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Mead Lovers Digest #1005
From: mead-request@talisman.com
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Subject: Mead Lover's Digest #1005, 3 April 2003
Mead Lover's Digest #1005 3 April 2003
Forum for Discussion of Mead Making and Consuming
Dick Dunn, Digest Janitor
Contents:
sparkoloid vs. bentonite? ("Matt E")
calculating alcahol content (Zertwiz@aol.com)
Mead Class in Seattle ("Stephan Butcher")
Barstop corks and cork leakage ("Munro, Tina HI0")
Plumeria Mead ("Munro, Tina HI0")
Re:Closures - Barstop ("Kemp, Alson")
'Mead made complicated': new version (Mathieu Bouville)
bottling ("David Jones")
Floral meads (MLCrary@aol.com)
NOTE: Digest appears when there is enough material to send one.
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Subject: sparkoloid vs. bentonite?
From: "Matt E" <oldantucker@mcleodusa.net>
Date: Sat, 29 Mar 2003 18:49:06 -0600
Hi all,
I have a 5 Gallon batch of vanilla mead that is not clearing at all. I'm =
thinking about using a fining agent, but I do not like sparkaloid...too =
many floaters that wont settle down. Does bentonite provide better =
compaction? Also...I used a very light colored "local" honey that had a =
very delicate taste to it....should I be concerned about bentonite =
stripping the taste?
Thanks,
matt Emberton
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Subject: calculating alcahol content
From: Zertwiz@aol.com
Date: Sun, 30 Mar 2003 21:50:41 EST
hay i understand taking the spicfic gravity of the must befor fermentation
and then at the end is how you figre out the alcahol contend of the mead but
how do you crunch the numbers
chris anderson
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Subject: Mead Class in Seattle
From: "Stephan Butcher" <butcher@drizzle.com>
Date: Sun, 30 Mar 2003 23:37:43 -0800
Not that anyone on this list would need to take my class, but here are the
particulars! I encourage everyone to give it a try, especially in these
times of bad economy and generally poor spirits.
http://www.brownpapertickets.com/event/51
I will very much understand if this falls under the category of spam by Dick
and/or the members.
Butcher
------------------------------
Subject: Barstop corks and cork leakage
From: "Munro, Tina HI0" <tmunro@highways.gov.sk.ca>
Date: Mon, 31 Mar 2003 10:42:34 -0600
Greetings all,
As someone who always enjoys a glass of yummy now and then, but doesn't want
to sit down and drink an entire bottle by myself, the barstop corks seem
like an ideal alternative to repeatedly fighting a cork in and out of a
bottle neck. If I'm keeping a bottle in the fridge or cupboard that I'm
getting into on a regular basis, then something that is easy to remove and
replace sounds wonderful (and I'm wondering why I never thought of it
before).
I cork my bottles with cork corks (haven't bought any recently so haven't
experienced any cost problems). Everyone I've ever talked to says that wine
bottles should be stored horizontally if at all possible. I personally
haven't ever had a leakage problem with corks, I could be wrong, but it
seems to me that bottles that use barstop corks are only stored vertically.
I suggest an additional seal. If I have bottles that I know I'm cellaring
or especially if I'm giving as presents, I always dip my bottles upside-down
in wax to seal the corks. This creates an entirely air-proof seal. No air
in, no mead out, no matter how soaked the cork gets or if mead seeps along
the edge.
I'm still experimenting with the right wax balance. I often blend sealing
wax (brittle), with bee's wax or a softer wax from a jeweller. But these
often melt at different temps and you have to be a little careful. However,
I find a little extra work provides both practical benefits as well as
presentation value.
Tina Munro aka Pandora
(The more I learn, the more I realize I know nothing.)
------------------------------
Subject: Plumeria Mead
From: "Munro, Tina HI0" <tmunro@highways.gov.sk.ca>
Date: Mon, 31 Mar 2003 10:55:41 -0600
The only thing I would say about ANY flower mead is to make sure it is an
edible flower. Roses are an edible flower. So are pansies (rather
peppery/spicy). There are lots of them around (they make interesting
salads).
If the flower is edible, I say go for it. Try it out. If you aren't sure,
try a small batch first. Maybe just try steeping some flowers in a small
canning jar or glass of mead for a couple of days. It will give you a basic
idea of what you will end up with.
However, if you aren't sure if the flowers are edible, I wouldn't want to
inadvertantly flavor my mead with a poisonous plant, if you know what I
mean. (no matter how pretty is smells)
Tina Munro aka Pandora
(The more I learn, the more I realize I know nothing.)
------------------------------
Subject: Re:Closures - Barstop
From: "Kemp, Alson" <alson.kemp@cirrus.com>
Date: Mon, 31 Mar 2003 09:31:17 -0800
From: Aaron Marshall <gumbyk@ureach.com>
... I lost a bit of mead through leakage ( I had
the bottles laying down to keep the corks wet).
Aaron,
I've heard that you shouldn't lay the just-corked bottles
down for a couple of days, because the pressure differential will
push liquid out of gaps in the cork. After a couple of days, the
pressure will equalize and (I assume) the cork will adapt to the
new shape, sealing gaps.
When I bottled 120 bottles of goodness the other day, I
noticed that a few of the bottles had little bubbles along the
rim of the cork.
-Alson
------------------------------
Subject: 'Mead made complicated': new version
From: Mathieu Bouville <mbouvill@engin.umich.edu>
Date: Tue, 1 Apr 2003 01:54:06 -0500 (EST)
I have released a new version of 'Mead made complicated' a week ago.
The new http://www.meadmadecomplicated.org/ includes:
* a section on tasting mead:
http://www.meadmadecomplicated.org/mead_tasting/
* a section on honey: http://www.meadmadecomplicated.org/honey/
* a glossary of about 180 mead making and mead tasting words:
http://www.meadmadecomplicated.org/glossary/
That's 30 % more content than the 'old' site (what I listed above are
only the main modifications.)
If you have questions or comments, you can e-mail me at
MMC@meadmadecomplicated.org
Mathieu Bouville
http://www.meadmadecomplicated.org
------------------------------
Subject: bottling
From: "David Jones" <dpjones@nlkj.com>
Date: Tue, 01 Apr 2003 19:42:47 -0600
This is my first batch. Please see if everything at least looks okay to
bottle.
5 gallon batch. I started October 19, 2002 with 15 pounds of blackberry
honey, 1 tsp gypsum, 4 tsp acid blend, 1/2 ounce of yeast extract, 1/4
tsp irish moss, 1 tsp yeast energizer. The yeast was Wyeast 3184XL,
sweet mead yeast.
Starting S.G. was 1.130.
I racked Dec. 12, Feb 15, and yesterday, March 30. S.G. is 1.060 and has
been since the first of the year. The mead is clear. So the mead is 163
days old.
Can I bottle? Regular wine bottle and corks? Other comments?
Thank you.
------------------------------
Subject: Floral meads
From: MLCrary@aol.com
Date: Wed, 2 Apr 2003 05:06:36 EST
Mark asked about making a mead from Hawaiiian Lei flowers. ( I forgot the
name of the flower.)The first thing to ask yourself is whether the flowers
are edible. There are probably several cookbooks or "herbals" which might
have the information, though you should probably look for one specific to the
Tropical climate, as opposed to, say, a New England Herbal. If they are
edible, by all means try a mead and let us know how it turned out. My brew
partner and I have tried some floral meads, with a violet mead being our most
successful to date. The sweet woodruff was also nice, and the lilac is not
aged enough yet. You can find the proportions we used at
www.unicornunchained.com Hope to hear your report on the mead's success in a
future MLD issue
Marcia
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End of Mead Lover's Digest #1005
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