Viking BOMM (Gruit BOMM Round 2)

[loveofrose]

Viking BOMM (Gruit BOMM Round 2)

I'm attempting to refine my gruit mead using herbs Viking would have access to. The last gruit mead was very good, but was heavy on yarrow with not enough of the wintergreen flavor. Here, I adjust quantities an made some herb additions to get the flavor I'm going for.

1. Add 1 quart of water to a pot and bring to a boil. Add the following:
-8 oz Golden DME
-5 grams Sweet Gale
-3 grams Yarrow
-3 grams Marsh Rosemary
-3 g juniper
-3 g Holy Basil
2. Simmer 10 minutes and cool in an ice bath. Taste: Herbal with a refreshing wintergreen/juniper punch. Very tasty!
3. Add strained wort to a carboy with 2 lbs of Orange blossom honey to carboy (SG ~1.1).
4. Add 0.7 tsp Fermaid O, 0.4 tsp Fermaid K, and 1/4 tsp K2CO3.
-Add 0.7 tsp Fermaid O at 1.076 & 1.043
-Trying my new nutrient protocol.
5. Add cold water to half gallon and swirl vigorously until honey is dissolved.
6. Add water to 1/2 cup shy of gallon.
7. Add a smack pack of Wyeast 1388.
8. It should finish around 1.003 (unfermentable sugar in the DME should prevent 1.000).

Post Fermentation
9. Add the following dry herbs in a Muslim bag and leave for 2 weeks:
-2.5 grams Sweet Gale
10. Cold crash and bottle with carbonation tabs.

Specs
SG - 1.102
FG - 1.003
ABV - 13%
4.5 Lovibond

>Made 2/18/2017
>Second nutrient addition 2/21/2017
>Last nutrient addition 2/24/2017

 

[WarBeard1980]

Anxious to hear how the nutrient protocol works for you. :rockin:

 

[honeycon]

Looks like a nice recipe. Curious why the Holy Basil. It seems to be a more tropical plant and not a European plant. Your post is the first time I have heard of it.

 

[loveofrose]

Holy basil has a nice rounded menthol flavor that goes with the profile I'm going for. It is an old chefs trick to use multiple spices with similar flavors to give a well rounded, complex taste.

 

[loveofrose]

So, I skipped adding more Sweet Gale in secondary. It didn't need it. So incredibly good. At 2 weeks, I cold crashed a few days and bottled.

I took it to Bluebonnet Homebrew festival and had a BJCP judge evaluate it at 1 month from pitch. He said it was gold medal worthy. Well balanced with a nice wintergreen freshness. Told me to clarify it a little more to ensure a win.

Scaled this recipe up to 6 gallons. Everything was multiplied by 6 save the yeast. I made a starter according to my standard protocol.

-Day 0 - 4/5/17
-Day 2 - 1.072, added Fermaid O.

Warning: This brew hits harder than most. A bit harder to shake the next day. You only need one to get you there anyway.

 

[Drewed]

Where did you buy your herbs? Were you able to source them all from one location?

 

[loveofrose]

First 3 are from www.wildweeds.com and last 2 are from www.mountainroseherbs.com