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Mead Lovers Digest #1043
From: mead-request@talisman.com
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Subject: Mead Lover's Digest #1043, 12 September 2003
Mead Lover's Digest #1043 12 September 2003
Forum for Discussion of Mead Making and Consuming
Dick Dunn, Digest Janitor
Contents:
Re: Mead Lover's Digest #1042, 8 September 2003 (Zertwiz@aol.com)
Re: Mead Lover's Digest #1042, 8 September 2003 (Charles Sifers)
Re: yeast starters- pollen ("Dan McFeeley")
Successful brew. ("Murphy-Marsh, Leigh")
Re: Mead Lover's Digest #1042, 8 September 2003 ()
Decanting and Bicarbonate (Trout man)
Compleat Debate/Copper Chiller? (Chuck Wettergreen)
RE: aspartame (Warren Place)
Re: Mead Lover's Digest #1042, 8 September 2003 (OudBruin@aol.com)
Re: Mead Lover's Digest #1042, 8 September 2003 (John Dowling)
NOTE: Digest appears when there is enough material to send one.
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----------------------------------------------------------------------
Subject: Re: Mead Lover's Digest #1042, 8 September 2003
From: Zertwiz@aol.com
Date: Mon, 8 Sep 2003 23:40:37 EDT
copper in meads well i work for delicato and we infect use copper "froglegs"
in some of our processes its basically a copper tube to my understanding they
use it in lue of copper sulfate to take bad aromas out of the wine, ya know
the rotten egg smell. every year before harvest we hook a bunch of them up in a
circuit and dump in a bunch of citric acid this etches and cleans them like a
new penny it even causes heat so I wouldn't worry to much about it althow we
penny. Are dealing with a much greater volume then the home maker any of you
since geeks got some input?
Chris Anderson
------------------------------
Subject: Re: Mead Lover's Digest #1042, 8 September 2003
From: Charles Sifers <chazzone@mindspring.com>
Date: Mon, 08 Sep 2003 22:57:52 -0500
I've used my copper chiller for all the years I've been making, and turned
out some award winning meades, including cysers, pyments, and lemon. I have
never tasted, nor have I had anyone suggest that my meade tastes metallic.
I seriously doubt that you'll get any significant leaching, and toxic levels
would be out of the question from anything you could drink, IMHO.
- -zz
------------------------------
Subject: Re: yeast starters- pollen
From: "Dan McFeeley" <mcfeeley@keynet.net>
Date: Mon, 8 Sep 2003 23:45:41 -0500
On Wed, 3 Sep 2003, in MLD 1042, Micah Millspaw wrote, in part:
>This discussion seems awfully familiar. Anyway, I have been playing
>with using pollen only in lieu of any manufactured yeast nutrients. I
>collected the pollen from approx 5 pounds of fresh dandelions (manual
>labor). I added the resultant small bag of yellow powder to a 20 P must.
>A healthy yeast starter was pitched. The fermentation was quite vigorous
>and was complete in 28 days (it may have been done a little sooner, I
>didn't check for a while)
Robert Berthold, at Delaware Valley College, did some research on the use
of bee pollen as a nutrient source in meadmaking and published the results
in the American Bee Journal. He recommended 5 tablespoons per gallon.
There is a reprint of one of Berthold's articles at:
http://www.mainebee.com/articles/mead.php
<><><><><><><><><><>
<><><><><><><><>
Dan McFeeley
------------------------------
Subject: Successful brew.
From: "Murphy-Marsh, Leigh" <Leigh.Murphy-Marsh@wmc.com>
Date: Tue, 9 Sep 2003 17:14:45 +0800
Like to share my success story with youse.
Used about 1.2 kgs of strawberries @ $1.65AU a 250 grm punnet with about
2kgs of redwood honey (the only type I could find this time of year) @
$6.00AU a kg with 10 litres of water with a little tannin and DAP. I
racked it once about 2 weeks ago to get all the strawberry mash out and
it has clarified crystal clear since then. I tasted a small amount and I
think I could drink it as it is now! Can't wait for it to mature a bit.
A nice change as my first pure mead (honey only for flavour) brew tasted
like gasoline out of the bottle (Still very green). It only took about 4
weeks from go to whoa for this one.
Cheers for the tips I picked up here.
Leigh.
------------------------------
Subject: Re: Mead Lover's Digest #1042, 8 September 2003
From: <gduncan2@comcast.net>
Date: Tue, 9 Sep 2003 08:11:21 -0700
Hi Jim,
DON'T DO IT!!
We had a go-around with prickly pear meads and wines here in Tucson AZ a
few years ago. I was baffled when some of my friends were getting sick
from my mead. At first I thought it was my bottling process, etc. and
quit serving it even though my hubby and I seemed fine.
-UNTIL-
Web Winery did a batch of P.P. Wine. When THEIR customers starting
getting sick and some even HOSPITALIZED!!! The University of AZ tested
the wine to try to figure it out. They discovered that when Prickly
Pear fruit is converted to alcohol, it changes in a way that causes
sensitive people to have a major histamine reaction! It nearly Killed 3
people before the recall was sounded!
The local news reported that when people tasted their wine in sample
sized servings, there wasn't any problems, but when they drank a glass
or more, that's when they started having problems!
I know Web had not put near as much P.P. juice in their wine as I had in
my Mead. Or as you'll have in yours. They were just flavoring it. But
my First hand experience with having friends get sick was more than
enough warning for me! (especially after hearing the news stories abut
Web Winery a few months later!)
This stuff hit the news in a big enough way here that I imagine you
could do a search through the news media and might come up with an
article or two.
BTW my P.P. Mead came out tasting like a nice Merlot good enough to fool
a few 'wine snobs'! It was wonderful!! My recipe was a simple
traditional 5 gal. sweet mead with 12 lbs of Orange B. honey and about
2/3 of the liquid in P.P. juice. Along with a little lime juice to
balance out the acidity. (with a sweet mead yeast)
Our brew club always give this warning to anyone considering the use of
P.P. in their creations. And they flat Refuse to accept P.P. beer or
mead in any competitions too!
Lurker since Digest # 76,
Angela
------------------------------
Subject: Decanting and Bicarbonate
From: Trout man <big_brook_trout@yahoo.com>
Date: Tue, 9 Sep 2003 09:23:02 -0700 (PDT)
I have two questions:
1. I have several meads that have matured nicely in bottles (up to 2 years)
and would love to see what some judges think by entering them in contests. The
problem is that I had to bottle before they were completely clear (long
story) and don't want to send two 750 ml bottles when I can get away with
two 12-oz beer bottles (they're all still meads). I'm trying to figure
out how to get the mead from the big bottles , leave the sediment behind,
and fill the 12 oz ones.
My question is, has anyone ever decanted from a larger bottle, say a 1liter
magnum, and then filled up smaller bottles? Will this cause oxidation?
How long will it take to get over bottle shock #2? Any advice would be
appreciated
2. I would love input on the use of Sodium Bicarbonate to decrease acidity of
a batch. I misread the first acid test in a recent batch, added WAY too much
acid blend (that I'll never use again, only use tartaric acid from here on!)
and now have to back the TA down a bit cause she's a wee tart, but I understand
that you shouldn't try for more than a .3 drop ( I guess the bicarbonate
gives off flavors in higher doses?). Should I add this stuff , then rack
on top of it, then rack a few weeks later? How much does it titrate out?
Thanks for all the great info that I'm sure is on the way!
"I keep spirits handy in case I see a snake. Which I also keep handy" -
WC Fields
------------------------------
Subject: Compleat Debate/Copper Chiller?
From: Chuck Wettergreen <wintermead@sbcglobal.net>
Date: Tue, 9 Sep 2003 09:24:09 -0700 (PDT)
In MLD #1042 Rick Dingus <rick.dingus@ttu.edu>
asked about any problems with using a copper wort
chiller to chill high-acid meads.
Rick, I suggest that if you don't heat your must,
there's no need to chill it.
Cheers,
Chuck
meadmaker
beekeeper
Geneva, Il
------------------------------
Subject: RE: aspartame
From: Warren Place <wrplace@ucdavis.edu>
Date: Tue, 9 Sep 2003 16:45:15 -0700 (PDT)
In the last MLD, Leigh suggests lactose as a non-frementable sweetener.
It could work, but lactose isn't very sweet. You would need to add quite
a lot and there are some microbes that can utilize that sugar. This could
make you wine unstable.
Warren Place
------------------------------
Subject: Re: Mead Lover's Digest #1042, 8 September 2003
From: OudBruin@aol.com
Date: Tue, 9 Sep 2003 22:58:08 EDT
In a message dated 9/8/03 22:09:35, "Michael" <novelguy@myway.com> writes:
Date: Sat, 6 Sep 2003 14:22:50 -0400 (EDT)
Hi Dick,
I've been reading and rereading your journal and finding it inspirational.
One question springs to mind regarding making cyser:
Is it possible to make cyser using fresh apples instead of juice or cider?
It's coming up on apple season here in my neck of the woods, and there's
a good harvest to come. I like using fresh ingredients anyway, and the
honeycrisp apples promise to be outstanding this year.
Thanks, >>
If you use fresh apples, do 3 things,
1 pasteurise the apples,
2) use lots of pectin emzyme
3) suggest that you completely mash the apples -
4) keep in mind the seeds are a source for B-17( cyno-co-balamine, a form of
cynade), a little goes a long way...
5) brew happy...
------------------------------
Subject: Re: Mead Lover's Digest #1042, 8 September 2003
From: John Dowling <jdowlingdc@patmedia.net>
Date: Wed, 10 Sep 2003 01:27:11 -0400
I've been using a chiller for several years without ill effect in flavor on
the meads. My chiller is not usually in the Must for more then 10 minutes,
as this is generally sufficient to bring 160degree Must down to pitching
temperature. I've used it on everything from a very high acid blueberry
melomel (high acid by mistake....it's still fermenting after 1.5
year....verrrrry slowly....I raised it up as much as I dared already
without affecting the taste)....to straight honey meads....
Just my input.
YIS
Aodhan
>------------------------------
>
>Subject: Compleat Debate/Copper Chiller?
>From: Rick Dingus <rick.dingus@ttu.edu>
>Date: Sat, 06 Sep 2003 23:42:24 -0500
>
>I think newcomers and old timers alike will find The Compleat Meadmaker a
>good and useful reference because it presents new and traditional ideas and
>methods related to meadmaking in a thoughtful and accessible format. I
>also appreciate Ken Schramm's stated interest (MLD #1041) in having it serve
>as a catalyst for continued debate and refinement. So, I raise a question
>about one practice he recommended In the book: the use of a copper coil
>immersion chiller (especially in a melomel, where a higher acid must is
>likely.)
>
>Long familiar with using an immersion chiller for brewing beer, I used one
>the first time or two I made mead. I wasn't sure, but I thought I detected
>a slight metallic taste in those meads. Whether or not that actually had
>anything to do with the chiller, it set me to thinking about the warnings
>I'd read about being careful not to use such a chiller in anything other
>than a relatively low acid environment like beer. I also noticed that with
>higher acid musts, my chiller came out shiny and clean, without the dull
>coating that occurred with beer--the dull coating I understood protected and
>insulated against the leaching of metal. I discussed this with several
>sources and was mostly warned off of using my chiller in anything besides
>beer because of the "possibility" of leaching toxic levels of copper in
>higher acid musts.
>
>(See http://winemakermag.com/mrwizard/25.html)
>
>Even so, I'm not sure how seriously to take this warning. I raise it here
>to see what Ken and the rest of you think. A chiller is usually in contact
>with wort or must for less than an hour. Perhaps that's not enough time to
>leach sufficient metal to worry about. Based on cautionary recommendations,
>I've been combining heated (and concentrated) musts with chilled water to
>achieve my desired volume and temperature, and that works OK. But if it's
>not critical, I'd like to maintain the option of dusting off my trusty wort
>chiller and putting it to use once in awhile when I make a melomel.
>
>Can anyone help to clarify this? Thanks for any feedback.
>
>Rick
------------------------------
End of Mead Lover's Digest #1043
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