Copy Link
Add to Bookmark
Report
Mead Lovers Digest #1013
From: mead-request@talisman.com
Errors-To: mead-errors@talisman.com
Reply-To: mead@talisman.com
To: mead-list@talisman.com
Subject: Mead Lover's Digest #1013, 12 May 2003
Mead Lover's Digest #1013 12 May 2003
Forum for Discussion of Mead Making and Consuming
Dick Dunn, Digest Janitor
Contents:
Calculating Alcohol Content (RAshley731@aol.com)
Re: Mead Lover's Digest #1012, 4 May 2003 (NetLinked@aol.com)
mouth feel, semi-dry finish, etc ("Chris Eidson")
dumb question (Linda Short)
plastic flavor (Eric Drake)
Eucalyptus honey experience? (Warren Place)
Grapes, and cherry mead experiment (PHREDLESS@aol.com)
Bitterness in the finish (Greg Fischer)
mead ("Dale and Ellen Montondo")
cabonation (Zertwiz@aol.com)
Carolina meads in the springtime (Vicky Rowe)
Need your input..... (Vicky Rowe)
NOTE: Digest appears when there is enough material to send one.
Send ONLY articles for the digest to mead@talisman.com.
Use mead-request@talisman.com for [un]subscribe/admin requests.
Digest archives and FAQ are available at www.talisman.com/mead. There is
a searchable MLD archive at hubris.engin.umich.edu/Beer/Threads/Mead
----------------------------------------------------------------------
Subject: Calculating Alcohol Content
From: RAshley731@aol.com
Date: Sun, 4 May 2003 21:50:30 EDT
Greetings to the List:
I too am considering the calculating of alcohol in meads, especially now that
it might be a potential problem in a stuck mead that really shouldn't be
stuck.
I started a 5 gallon batch of wildflower mead on 4/2. I used my usual 3#/gal
ratio and Cote des Blancs yeast, as I like 'em a bit on the sweet side.
Initial gravity was 1.22 (I know I know.) But after pitching and 3 days in
the primary it was going like gangbusters. I racked it to the glass carboy on
day 3 and it was still going so hard I had to switch to a blowoff tube for
fear I'd have must on the ceiling.
It began to slow on 4/23 so I checked it, and was stunned to find the gravity
was 1.03. I racked to a clean carboy and added more honey water and it once
more began fermenting very vigorously, but 48 hours later it was very slow
and only 1.03.
Now nothing, nada, zip. I racked again yesterday, added more honey to 1.08. I
even repitched it, but 36 hours later still nada. I am very willing to give
it time, but if indeed the must worked out all of that honey, might perhaps
the alcohol level be too high for it to go?
I am of course working on ruling out other causes. I have only a hygrometer,
but the difference between 1.22 to 1.03 might well be beyond the tolerance of
Cote des Blancs. Might this be a primary cause of the sticking of this must?
Opinions?? Advice??
Gratias multas.
In Service,
Roberta
"In principio creavit Deus caelum et terram.
In principio creavit Deus hominum, in celebratio imago,
et creavit Deus lupo, in perpetuii cantieri praesus."
------------------------------
Subject: Re: Mead Lover's Digest #1012, 4 May 2003
From: NetLinked@aol.com
Date: Mon, 5 May 2003 09:58:28 EDT
Greetings all of your fellow mead makers.
Does anyone have a recipe for the Blue Agrave Mead.
I have purchased some commercial versions and Love this mead.
Would you also know where to get the Blue Agrave Honey.
thanks
Happy Meading
Bob
------------------------------
Subject: mouth feel, semi-dry finish, etc
From: "Chris Eidson" <eidsonc@hotmail.com>
Date: Mon, 05 May 2003 17:47:12 +0000
The current thread on mouth feel and semi-dry v. sweet v. dry finish has me
wondering . . .
Anyone have experience adding Lactose to mead to increase mouth feel and
sweetness?
If so, in what quanities and with what results? Where was the addition made
(i.e., pre-fermentation? secondary? bottling?)?
Anyone tried making a semi-dry or sweet sparkling mead using this method?
Thanks in adavance for all responses.
Chris Eidson
Birmingham, AL
------------------------------
Subject: dumb question
From: Linda Short <lc_otter@yahoo.com>
Date: Mon, 5 May 2003 16:53:08 -0700 (PDT)
Dumb question.
How do I use a hydrometer?
- -Linda-
------------------------------
Subject: plastic flavor
From: Eric Drake <drake.49@osu.edu>
Date: Thu, 08 May 2003 12:01:56 -0400
I have friends who made 30 gallons of peach mead in a food-grade plastic 55
gallon drum that had been used to ship apple juice. The resulting mead has
an off flavor that is strange. They were going to throw it out, and I
took 10 gallons to try to save it. At first I thought it was oxidized so I
added honey and restarted the ferment, after the ferment was going again, I
tasted it and the off flavor was still there. I then put it in the fridge
and cooled it down, and the flavor was really apparent and clearly a
plastic flavor. Quite unpleasant. I think it may have leached it from the
fermenter.
Is there anyone out there with suggestions on how to rid the mead of this
flavor? Would Oak chips help? Time? Spice it out?
Any help or suggestions are welcome.
Thanks,
Eric
------------------------------
Subject: Eucalyptus honey experience?
From: Warren Place <wrplace@ucdavis.edu>
Date: Thu, 8 May 2003 17:14:34 -0700 (PDT)
I just bought 1 gallon of eucalyptus honey, partly for eating and partly
for fermenting. Has anybody had good experience with this kind of honey?
I have found plenty of information saying that this hoeny produces a
"mediciney" mead. I don't know what kind of Eucalyptus the honey comes
from, just that it was sold in California.
Warren Place
------------------------------
Subject: Grapes, and cherry mead experiment
From: PHREDLESS@aol.com
Date: Fri, 9 May 2003 12:56:19 EDT
I know this first part has nothing to do with mead, but...I thought to tap
the combined knowledge here to see if you could give me an answer. I moved
to an area that has award winning grapes, and no it's not Napa. I decided to
plant two year old vines, with hopes to get a decent enough crop to do 10
gallons. I'll probably reach this, but the merlot is far behind in it's
progress. Others have starting blooming (if you can call that little white
speck can be called a flower) but the buds have just barely shown up on the
Merlot. What's the deal? I've looked around and could not find if merlot is
a later maturing variety.
Now, on to the mead. Last year, a friend and I made "dueling" batches of
mead. Same cherries from same orchard, same honey from same hive, and so on.
The only difference, I kept the stems and some leaves in the heat and crush
part and he stemmed and pitted the cherries. Here's the result. Both are
very good. The one with the stems and pits and all, came out much bigger,
and is still maturing. Also, slightly darker and more purple, while the
other one is lighter, closer to being ready, and more suited for light summer
fare. Really interesting experiment. If you get a huge batch of fruit and
will be using two or three 5 gallon fermenters, it is worth trying this
little experiment.
------------------------------
Subject: Bitterness in the finish
From: Greg Fischer <bevart@ameritech.net>
Date: Sat, 10 May 2003 10:52:52 -0500
Greetings Men & Woman of Mead:
I got a problem. I got a nice big batch of mead. I used premier Cuvee
yeast started at 1095 and fermented down to .997. I did not boil the
mead and used sulfites. I made this around July 2002 so fermentation
was conducted at 75 to 80 F. I added some nice smooth sweet mead to
the batch to bring up the flavor. I would consider this mead to be
semi-dry. The problem is on the finish. It seams to have a bitterness
like a tannic bite. The mead is clean with no signs of infections or
oxidation.
Does anyone think this bitterness will go away with age or what could I
add to this mead to cover this up and still keep it semi-dry.
Thanks Greg
"You finely know when you are a grown up when a nap in the afternoon
sounds like a great idea"
------------------------------
Subject: mead
From: "Dale and Ellen Montondo" <dmontond@rochester.rr.com>
Date: Sat, 10 May 2003 18:08:47 -0400
Ok so I made a batch of mead after reading a few books. Wow! I can't
believe it's not more popular. I think honey makes people think of
something sweet. It's not after it's fermented. The honey was boiled for
5 min. then I added the yeast nutrient, and irish moss. Look out it
dosn't boil over! I used orange blossom honey. I made it half with
ginger root which was amazing. And I made it sparkling. I'm currently
making more. it takes a good 6 months in the bottle before it really
turns on the aromatics. So smooth at 15% alc. I think I'll go down on
the % next time to be able to savor it more..
Dale
------------------------------
Subject: cabonation
From: Zertwiz@aol.com
Date: Mon, 12 May 2003 01:49:24 EDT
ok guys i puled a sample out of my mead today tested the S.G. it was 1.041 i
beleve (shuld have tested it win i made it lol ) any how i notised after i
tested it i put i in a wine glass and was drinking it and there were bubbles
forming on the inside of the glass very faint one thow . is it posabble
that there was some co2 in solution and win the mead got warm frome being out
of my nice cool basement that i started to relece it or might it not be
done fermenting just yet?
chris anderson
------------------------------
Subject: Carolina meads in the springtime
From: Vicky Rowe <rcci@mindspring.com>
Date: Mon, 12 May 2003 10:55:23 -0400
Well, my roses are once again blooming like there's no tomorrow, and I've
already got nearly a gallon bag of petals stashed. The honeysuckles are out
here in NC too, and I'm gathering for the honeysuckle mead I've been
thinking about too.
For the record, here's what I intend to do with them:
1 gal heirloom rose petals, frozen
1 gal light honey (I've acacia downstairs right now)
water to 5 gallons
1 bottle rosewater from Middle Eastern store
Montrachet or Premier Cuvee yeast
Last year I pitched the honey, water and yeast, and added the rose petals
in a muslin bag after the first ferment was done, before racking. I let
them sit for around 2 weeks, then removed them, squeezing the juice out.
Then I racked into a glass carboy and let it sit for about 3 months. At
that point I poured in the rosewater. It need a bit of additional
sweetening if you want a sweeter mead. As it sits, it comes out dry with a
wonderful rosy color, and it smells just like the flowers. The taste is
delicate and interesting, not 'soapy' like you might think. I'm told it
tastes like roses smell.
The folks I've tested this on all threatened to mug me for my stash, so I
guess it turned out well!
Vicky - planning the following: rose mel, honeysuckle mel, strawberry mel,
rhubarb mel, a plain mead (for a friend), a milk mead test batch and a
chocolate mead.....
------------------------------
Subject: Need your input.....
From: Vicky Rowe <rcci@mindspring.com>
Date: Mon, 12 May 2003 11:05:47 -0400
Hi folks,
I'm working on the free classifieds section of Gotmead.com, and wondered if
you'd lend me your eyes for a moment....Here's the categories I've come up
with so far.
Can you tell me what else would be helpful to have in here?
* Bottles and Bottling stuff for Sale (0)
* Bottles, labels, corks, bottling equipment
* Home Brewing Clubs Announcements (0)
* Brewing clubs, brew club meetings, brew club events
* Mead Competitions (0)
* Home brewing competitions that include a mead category
* Employment (0)
* Meadery, brew shop, brewing supply companies, brew pubs jobs
* Equipment & Tools for Sale (0)
* Sell your Mead making hardware such as pails, carboys, tools, etc.
* Equipment & Tools Wanted (0)
* Ask for Mead making hardware such as pails, carboys, tools, etc.
* Honey for Sale or Trade (0)
* Honey for sale, beekeepers, apiaries, honey shops
* Honey Wanted (0)
* Want Honey? Advertise it here
* Bee Supplies Wanted (0)
* Looking for bees, hives or supplies?
* Bee Supplies for Sale (0)
* Sell your bees, hives and supplies
* Mead swap (0)
* Want to swap mead with someone elsewhere? Post your request/offer
here (No monetary swaps allowed per federal regulations)
* Ingredients for Sale (0)
Thanks for your input! If you want to place an ad, you can go to:
http://www.gotmead.com/cgi-bin/classifieds/classifieds.cgi and put it in
for nothing. Any information collected is just for the ad, and I never,
ever, *ever* let your personal info out, to anyone, so no worries.
Wassail!
Vicky Rowe
Makin' mead? Drinkin' mead? Find articles, recipes, advice and hundreds of
links to anything you want to know about mead at http://www.gotmead.com
------------------------------
End of Mead Lover's Digest #1013
*******************************
