Mead Lovers Digest #0078

eZine lover (@eZine)

Published in 

Mead Lovers Digest

 · 7 months ago

 

Mead Lover's Digest #78                     Tue 26 January 1993 

 
        Forum for Discussion of Mead Brewing and Consuming 
               John Dilley, Digest Coordinator 

 
Contents: 
  Making mead from fermenting honey. (malcolm roe) 

 
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Date: Mon, 25 Jan 93 18:23:10 BST 
From: malcolm roe <roe@crosfield.co.uk> 
Subject: Making mead from fermenting honey. 

 
Although I've kept bees for some years I'm new to mead making.  
This year some of my honey has started fermenting.  Can I use it to 
make mead?   Should I treat it in any way first such as sterilising 
it?  If so, how?  It is all oil seed rape honey which means that it 
has set solid (apart from various bubbling geysers). 

 
Note for non-beekeepers:- 

Nectar from flowers contains naturally occurring yeast spores and 
will ferment.  The bees prevent this by evaporating much of the 
water, thus raising the sugar concentration just above the level at 
which yeast can reproduce.  When they have done this we call the 
result honey.  If the beekeeper takes the honey before the bees 
have finished "ripening" it there is a risk of fermentation.  I had 
such a good crop last year (:-)) that I had to extract a quantity 
of the honey in a hurry to maintain sufficient space.  It is some 
of this honey that is causing the problem (:-(). 

- --  
Malcolm Roe                            Phone  :  +44 442 230000 ext 4104 
Crosfield Electronics Ltd              Fax    :  +44 442 232301 
Hemel Hempstead, Herts. HP2 7RH, UK    E-mail :  roe@crosfield.co.uk  
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