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Mead Lovers Digest #1210
Subject: Mead Lover's Digest #1210, 30 August 2005
From: mead-request@talisman.com
Mead Lover's Digest #1210 30 August 2005
Forum for Discussion of Mead Making and Consuming
Dick Dunn, Digest Janitor
Contents:
RE:Wyeast Mead Yeasts ("Janis Gross")
Valhalla - The Meading of Life Mead Competition ("David Houseman")
Beach plum melomel ("Elaine Cunningham")
Recipie request (Marty and Janice Woodcock)
Correction - Valhalla - The Meading of Life Mead Competition (David Houseman)
New Mead Column ("Dan McFeeley")
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Subject: RE:Wyeast Mead Yeasts
From: "Janis Gross" <totallygross@hotmail.com>
Date: Thu, 25 Aug 2005 09:03:07 -0600
Hi Mike,
I don't think you can count on these yeasts to be that predictable. I used
Wyeast Sweet Mead yeast in one carboy of huckleberry mead with orange
blossom honey that started at 1.130, and White Labs Sweet Mead Yeast in
another carboy of the basically the same mead (using alfalfa honey) that
started at 1.126. The mead was all made on the same day, and kept in the
same conditions throughout the fermentation. Within 3 months, the Wyeast
batch was 1.008, and the White Labs batch was 1.030. In the end, I blended
the two batches to get what I wanted, but it was an eye opener for me as far
as using the Wyeast Sweet Mead yeast.
In addition, you can't make the assumption that a mead which has fermented
out is not going to continue if given more honey to work on. If your mead
is "done," you should probably stabilize it and wait a while before adding
some sweetening honey. I have had a couple of meads that I thought were
done, continue to work because I hadn't stabilized before adding honey or
blending for a sweeter result. You end up with more alcohol than you
planned on, and perhaps even carbonation if you've bottled and not
refrigerated the bottles.
I'd like to see/do a yeast experiment with a large quantity of high gravity
must that could be split into 5 gallon batches, pitched with a different
yeast in each, to see if you can draw a conclusion about the "alcohol
tolerance" of the yeast.
Cheers!
Janis
Subject: Question on Wyeast mead yeasts
From: Mike Peremsky <mperemsky@yahoo.com>
Date: Mon, 22 Aug 2005 13:30:54 -0700 (PDT)
What is the difference between the Wyeast Dry and
Sweet mead yeasts? Is it just a matter of alcohol
tolerance? I would expect that, given the same
starting conditions, that one would end up dry and one
would end up sweet.
I would also expect that if I added more honey to the
dry mead yeast that I would end up with a sweet mead,
but with a higher alcohol content than if I would have
just used the sweet mead strain. Is this correct?
------------------------------
Subject: Valhalla - The Meading of Life Mead Competition
From: "David Houseman" <david.houseman@verizon.net>
Date: Fri, 26 Aug 2005 19:49:33 -0400
This is the second notice for this mead-only competition. Note that the
venue has changed but everything else is the same.
If you've got mead, prepare to enter the 1st annual Valhalla - The Meading
of Life
Mead-Only Competition to be held Saturday, October 15 at the Mt. Pleasant
Cafe, 311 W. Mt. Pleasant Ave, Philadelphia, PA 19119
(http://www.mtpleasantcafe.com/). This competition will judge meads in BJCP
categories 24--traditional meads, 25--melomel and 26--other mead. One entry
per subcategory per entrant, with a $5 per entry fee. The equivalent of at
least 3 12-ounce bottles is required for judging, although bottle size and
[janitor's interjection: only 2 bottles; see later note from David]
shape are not restricted. No identifying markings however can appear on the
bottles. Any standard competition entry form may be used. It is the
responsibility of the entrant to properly identify the category and
sub-category based on the 2004 BJCP Style Guidelines.
Meads may be mailed or dropped off at Home Sweet Homebrew, 2008 Sansom
Street, Philadelphia, PA 19103 by Friday, October 7th. Additional local
drop off
locations include Keystone Homebrew locations and Iron Hill Brewery and
Restaurant in West Chester, PA.
The competition would like to encourage knowledgeable mead judges to
commit to judging this event. Judges will receive breakfast and lunch.
Judges should contact David Houseman to secure a judging seat.
The judging will take place from 9am to 1pm. Awards will be given out
beginning at 1:30. There will also be a tasting with numerous commercial
meads as well as the remainder of the meads from the competition following
the judging. Following the competition there will be 2 seatings for a
Medieval dinner at 4 and 6:30 pm, reservations required; call the restaurant
at 215-242-1500 to make your reservations.
Suzanne McMurphy, Competition Organizer (theimann@verizon.net)
David Houseman, Judge Coordinator (david.houseman@verizon.net)
Vince Galet, Asst. Competition Organizer
------------------------------
Subject: Beach plum melomel
From: "Elaine Cunningham" <elainecunningham@cox.net>
Date: Sun, 28 Aug 2005 08:42:49 -0400
Back in July of 2004 (Mead Lover's Digest #1117) Ken mentioned he'd made
a beach plum melomel. If you're still reading the digest, Ken, would
you be willing to share your receipe? I'm picking beach plums this
weekend, and would like to put up a batch next week.
------------------------------
Subject: Recipie request
From: Marty and Janice Woodcock <martynjanice@shaw.ca>
Date: Sun, 28 Aug 2005 15:47:59 -0600
We picked some Black Currents, and Raspberries the other day, and want
to make a wine, and a mead out of them. (Yes, both together, in the same
mead/wine). Are there any suggestions on how to prepare the berries, so
that we get the juce as clear as possible? Some recipies suggest crushing
the berries, but this produces a murky juce, not a nice clear juce. Thanks
in advance.
Janice.
------------------------------
Subject: Correction - Valhalla - The Meading of Life Mead Competition
From: David Houseman <david.houseman@verizon.net>
Date: Tue, 30 Aug 2005 08:30:04 -0500 (CDT)
My bad: The Valhalla - The Meading of Life mead only competition requires
only the equivalent of two (2) 12-oz bottles, NOT three (3).
Thanks for the bandwidth.
Dave Houseman
------------------------------
Subject: New Mead Column
From: "Dan McFeeley" <mcfeeley@keynet.net>
Date: Tue, 30 Aug 2005 14:09:21 -0500
The current issue of Zymurgy magazine is kicking off a
new column titled "Mastering Mead," which will be
written by both professional and amateur meadmakers.
The first column in the series is titled "Quaffable Mead:
Nectar," by David Meyers of Redstone Meadery.
This is a great idea and holds a lot of promise for the
mead community. I'm looking forward to seeing
future columns.
<><><><><><><><><><>
<><><><><><><><>
Dan McFeeley
"Meon an phobail a thogail trid an chultur"
(The people's spirit is raised through culture)
------------------------------
End of Mead Lover's Digest #1210
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