ferment and use it to top off my carboy. I have 5 lbs of leftover honey and a full box of the tea bags, so it should work out nicely. I will probably only use 2.5lbs of honey in the gallon top off batch--dont want to add any sweetness incase the my gravity does not drop much more in the full batch.

 

[kellysrepairs]

how much did you loose? overflow?

 

[Stovetop535]

No overflow, I was very careful when aerating an adding nutrients. The split beans were pretty plumb, they absorbed more than I though they would. I lost just a touch over .5 gallons to the beans and trub. Overall not bad, I just did not anticipate the loss to the beans.

 

[Adrenaline-Junkie]

How many times are you supposed to rack? The OP says 3 times (secondary after 7-10 and then rack again after 3 weeks and keep there for another 2-3 weeks) but i wasnt sure if that was right (seems kind of excessive but im new to mead).

 

[Stovetop535]

I went 18 days before I racked out of te primary since I didn't have an open carboy. I will rack again once the mead is still, or I the lees get any thicker than 1/4 of an inch. Any additional rackings after that would only be because of lees build up or if it is not clearing.

From my understanding, racking keeps the mead off the dormant yeast on the bottom and helps to clarify.

 

[Gahb13]

Start a one gallon batch yesterday. Used 1 vanilla bean, 5/8 oz of extract, 1 tea bag, everything else divided by 5. Forgot to take an initial gravity reading. Its been bubbling away since the airlock was put on.
This will be my first high strength (>7%) mead, so it'll be good to see how it goes and how long it takes.

 

[Stovetop535]

Went ahead and racked again and combined the full batch with the one gallon top off batch I made separately. The color has really changed, and the top is starting to clear. I did not take a gravity reading when I racked, I will wait to take another. Here is a pic as it sits now.

Still on the fence about using any fining agents to help with clearing.

 

[Gahb13]

lost heat for four days (long story) and room temp where the mead is stored went down to 8°C for that time. Its been warm (20-21°C) since then. Bubbles have slowed down to almost none existing, but still pressurized. Hoping it will still be OK.

 

[projectda]

going to try this next week. will be my 1st real mead, and my 1st large batch. im thinking of adding oak chips to give it a barreled taste. hope i dont mess this up, and all goes well!

 

[putout]

Vanilla mead all finished, looks like high life, tastes like the fields of elysium. Disappointed that vanilla and the earl grey didn't come through better, but it's so tasty it doesn't really matter.

 

[Stovetop535]

Did you have trouble getting yours to clear? Mine is still a little cloudy after 10 months and a few rounds of finings.

 

[putout]

Mine came through very clear right up until i stirred up sediment, no finings used. Maybe a difference in the yeast used?

 

[codyfree]

Couldi get a one gallon recipie. Im not exactly sure if u just divide everything by 5 or if sumthings stay the same.

 

[Aceandover]

I just did a one gallon of it tonight (left one) and just divided everything by 5ish(give or take)

 

[10centBros]

I am relatively new to making mead (I've only made 3 batches) but am very curious and have the amount of honey I need to make this recipe. At my local homebrew shop, I got everything I need but am curious about the YEAST ENERGIZER and NUTRIENT. I purchased Fermaid K and Go-Ferm and am wondering at what point these should be added. I read through all 5 or 6 pages and it wasn't ever mentioned, so just wondering if these should both be added during primary or secondary or one during each or what? Any help would be greatly appreciated.