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Mead Lovers Digest #1176
Subject: Mead Lover's Digest #1176, 16 April 2005
From: mead-request@talisman.com
Mead Lover's Digest #1176 16 April 2005
Forum for Discussion of Mead Making and Consuming
Dick Dunn, Digest Janitor
Contents:
Slow bubble speed after racking ("eric")
Re: HOT Capsicumel Mead (Dick Dunn)
gallon bottles (HOT Beekeepers)
Re: HOT Capsicumel Mead (Dick Adams)
Sorghum Mead ("Robert Farrell")
Beekeepers Field Day Article (HOT Beekeepers)
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Subject: Slow bubble speed after racking
From: "eric" <zeee1@nebonet.com>
Date: Sun, 10 Apr 2005 00:22:54 -0600
Hello all
After about a month in primary I racked a straight mead with 1118 to
secondary yesterday, bubbling had slowed from about every 4 seconds to 5 in
primary, today after about 12 hours in secondary it is only about 10-11
seconds. Did I rack too soon? Should I have waited til the bubbling slowed
down more before I racked, instead of racking "just because it had been
about a month"? There was maybe 1/4" sediment on bottom. Was the yeast on
the bottom still contributing to the fermentation?
Have I increased my fermentation time without yet needing to rack?
15 lbs local honey in 5 gallons with diammonium phosphate, if that matters.
Would it help to add more yeast nutrient, or just leave it alone for a few
more months?
Eric
------------------------------
Subject: Re: HOT Capsicumel Mead
From: Dick Dunn <rcd@talisman.com>
Date: Mon, 11 Apr 2005 12:27:59 -0600
"Arthur Torrey" <atorrey@cybercom.net> wrote, about his capsimel:
> I start by putting a couple cups of honey (Local wildflower from my backyard
> hive) in a blender, along with 1-2 dried Haban~ero peppers per gallon,
> depending on the size of the peppers. I then blend until the peppers are
> completely pureed. This makes sure that all the seeds (the hottest part) are
> chopped up, liberating the fire...
I've taken somewhat the opposite approach with my capsimels...I remove and
discard the membranes and seeds, and just coarsely chop the flesh of the
chiles. My approach is not to -avoid- the heat, but rather to be able to
pick up more chile flavor per quantum of heat. In the same vein, rather
than use habaneros, I've used a mixture of not-so-hot chiles--anaheims,
poblanos, with a few jalapeños and/or serranos--but on the order of a pound
of chiles per gallon of mead. I'm guessing I end up with a comparable
amount of heat to what Art gets, but with a lot more of the flavor of
the chiles I use. (I'd love to be able to pick up the flavor of a habanero
in a mead, but I can't see a way to use enough habanero to do that without
making the mead absurdly hot.)
One other reason I removed the seeds and membranes is just conventional
kitchen wisdom--they can add a bitter taste when you're cooking with them.
Whether that would happen with a mead, I don't really know; I didn't want
to find out the hard way. (Of course, in the quantity Art's using, it
wouldn't matter.) Thinking about cooking, I'm wondering if it would work
out to roast and peel the chiles in the usual way...anybody tried that in
a capsimel?
Oh...I put the chopped chiles in the primary; the maceration there releases
the flavor, after which they're still intact enough to skim out. (I've had
my fill of trying to rack off of pureed fruits!)
> ...As noted in an earlier post, since this is a brew served in small
> quantities, I use swing-top style bottles for their easy reclosing ability.
It used to be possible to find "nips"--6-8 fl oz (US) bottles with a
standard crown-cap top, which is a reasonable size for a capsimel, but
I like Art's idea better because with my little bottles it seems like
bottling a batch takes the whole evening and then some. I'm curious
whether you have to replace the gaskets each time on those swing-tops...
or just use them only for capsimel.
- --
Dick Dunn rcd@talisman.com Hygiene, Colorado USA
------------------------------
Subject: gallon bottles
From: HOT Beekeepers <beekeepers@stringwizards.com>
Date: Mon, 11 Apr 2005 16:56:08 -0500
Hi:
We're making our first batch of mead.
The mix is currently in a 5 gallon bottle, but we're thinking of
racking into one gallon to allow a test for aging.
Any suggestions where we should look for bottles that can still bubble up?
Thanks for any suggestions,
Jim Chase
------------------------------
Subject: Re: HOT Capsicumel Mead
From: rdadams@smart.net (Dick Adams)
Date: Mon, 11 Apr 2005 18:46:10 -0400 (EDT)
Subject: HOT Capsicumel Mead
"Arthur Torrey (no spam please!)" <atorrey@cybercom.net> wrote:
> I had a couple of requests for the recipe on the Capsicumel HOT
> pepper mead that I mentioned in an earlier post.
>
> This mead is very high on the hot scale, wimpy folks might want
> to tone the heat down a bit <grin> I also deliberately make it
> on the sweet side to balance the heat and give a short 'hang
> time' between the initial 'nice and sweet' reaction and the
> drinker's eyes popping out...
> I start by putting a couple cups of honey (Local wildflower from
> my backyard hive) in a blender, along with 1-2 dried Habanero
> peppers per gallon, depending on the size of the peppers. I then
> blend until the peppers are completely pureed. This makes sure
> that all the seeds (the hottest part) are chopped up, liberating
> the fire. (I have also heard of people using the peppered honey as
> a condiment when cooking BTW) Doing it in a blend with honey keeps
> the peppers from releasing any dust, but the fumes are still potent
> so be careful. Also be careful of any spilled pepper honey, and
> follow all usual hot pepper handling precautions about washing hands
> THOROUGHLY w/ soap and water before rubbing eyes, going to the br, or
> touching other tender parts of the anatomy.
I grow Red Savina Habeneros. Anyone handling hot peppers is advised
to wear two pair of rubber gloves: painters gloves inside of dish
washing gloves.
I made a mixture of 1/8 teaspoon of ground Habeneros with two pounds
of clover honey and a pint of barbeque sauce for basting chicken. It
was too hot for some guests.
> I use the peppered honey in a blend with my regular honey to make
> a basic simple mead recipe, approx. 3-4 lbs of honey / gallon of
> must, plus my usual additions of pollen, royal jelly concentrate
> and propolis, along with acid blend and yeast nutrient per package
> directions. I use Lalvin K1-1116 Champagne yeast, with no starter
> but I do 'wake it up' by soaking it for about 10 minutes in 90*F
> water before pitching.
I used 10 lbs of Orange Blossom Honey in 3 gallons of must plus yeast
nutrient, yeast energizer, and Lalvin EC-1118 yeast. I ran a test
using K1V-1116, EC-1118, and Cote de Blanc yeast. I split 9 gallons
of must into three pails and used one in each pail. I much preferred
the taste of EC-1118 after fermentation had ceased.
> When the primary fermentation slows down, I rack it, and add a few
> slices of dried ginger. I then rack every few months, adding more
> honey as needed to keep the SG at around 1.010 - 1.020. When the
> mead is clear and the SG stays stable between rackings, I bottle it.
> As noted in an earlier post, since this is a brew served in small
> quantities, I use swing-top style bottles for their easy reclosing
> ability.
I will try the Ginger next time. But I added the pepper in the
secondary very little at a time so I could find the point where I
could get the robust flavor of the pepper before being overcome by
the heat of the pepper.
> I refer to this stuff as my 'firewater mead' and swipe the U.U.
> logo 'bonfire in a cocktail glass' for the label.
Ah, alas, we only steal from the best!!
Dick
------------------------------
Subject: Sorghum Mead
From: "Robert Farrell" <bfarrell100@hotmail.com>
Date: Wed, 13 Apr 2005 14:06:40 -0700
I checked the archives and found only one relevant post--has anyone made a
sorghum mead? If so, what was your experience?
Bob Farrell
Portland, OR
------------------------------
Subject: Beekeepers Field Day Article
From: HOT Beekeepers <beekeepers@stringwizards.com>
Date: Thu, 14 Apr 2005 15:05:07 -0500
If there are any mead makers in this list in Central Texas, I wanted
you to know about a Beekeeping Field Day near Waco, Saturday, April 23,
2005, from 9AM to 4pm.
If you are interested in keeping bees to make your own honey for mead,
this would be a fine place to start, with demonstrations on all phases
of beekeeping.
Please email me for a flyer with a map and details.
Thanks,
Jim Chase
------------------------------
End of Mead Lover's Digest #1176
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