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Mead Lovers Digest #0581
Subject: Mead Lover's Digest #581, 2 August 1997
From: mead-request@talisman.com
Mead Lover's Digest #581 2 August 1997
Forum for Discussion of Mead Making and Consuming
Dick Dunn, Digest Janitor
Contents:
RE: ale mead (PickleMan)
Mead serving temperature. (Francois Espourteille)
Re: clear mead without boiling. (Francois Espourteille)
(Matt Maples)
Re: mead ale (Peter Miller)
"ale mead" (lprescot@sover.net)
Re: Mead Lover's Digest #580, 30 July 1997 ("Mike Kidulich")
Re: Mead Lover's Digest #580, 30 July 1997 ("Dione Wolfe, Dragonweyr, NM dkey@
medusa.unm.edu")
Re: Mead Lover's Digest #580, 30 July 1997 ("Dione Wolfe, Dragonweyr, NM dkey@
medusa.unm.edu")
Re: Mead Lover's Digest #580, 30 July 1997 ("Dione Wolfe, Dragonweyr, NM dkey@
medusa.unm.edu")
Re: Mead serving temparature (guym@Exabyte.COM)
Re:Mead Serving Temperature (Sheryl Nance-Durst)
Ale yeast's alcohol tolerance (David Johnson)
Re: Mead Serving Temperature (Joel Stave)
NOTE: Digest only appears when there is enough material to send one.
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----------------------------------------------------------------------
Subject: RE: ale mead
From: PickleMan <wrp2@axe.humboldt.edu>
Date: Wed, 30 Jul 1997 10:18:02 -0700 (PDT)
Mike,
To answer your question, yes, there are a lot of ale meaders around. Most
the meadsters I know have played with the very same recipe. Mine was
bottled a bit early and was HIGHLY effervescent! I didn't like the bitter
taste left initially by the hops in what was a rather thin mead, but after
about a year of aging the bitterness was subdued and the mead was quite
nice. I would recommend everyone try the recipe. I have made it since
with hallertaur hops and it tastes even more promising, but is still
young. (I at first used Northern Brewer hops).
PickleMan
wrp2@axe.humboldt.edu
> Has anyone tried to make Mead Ale? I have a recipe from the "Making Mead" book
> Mike
------------------------------
Subject: Mead serving temperature.
From: Francois Espourteille <francois@ici.net>
Date: Wed, 30 Jul 1997 15:46:05 -0400 (EDT)
Greg Smith asks about the correct temperature to serve mead. It's a bit
like asking what the correct temperature to serve wine is. Depends on the
wine/mead you are serving. For mead, I would argue that a sparkling
mead/melomel would be better cold/cool, especially in the summer; a still
mead/melomel would be better at room temp in the winter, and slightly cool
in the summer. A lighter mead would probably be better cool, while a
heavier one might be more interesting at room temperature. Although, when I
drink rocket fuel (5lb/gal honey), I like it chilled to keep the alcohol in
the glass; the nose is also cleaner. By lowering/increasing temperature you
can control some of the aromas released by the beverage (warm = more
flavors, cold = less flavors). My advice is, try it at different
temperature at see which one works best. Being hot this time of year, I
would probably opt some a cooler mead (55-60F). And with a metheglyn it
will also depend on the type and quantity of herbs used. Hope you weren't
expecting a straigth answer.
cheers,
Francois.
------------------------------
Subject: Re: clear mead without boiling.
From: Francois Espourteille <francois@ici.net>
Date: Wed, 30 Jul 1997 15:46:11 -0400 (EDT)
I would agree with Sean and Marc that boiling is not necessary to get a
clear mead. I haven't boiled a mead in years and they (mostly) end up
clear. I would stress one point, however. I have noticed that meads
usually fall clear when fermentation occured faster rather than slower and
fermentation is complete, which means that one must make sure that the
natural end of fermentation can be reached. And that goes back to an
earlier post of mine where I stressed that the important thing is to have
lots of yeast and oxygen at the begining of fermentation. After that, the
mead usually takes care of itself in time.
Cheers,
Francois.
------------------------------
Subject:
From: Matt Maples <mattm@ipacrx.com>
Date: Wed, 30 Jul 1997 11:05:38 -0700
>I have a carbonation question. Has anyone ever tried to force carbonate their
>mead? I will be having a party this weekend and would like to try to carbonate
>some 7 month old mead for it. Does one normally prime with glucose and just
>wait for natural carbonation ala homebrew carbonation?
Yes I have force carbontated several times for the purpose of making a
sweet carbonated mead.
I just pop it in the keg, apply 30lb psi to it shake it for 15 min, test
it for co2 level, and shake it some more if need be. Keep doing this
untill you are happy with the saturation. I do it for the purpose of
bottling so I over carbonate it because you lose some during bottling.
If you are planing on bottling it make sure it is very cold or you will
get bad foam out.
------------------------------
Subject: Re: mead ale
From: Peter Miller <ocean@mpx.com.au>
Date: Thu, 31 Jul 97 09:39:02 +1000
>From: mross@tgf.tc.faa.gov (Mike Ross)
>Date: Mon, 28 Jul 1997 15:10:25 -0400
>
>Has anyone tried to make Mead Ale? I have a recipe from the "Making Mead"
>book
>that I just tried, in another week or so I'll get my first taste. I am
>worried
>that rather than ale I will have sparkling mead. Either way it should be
>interesting. Any other mead ale makers out there?
Rod McDonald <Rod.McDonald@dist.gov.au> and I made a mead ale from Duncan
& Acton many years ago. I have to say that from memory it was rather
insipid and uninspiring... (and bore _no_ resemblance to a sparkling mead)
Care to comment Rod?
----- < ocean@mpx.com.au > -----
Perpetual Ocean Music & Sound Design
http://www.mpx.com.au/~ocean/
------------------------------
Subject: "ale mead"
From: lprescot@sover.net
Date: Wed, 30 Jul 1997 20:15:52 -0400 (EDT)
Mike Ross asked:
"Has anyone tried to make Mead Ale? I have a recipe from the
"Making Mead" book
that I just tried, in another week or so I'll get my first
taste. I am worried
that rather than ale I will have sparkling mead. Either way it
should be
interesting. Any other mead ale makers out there?"
Actually, I've been meaning to post a recent success that I've
had. Here's the recipe for five gallons, U.S.:
1 3.3 lb. can of Scottish Ale concentrate, store bought, forgot
the brand, but it's not that important (see below)
5 lb. of fresh Clover Honey
1 lb. of fresh Buckwheat Honey (the secret ingredient)
2 teaspoons nutrient
Edme Ale Yeast
I realize I should have fermented in both primary and
secondary, but I just let it go for eight weeks in the primary
and bottled with priming sugar from there because it looked
plenty clear.
The result, after a few weeks is a wonderfully smooth 8%
alcohol beverage that my homebrewing friends love and others
think, appalingly, tastes like cider. The buckwheat addition
was my own idea, and I think the closest thing I've ever had to
a really original idea I've had. After reading Fred Hardy's
posts, I'm not calling it a braggot, due to the hopped malt
extract, but it seems to fall pretty close to the category.
Whatever it is, I think it's really good, and a second batch
has recently replicated the success.
Cheers!
David Prescott, Shaftsbury, Vermont
------------------------------
Subject: Re: Mead Lover's Digest #580, 30 July 1997
From: "Mike Kidulich" <mjkid@ix.netcom.com>
Date: Wed, 30 Jul 1997 21:30:22 -5
> Subject: Re: Stuck Mead
> From: "Hy Ginsberg" <hy@sover.net>
> Date: Tue, 29 Jul 1997 09:08:22 -0400
>
> Jim Booth wrote:
>
> > I've written before about my stuck mead. It started at 1.104 and stuck
> > at 1.053. Tastes sweet but clean. I've added yeast nutrient, two packs
> > of dried ale yeast (rehydrated), 2 T of CaCO3 one t at a time and shaken
> > the carbouy with serious aggression.
>
> > Took a sample to a friend with a pH tester and it read 2.83. Is this
> > likely the problem? More CaCO3?
>
> By my calculations, that mead is currently at about 6.7% alcohol by volume,
> which, I believe, is pretty darn close to the limit of what most ale yeasts
> can tolerate. So, if you want it to continue to ferment, you'll need to
> add a more alcohol tolerant yeast (such as wine or champagne yeast).
>
> I'd be very interested to hear what others have to say on the practice of
> aerating the must when repitching yeast to a stuck mead - on the one hand,
> it's clearly important to aerate the must when you first pitch, but on the
> other you go through a lot of trouble to avoid aerating the must at racking
> and bottling time...
>
Just a couple of thoughts on aeration of the must when repitching.
The primary purpose of aeration of any wort/must is to help the yeast
population build to the levels need for healthy fermentation. That
being said, if a sufficient quantity of healthy, active yeast is
repitched, aeration is not required. Aeration is bad once
fermentation has begun, as the added O2 will cause staling compounds
to form.
If I were going to repitch, I would build a starter with DME and
yeast nutrient, build it up a couple times, and pitch just after high
krauesen. Make sure the yeast is ready to hit the ground running, so
to speak.
Also, the pH is very low. Adjustments seem to be in order for this
batch. I am not an expert in pH management, and will defer to others
on this topic.
Cheers!
Mike Kidulich
President
Upstate New York Homebrewers Association
mjkid@ix.netcom.com
------------------------------
Subject: Re: Mead Lover's Digest #580, 30 July 1997
From: "Dione Wolfe, Dragonweyr, NM dkey@medusa.unm.edu" <DKEY@MEDUSA.UNM.EDU>
Date: Wed, 30 Jul 1997 20:27:37 -0700 (MST)
I have made mead ale from the same book--presuming it is the Duncan & Acton
book. I found that the hops and acid called for was too much in the first
batch, so I cut the hops in half and the acid to 1/4 and it was good. the third
batch I made with about a half pound of cranberries (crushed) and left out the
acid completely. It was very good.
Never Thirst,
Dione
------------------------------
Subject: Re: Mead Lover's Digest #580, 30 July 1997
From: "Dione Wolfe, Dragonweyr, NM dkey@medusa.unm.edu" <DKEY@MEDUSA.UNM.EDU>
Date: Wed, 30 Jul 1997 20:30:52 -0700 (MST)
COLD, COLD, COLD!
Never Thirst,
Dione
------------------------------
Subject: Re: Mead Lover's Digest #580, 30 July 1997
From: "Dione Wolfe, Dragonweyr, NM dkey@medusa.unm.edu" <DKEY@MEDUSA.UNM.EDU>
Date: Wed, 30 Jul 1997 20:34:11 -0700 (MST)
I *NEVER* boil honey as it drives off too much flavor. Instead, I pasteurize
it in a large double boiler (to avoid carmelization) raising the temperature to
150-160 deg. F then covering for at least 20 min. If I'm adding anything
(orange peel, cinnamon, etc.) I leave it covered overnight to steep. If the
finished mead doesn't fall clear fairly quickly--a week at most--I use Spark
Loid which is highly effective, adds no taste to the final product and is very
easy to use (see earlier MLD's concerning Spark Loid use).
Never Thirst
Dione
------------------------------
Subject: Re: Mead serving temparature
From: guym@Exabyte.COM
Date: Thu, 31 Jul 97 11:15:35 MDT
Greg_T._Smith@notes.pw.com> writes:
> Sorry for a newbie's inexperience, but this is my first batch, and I
> don't want to screw it up.
<snip>
> I have a sweet mead/metheglin that is about ready to serve. Before a
> party I am having, I want to make sure the mead is at the right
> temperature for serving.
> Trouble is, that I am not sure if it should be chilled or served at
> 'room' temperature. What's the general consensus?
Greg,
This is not, IMHO, a silly question. In fact, I asked a similar question
in excruciating detail a month or two ago and the silence was deafening.
I, too have a sweet, still melomel that I wondered about storage and
serving temperatures for. Hopefully someone will respond and we both will
get our answers.
Guy McConnell /// Huntersville, NC /// guym@exabyte.com
------------------------------
Subject: Re:Mead Serving Temperature
From: Sheryl Nance-Durst <sjnancedurst@dstsystems.com>
Date: Thu, 31 Jul 1997 16:21:35 -0500
Greg Smith wrote:
>Trouble is, that I am not sure if it should be chilled or served
>at 'room' temperature. What's the general consensus?
Greg,
it's mostly a matter of personal preference. I prefer my traditional
meads & my cysers to be cold, but I like my melomels at room temp.
I think it brings out the "fruity" aromas better. Since it's going
to be a party, why not chill half the bottles & keep the other half
at room temperature to see which is better? Get your friends to help
you in your "experiment". <grin>
>Again, sorry for such a basic question, but I have to learn
>somewhere and somehow, so I might as well learn it correctly the
>first time.
No apologies necessary! You asked a valid question that I haven't
seen the answer to in any book. Maybe you'll spark a discussion. In
fact, this list is where I learned to make mead myself. I lurked for a
few months & read all the archived digests before I got up the gumption
to try a batch.
Gook luck!
Sheryl Nance-Durst
sjnancedurst@dstsystems.com
------------------------------
Subject: Ale yeast's alcohol tolerance
From: David Johnson <dmjalj@inwave.com>
Date: Thu, 31 Jul 1997 17:03:34 -0700
Meadsters,
In response to Jim Booth's problem's with a stuck mead. I think
the front running candidate for a cause would be the acidity.
As for the alcohol tolerance of ale yeast, I just made a mead
that also started at 1.104 and added an ale yeast. It finished at 1.017
(my pH was 3.4). I think that those who make barley wines would agree
that they can be made with adequate aeration, nutrition, and good sized
starters of ale yeast.
Dave
------------------------------
Subject: Re: Mead Serving Temperature
From: Joel Stave <jstave@jlc.net>
Date: Thu, 31 Jul 1997 21:19:31 -0400
Greg Smith asks about the correct temperature for serving his mead.
The best way (and the most fun) is to find out for yourself. Chill a bottle,
and pour yourself some. How does it taste? Let it warm a little and try again,
and again, etc...
I generally serve my mead somewhat chilled.
- --
Joel Stave
[NOTE: to reply, remove the despam from my email address]
------------------------------
End of Mead Lover's Digest #581
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