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Mead Lovers Digest #0888
Subject: Mead Lover's Digest #888, 7 December 2001
From: mead-request@talisman.com
Mead Lover's Digest #888 7 December 2001
Forum for Discussion of Mead Making and Consuming
Dick Dunn, Digest Janitor
Contents:
Re: (HELP) a Question (Jay Swartzfeger)
Re: A message on behalf of Redstone Meadery (Jay Swartzfeger)
Mead Gathering 2002 (Jay Swartzfeger)
Re: a message from Redstone ("Alan McKay")
Meadery as a common noun (Calvin Armerding)
RE: Mead Lover's Digest #887, 4 December 2001 ("Kemp, Alson")
Irish meads in U.S. (NLSteve@aol.com)
Re: old honey, trademarks (Spencer W Thomas)
In the Pumpkin-Pumpkin Mead (butcher)
Maui Honey (JazzboBob@aol.com)
Re: "Meadery" (Dan McFeeley)
Re: More commercial mead (Terry Estrin)
Mazer ("Joseph S. Gaglio")
RE: tap water comment ("Kemp, Alson")
Rubber mead ("Robert Farrell")
NOTE: Digest appears when there is enough material to send one.
Send ONLY articles for the digest to mead@talisman.com.
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Digest archives and FAQ are available at www.talisman.com/mead. There is
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----------------------------------------------------------------------
Subject: Re: (HELP) a Question
From: Jay Swartzfeger <jswartzfeger@home.com>
Date: Tue, 4 Dec 2001 22:49:52 -0700
On Tuesday, December 4, 2001, at 09:43 PM, mead-request@talisman.com
wrote:
> Subject: (HELP) a Question
> From: "Keith Taylor" <moktay@hollinet.com>
> Date: Sat, 1 Dec 2001 22:55:04 -0600
>
> Hi
> I am new to the list. Like to say hi and I have a Question. I just got
> done
> raeking a sweet mead and smells like " cough syrup .it my fist batch:).
> Does
> anyone think this mead will imppove with age??
> Keith Taylor
Keith,
I know for a *fact* that mead improves with age. :) Seriously, a few
months can make a major difference in a mead's nose, aroma, clarity,
flavor, etc. Give it time and your 'cough syrup' will be a winner!
------------------------------
Subject: Re: A message on behalf of Redstone Meadery
From: Jay Swartzfeger <jswartzfeger@home.com>
Date: Tue, 4 Dec 2001 22:57:21 -0700
On Tuesday, December 4, 2001, at 09:43 PM, mead-request@talisman.com
wrote:
> Their official position regarding the trademark is to not comment, except
> to say that they have retained legal counsel and will be exploring their
> options in the matter. However, they *do not* request, condone, or sponsor
> any form of boycott over the matter.
Of course they don't condone it... but do they think that any
self-respecting mead lover will drop a dime on their product while this
silly lawsuit is still in effect?
As an amateur mead maker that dreams of opening his own meadery some
day, this whole trademark business simply stinks, especially for such an
ostensibly close-knit community.
------------------------------
Subject: Mead Gathering 2002
From: Jay Swartzfeger <jswartzfeger@home.com>
Date: Tue, 4 Dec 2001 23:06:28 -0700
I'm not sure if this has been mentioned here or in rec.crafts.meadmaking
lately (there was a thread a few months ago), but I'll mention it
again...
I think it would be great if we could have a mead gathering of sorts
next year, a place where we could try commercial meads like White
Winter, Heidrun etc, and we could also bring our own homemade meads,
trade tips, recipes, etc.
Since I live in Scottsdale, I think Arizona would be a perfect place for
such a gathering, but I'd also love to attend a mead gathering in New
England or possibly the Northwest or other scenic parts of the country.
Does any intrepid soul want to get the ball rolling on this? :) Does
this sound like a good idea to you guys & gals? This may be a way for us
non-Pennsic folk to try the real thing! :)
------------------------------
Subject: Re: a message from Redstone
From: "Alan McKay" <amckay@ottawa.com>
Date: Wed, 5 Dec 2001 07:39:53 -0500 (EST)
> Their official position regarding the trademark is to not comment, except
> to say that they have retained legal counsel and will be exploring their
> options in the matter. However, they *do not* request, condone, or sponsor
> any form of boycott over the matter.
For nothing more than legal reasons, I'm sure. I'd bet my next paycheque
they're pleased as punch to hear that we're organising a boycott. Regardless
of what Redstone says "officially", or even unofficially for that matter,
thefact still remains that that this trademark is an outrage against every
single one of us.
cheers,
- -Alan
------------------------------
Subject: Meadery as a common noun
From: Calvin Armerding <cutter64@cio.net>
Date: Wed, 05 Dec 2001 07:52:04 -0800
Let's be clear. It isn't a common English word, it is a "common noun", ie
a noun which denotes a class of entities, rather than a single
individual. The suffix -ery is in the dictionary, and it is defined as " a
suffix of nouns denoting occupation, business, calling or condition, place
or establishment, etc: archery, bakery, cutlery, fishery,
witchery". Historically, common nouns have not been trademarkable. For
example, you can trademark "Kleenex" but you can't trademark "facial tissue".
>From: Spencer W Thomas <spencer@engin.umich.edu>
>Date: Tue, 04 Dec 2001 14:40:46 -0500
>
>Not to dampen y'alls righteous indignation. But... "meadery" does not
>show up in either the American Heritage Dictionary nor the Oxford
>English Dictionary. So the word may be in common usage in THIS
>community, but it's really not clear that it is a "common english
>word".
"A man's country is not a certain area of land, of mountains, rivers and
woods, but it is a principle; and patriotism is loyalty to that
principle." --General William Curtis
John Calvin Armerding - cutter64@cio.net
- -----PGP PUBLIC KEY ----- Available from keyserver pgpkeys.mit.edu -----
------------------------------
Subject: RE: Mead Lover's Digest #887, 4 December 2001
From: "Kemp, Alson" <alson@corp.cirrus.com>
Date: Wed, 5 Dec 2001 09:29:37 -0800
Dan,
Heidrun Meadery also has a webpage at
www.heidrunmeadery.com. A plug: Heidrun make champagne-style dry
mead from a variety of honeys. I have no affiliation with
Heidrun. Gordon Hull (owner) is a really nice guy and IMO makes
a good mead.
-Alson Kemp
Heidrun Meadery
55 Ericson Court, Suite 4
Arcata, CA 95521
(707) 825-8748
fax (707) 825-8739
http://www.heidrunmeadery.com
------------------------------
Subject: Irish meads in U.S.
From: NLSteve@aol.com
Date: Wed, 5 Dec 2001 16:20:34 EST
Terry H asks:
"Does anybody know if there is any commercially made mead from Ireland, & is
it avaliable in the U.S.?"
I don't know of any true Irish meads available around these parts, but wanted
to warn you about at least one "meade" imported to the US from Ireland.
Brand name is "Bunratty." The extra "e" on the word "mead" is a tipoff that
it isn't really mead as we know it, but grape wine with honey added or some
such. So be careful.
Steve
------------------------------
Subject: Re: old honey, trademarks
From: Spencer W Thomas <spencer@engin.umich.edu>
Date: Wed, 05 Dec 2001 16:35:12 -0500
>>>>> "Cam" == Cam Lay <clay@CLEMSON.EDU> writes:
Cam> If I recall correctly,
Cam> there was a similar row up in the People's Republic of New
Cam> York over a wine-making outfit up there owned by a man named
Cam> Taylor that had to change the name of his product to "Bully
Cam> Hill" under pressure from the Taylor Winery in California,
Cam> who started using that name in that industry first.
Off topic, I guess, but this isn't quite the right story. Walter
Taylor's family started Taylor Wineries in Hammondsport NY. At some
point in the 60s or 70s, they sold it to, if I'm remembering
correctly, Pepsi. Walter Taylor went into business for himself making
and selling wine (of generally higher quality than Taylor Wineries had
previously been known for.) Well, it didn't take long for the lawyers
at Taylor Winery to tell Walter that he couldn't use his own name on
his wine, because they "owned" that name. Ever since, his labels have
his name as "Walter S. XXXXXXX" (where "XXXXXXX" is a black
rectangle.)
See http://www.bullyhill.com/history.asp for some info, and an example
of his name as it appears on the wine.
=Spencer
------------------------------
Subject: In the Pumpkin-Pumpkin Mead
From: butcher <butcher@drizzle.com>
Date: Wed, 05 Dec 2001 17:05:47 -0800
Pumpkin Brewers,
When I read about the nifty idea of brewing mead in a
pumpkin, I just had to try it out. I thought about all
the issues you talked about. Molding of the pumpkin,
sealing it to explode, and the flavor. This is what I am
trying:
1 Big Pumpkin - meat fed to the compost bin, it wasn't
good enough. This is the carboy pumpkin.
2 Smaller Pumpkin - their meat was just right.
1 Butternut squash - used as an air lock
1 hand full of wax - to seal the Big Pumpkin
1 3' section of bamboo - this was hollowed and cleaned
(sort of)
Instructions: Hollow out the big pumpkin and fill with
must and the yeast. Drill a hole for the bamboo in both
the lid of the big pumpkin and the bottom of the butternut
squash (use the butternut meat in the must if you like).
Trim the top (outside) and the bottom (inside) of the
butternut so the 2 fit together like an airlock. Seal the
holes with the bamboo, and the lid on the big pumpkin with
wax or some other non-toxic sealer. Fill the water
chamber of the butternut.
I left out some of the "common to all mead" steps. Email
if anything doesn't make sense.
Some tricks to keeping mold away:
* Keep the outside of the pumpkin dry. If any spots start
to form wipe with vinaeger and dry completely.
* Keep in a cool spot. There should be some exothermic
reaction going on inside the pumpkin, tho not much.
* Watch for nibbles. Cats and other critters like to
sample pumpkins, and if they get to the creamy filling,
there may be no turning back!
I am only a day and a half in to this experiment, I will
keep you all posted.
Yes, the butternut air lock is working just fine!
Butcher
------------------------------
Subject: Maui Honey
From: JazzboBob@aol.com
Date: Wed, 5 Dec 2001 23:10:08 EST
I have two Hawaiian honey variety sample from Castlemark Honey. He sells
Macadamia and Lehua. They are both dark amber colored honeys with strong
tastes. The macadamia does taste nutty. The lehua has a pungent smell and
taste. I wouldn't jump at brewing with these types unless you are used to
brewing with darker, strong tastes in your mead. Check out what';s available
when you get over there. They may have some other interesting types.
Bob Grossman
> Subject: Maui Honey?
> From: Nathan Kanous <nlkanous@pharmacy.wisc.edu>
> Date: Tue, 04 Dec 2001 08:10:45 -0600
>
> Greetings,
> I'm lucky enough to be preparing myself for a trip to Maui in
> February. That being the case, any thoughts or recommendations on
> ingredients I might want to bring back with me? Are there any particular
> varieties of honey that some have tried? I'm sure there are many different
> kinds (christmas berry, macadamia nut, whatever else) but would like to
> hear thoughts from others. Thanks.
> nathan in madison, wi
>
------------------------------
Subject: Re: "Meadery"
From: Dan McFeeley <mcfeeley@keynet.net>
Date: Thu, 6 Dec 2001 12:31:35 -0800
On Tue, 04 Dec 2001, in MLD 887, Spencer Thomas wrote:
>Not to dampen y'alls righteous indignation. But... "meadery" does not
>show up in either the American Heritage Dictionary nor the Oxford
>English Dictionary. So the word may be in common usage in THIS
>community, but it's really not clear that it is a "common english
>word".
>
>Please don't think I'm supporting these ****s. But it's not clear-cut.
Agreed, so far as a strictly etymological approach goes the issue isn't
very clear cut. The word "meadery" isn't in any of the unabridged
dictionaries I checked, even an International F. & W. didn't have it.
It seems to be a word that crept into common usage about 10 or 15 years
ago, maybe even 20 years, but has not been given "official" recognition.
Roger Morse didn't use the word in his references to commercial
meadmaking, even a 1973 survey of 10 commercially produced meads didn't
show the word "meadery." The companies used either "winerey" or "mead"
in the business name. It may very well be that "The Meadery at Greenwich"
was the first U.S. commmerical producer of mead to use the word in their
business title when they opened their doors in 1989.
It's such a simple word that I don't know if it is really possible to
track down when or even who first used it. Charlie Papazian refers to
U.S meaderies in his 1987 _American Meadmaker_ article, "American
Mead -- A Call to Quality," in the broad sense, a description of any
place that produces mead, but uses the word so casually that it's
obvious that he didn't make it up just for the article.
My guess is that a number of factors account for this. First, meaderies
may have been hesitant to use the word simply because the general public
at large didn't know what mead is. Production of mead in the 1950's,
according to Roger Morse, was largely for Jewish sacramental purposes.
In the 1970's varietal wines were a new innovation in the industry, how
much more would mead have raised a quizical eyebrow? Another inhibition
were U.S. labeling laws that forbade the use of the word "mead" except as
a byline. Meads had to be identified as "Honey Wine" on the label, and
it's likely that this also influenced choice of a business title.
Still, the issues are primarily legal and largely confined to the state
of Colorado, such as whether the trademark was unfairly issued, or whether
trademarking the word "meadery" amounts to a violation of business laws
forbidding tactics that are more predatory than competitive. For instance,
the word "meadery" has advertising power. Restricting the use of the word
"meadery" to only one meadery is also denying other meaderies access to that
same advertising power. Whether or not this issue, as well as the other
issues well covered in Dick Dunn's post in the last MLD, carries weight in
court remains to be seen.
I called Redstone Meadery last week and, as Joel Baker also said in his
MLD post, the owners are indeed exploring legal options at this point but
can't say anything more than that, and for good reasons, of course. The
case has to be researched thoroughly before the owners can decide what
to do or how to go about it, and any public statements that could be
interpreted adversely could count against them. "No comment at this time"
is the best policy.
The meadery that couldn't call itself a "meadery" -- sounds like a good
lead for press coverage should the issue end up in court. :-)
<><><><><><><><><><>
<><><><><><><><>
Dan McFeeley
mcfeeley@keynet.net
------------------------------
Subject: Re: More commercial mead
From: Terry Estrin <testrin@sfu.ca>
Date: Thu, 06 Dec 2001 10:45:27 -0800
Hi all,
Since everyone's talking about commercial mead, I thought I'd add one
more. In this month's issue of Saveur magazine (an expensive, but absolutely
terrific food mag), on page 14, a sidebar describes the following:
Dec. 8-9: Wassail Weekend at Smokehouse, Sperryville, Virginia
"At Smokehouse Winery in rural Rappahannock County, set amid the Blueridge
Mountain foothills of Virginia, thirsty travelers can fortify themselves
with historic old-world beverages. Owners Jen Cable and John Halberg
specialize in meads made of spiced juniper berries, wineberries, mulberries,
blackberries, and even honeysuckle--all made from fruits grown here. This
weekend, the winery invites you to experience its meads and ciders,
accompanied by such nourishing fare as brunswick stew and homemade breads.
Information: 540-987-3194."
So if anyone's in the area, check it out and let us know what their product
is like!
cheers,
Terry Estrin
------------------------------
Subject: Mazer
From: "Joseph S. Gaglio" <jgaglio@tampabay.rr.com>
Date: Fri, 07 Dec 2001 03:13:40 -0500
Hi folks:
One quick question: now that I have taken the plunge and have 3 six
gallon carboys bubbling away, can anyone tell me where to obtain a Mazer
so that I may drink this heavenly brew (soon I hope) the right way?
TIA,
joe
- --
Yours in truth,
Joseph S. Gaglio MHS
http://The_Holeyman.tripod.com/many_incarnations.html
------------------------------
Subject: RE: tap water comment
From: "Kemp, Alson" <alson@corp.cirrus.com>
Date: Fri, 7 Dec 2001 08:52:26 -0800
Frank,
>Read your reply to the stuck fermentation posting. Your
>first item said "you did not use tap water" then I said
>"uh oh" I'm new to mead/ making and did not read
>anything that said do not use tap water. Is boiled
>tap water OK? should I use bottled water?
>Boiled bottled water?
Metro tap water has (at least) chlorine and fluoride in
it and is designed to stop bad things (bacteria, yeasts?) from
reproducing. Boiling the water may drive off the chlorine and
make the tap water brewable. Also, everyone's tap water is
slightly different, so "just add tap water" may or may not work
for you. If you're going to use tap water, it's usually
recommended that you get a water analysis from your water
company. Papazian talks a bit about water in his Joy of
Homebrewing book (no comments from the peanut gallery).
I use spring/mineral water from the grocery store (2.5G
plastic containers). Don't use distilled water unless you're
going to add some minerals for the yeast to use.
Just a thought: The safest way to brew would probably be
to get highly distilled water and then add in minerals and such.
That way you would have no water variation brew-to-brew. I never
remember which bottled mineral water I use and I'm sure that each
mineral water has different mineral content. I have NO IDEA how
little or how much this could affect brewing.
Anyone else want to chime in?
-Alson
------------------------------
Subject: Rubber mead
From: "Robert Farrell" <bfarrell100@hotmail.com>
Date: Fri, 07 Dec 2001 13:00:04 -0800
This summer I created a batch of strawberry mead. I used a starter but
fermentation would not begin. I reasoned I over sulphited the must, and
transferred the must between two fermenting vessels about a dozen
times--fermentation then began within 8 hours.
Racked the mead last night for the second time. Gravity is 1.000, and the
carboy is fairly clear. However, there is a smell to this stuff that
reminds me of rubber (tire). Last night I added potassium sorbate and a
boiled honey solution that should raise the gravity to 1.008-1.010.
However--the smell puzzles me.
Is this related to the sulphite? If so--how do I get rid of it. I thought
of splash transferring from one carboy to the next to release the smell, but
won't this potentially create a problem with too much exposure to oxygen?
Any sage advice?
Responding to the list would be most appreciated.
Bob Farrell
Portland, OR
------------------------------
End of Mead Lover's Digest #888
*******************************
