Mead Lovers Digest #0098

Published in

· 8 months ago

 

Mead Lover's Digest #98                     Tue 16 March 1993 

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

 
Contents: 
  Newbie questions. (COYOTE) 
  A few beginner questions (Gregory Owen) 

 
Send articles for submission to the digest to mead-lovers@nsa.hp.com 
Send digest addition or removal requests to mead-lovers-request@nsa.hp.com 

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Date: 15 Mar 1993 10:23:50 -0600 (MDT) 
From: COYOTE <SLK6P@CC.USU.EDU> 
Subject: Newbie questions. 

From: gowen@cs.tufts.edu (Gregory Owen) 
Subject: A few beginner questions 

I would like to try homebrewing, both mead and beer, but mead first. 
* 
**  Try the beer kit part first.  It is quicker and you can be sampling 
** the beer while you wait for the mead to age.  Also- better to aquaint 
** yourself with the methods/techniques-   generally learning to be sterile 
** with a product finished in 2-3 weeks, vs. one you will be waiting on the 
** order of 6 months for! 
* 

 ...recipe I plan to follow for mead asks for 2-5 gallon carboys (from 
   the _wassail_ book, by Gayre and Papazian).  I assume the 10 gallon 
   is one of those white plastic buckets.  Is this acceptable?  Can I 
   use the plastic bucket for the first stage, and the carboy for the 
   second?  vice versa? 
* 
**   Plan on a 5 gallon batch. You can use the bucket as the primary 
** especially if you have fruit in the must, then transfer to the glass 
** carboy for the secondary.  If you want to do 10 gallons get 2 carboys. 
** Alternatively- get a second carboy- do the mead into one, beer into the 
** other!     ;-) 

2) Will the beer ingredients (can of malt, dried malt, water salt,  
   hops and yeasts) stay well?  
* 
**  Keep the hops sealed in a bag in the freezer- store the yeast in the 
**  fridge.  You'll be fine. 
* 
3) Will an ordinary cooking thermometer, like the one used for making 
   candy, do?   
* 
** Depends on the temp range.  You want to cover from room temperature  
** through boiing.  F or C will do.  
* 
_____________________________________________________________________ 
                                J. Wyllie (The Coyote) 
                                SLK6P@cc.usu.edu 

"As long as he's got 8 fingers and 8 toes, he's alright by me."  H.J.S. 
_______________________________________________________________________ 

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End of Mead Lover's Digest 
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