What's the go with Tea

[SKBugs]

G'day all,
I have just started using tea (meadowfoam and hibiscus) in a brew which seems to really go with mead. Can someone explain what the tea does and how is the best way to use it? Ie as the initial brew or in secondary etc?

Also, is there an accepted protocol as to how much to use per gallon and can you use too much tea?

Thanks

 

[Nooner]

I would think the answers to your questions would depend on the tea and your personal preference. There are thousands of different kinds of tea and I would imagine some are more potent than others, with widely ranging flavor profiles. I made a few concoctions many years ago with store bought juices and frozen concentrates, and used a mandarin orange tea blend. Not only did it add a little flavor (probably not much) but more importantly I used it to add tannin. As for how much to use... again it depends on your tastes; you could make an entirely tea based wine if wanted to.

 

[CKuhns]

I have used Hibiscus, (Hibiscus with dark fruit Melomels) Black, Orange Peko (In place of oak for Cysers) and Oolong (Limited success) teas in Mead. Have always steeped (Not Boiled) the tea in water for no more than 15 minutes using enough tea to make a very strong blend and diluting that with three parts water when mixing in adding to primary.

Be careful in your additions as mentioned by Nooner tea flavor and tannens are very subjective. As such I would not be able to recommend amounts to use as your likes and preferences will differ significantly from mine or others. Consider experimenting a bit most teas bring with them a lot of tannens and many folks don't care for the tannen. Similar to oak in your mead in secondary.

Teas in mead tend to benefit from a bit more acid I would consider adding LD Carlson Acid Blend or Lemon or lime juice to secondary to taste to "Brighten" it up.

 

[SKBugs]

Thanks for that.
So would you use tea if your brew lacks a bit of tannin? If you have made a melomel with juices as opposed to fruit with stem?
I'm trying to work out when i would consider using it.

Sorry for the dumb questions.
Cheers

 

[bernardsmith]

Not dumb questions. Not all fruits are tannin rich. Strawberries, for example are not. And honey is not, so if that is the main source of your flavor and sugar then you will want to add tannin.

But not every "tea" has tannin. Black tea does and I think green tea does but I am not sure that white tea does and certainly herbal teas are not likely to have aything like the amount of tannin in black tea. If you stew a tea (allow it to stand in boiling water longer than you would need to brew the tea) and the tea then tastes very astringent (In Scotland when I was growing up we called that "strong tea") then you have extracted the tannins.

 

[CKuhns]

As Bernard mentioned tannin can be achieved with dark teas and to some much lesser extent hybiscus. For fruit mead (melomel) i typically dont add black or dark tea. I tend to stick with the slightly less astringent hybiscus or herbal teas if any at all. If you plan to add spices like cinnamon, cloves star anise then some tannin is nice. Oak brings tannins as well and a little more controlable if added in secondary as you can taste periodically and pull when they hit the flavor you want.