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Mead Lovers Digest #1285
Subject: Mead Lover's Digest #1285, 21 October 2006
From: mead-request@talisman.com
Mead Lover's Digest #1285 21 October 2006
Forum for Discussion of Mead Making and Consuming
Dick Dunn, Digest Janitor
Contents:
2006 Great Lakes Olde World Syder Competition ("Jeff Carlson")
Mead Lover's Digest # 1284 : Len Wenzel & herbs in metheglins ("Timothy Ma...)
Valhalla Mead-only Competition Results ("David Houseman")
Re: Jim and Morisa Racking ("Dan McFeeley")
Proper use of go-ferm, fermaid-k ("Eric and Peg")
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
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Subject: 2006 Great Lakes Olde World Syder Competition
From: "Jeff Carlson" <carlsonj@gvsu.edu>
Date: Fri, 13 Oct 2006 14:19:39 -0400
New catagories added for 2006. Commercial mass-market products have
their own catagory.Awards by score, so there is no limit on the number of
awards.Special Seminar: Evaluation of Standard Cider & Perry, presented by
Gary AwdeyEntry Window November 20 thru November 30, 2006Judging Takes
palce on December 3, 2006 All information and forms can be found at
Michigan Hard Cider.orghttp://www.michiganhardcider.org/or The Michigan
Beer Guidehttp://www.michiganbeerguide.com/beerguide.asp Jeff CarlsonLead
Registrar GLOWScarlsonj@gvsu.edu
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Subject: Mead Lover's Digest # 1284 : Len Wenzel & herbs in metheglins
From: "Timothy Maxey" <suttonwho@verizon.net>
Date: Sat, 14 Oct 2006 19:07:41 -0400
Len, the galangale metheglin was a 1 gal. batch, using 4lbs local
wildflower honey, 3 tsp acid blend, =BC tsp tannin, 1tsp yeast nutrient
and a large stainless steel tea ball full of galangale root. The
teaball is about 2.5 inches in diameter. The galangale was dried. I
added 1 qt of water to the honey, boiled and skimmed well for =BD hr with
the galangale suspended in the must. I used Montrachet yeast. Yes, I
know. Primitive technique, but the results were truly outstanding.
For the rosemary sack metheglin, it was a 3 gal batch, same teaball full
of fresh cut rosemary from the garden, 3 tsp citric acid, 3 tsp Fermax
nutrients, and 10 lbs of honey from the apiaries at VPI. Once again,
Montrachet yeast and the same boiling and skimming technique.
I might add-both of these batches went crystal clear without the need to
use finings of any sort.
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Subject: Valhalla Mead-only Competition Results
From: "David Houseman" <david.houseman@verizon.net>
Date: Sat, 14 Oct 2006 21:46:26 -0400
Thanks to all of you who entered your precious meads and made the 2nd
annual Valhalla-The Meading of Life a delicious success this year! A total
of 66 entries were received from 37 mead makers with entries in each
category of mead style.
First, second and third place were also awarded in specific mead categories.
Dry/semi-sweet traditional
1st place Chad Gould, St. Petersburg. FL Anniversary Mead
2nd place Luke Kostu, Hopelawn, NJ D-47 Mead
3rd place Richard Weiss, New Bern, NC
Sweet traditional
1st place Jeffrey Swearengin, Tulsa OK, Sol de Blanc
2nd place Glenn and Dani Exline, Rockledge, FL, TKO
3rd place Curt and Kathy Stock, St. Paul, MN Tupelo Taming
Cyser
1st place Mary Rieland, McFarland, WI
2nd place Lyle Brown, Fredericksburg, VA
3rd place Patrick Payne, Melbourne, FL, Super Sizer
Pyment
1st place Steve Fletty, Falcon Heights, MN Chateau Fletty
2nd place Michael Fairbrother, Londonderry, NH, Wild NH pyment
3rd place Deborah Lee, Thornton, CO, Zinfully Wild
Other Fruit Melamels
1st place Curt and Kathy Stock, St. Paul, MN Plum Crazy
2nd place Ed Walkowski, Dalton, PA Raspberry melamel
3rd place Howard Curran, Oviedo, FL Guavalicious
Metheglin
1st place Christopher Clair, West Chester, PA Jenn & Barry's Matrimonial
Mint Mead
2nd place Luke Kostu, Hopelawn, NJ Chili Mead
3rd place Ed Walkowski, Dalton, PA Apple Butter Cyser
Braggot
1st place Patrick Payne, Melbourne, FL Braggot Rights
2nd place Patrick Payne, Melbourne, FL There's Creek in me Honey
3rd place Glenn and Dani Exline, Rockledge, FL, St. Bernardus
Open Category Mead
1st place Patrick Payne, Rockledge, FL Paynes Pomegranate Braggot
2nd place Jeffrey Swearengin, Tulsa, OK Cornucopias
3rd place, Lyle Brown, Fredericksburg, VA, Meloglin
And the Best of Show winners are:
1st place BOS goes to Mary Reiland, McFarland WI for her heirloom apple
cyser.
2nd place BOS goes to Jeffery Swearengin, Tulsa OK for his Sol de Blanc, a
traditional sweet mead
3rd place BOS goes to Steve Fletty, Falcon Heights MN for his Chateu Fletty,
a pyment
Congratulations!
Score sheets will be mailed out on Monday, October 16. Ribbons and awards
will be sent to the BOS winners and the 1st, 2nd and 3rd place winners in
each category approximately the last week of October. If you have any
questions, please feel free to contact us!
Thanks again for sharing your meads and we look forward to your entries in
the Valhalla competition next year!
Suzanne McMurphy
Competition Organizer
------------------------------
Subject: Re: Jim and Morisa Racking
From: "Dan McFeeley" <mcfeeley@keynet.net>
Date: Mon, 16 Oct 2006 04:09:42 -0500
On Fri, 6 Oct 2006, in MLD 1284 (where does the time go?)
Jim & Morisa Fleming wrote:
>Well.... We guess we've committed the most common sin of
>winemaking and winemakers...
>
>Specifically not enough patience...!
>
>We've bottled our mead back on 06 Oct 06... It's a very clear,
>(surprisingly enough!) light golden brew. The taste is very
>"orangish" but amazingly hot with alcohol. When we first made
>the must on 17 July 06 we didn't have a hydrometer, just like
>the ancient folks didn't. And we also forgot to measure the SG
>when we bottled it. It's actually pretty good so far, and
>considering how young it is.
Patience is a virtue in meadmaking, but it's the kind of
patience needed in avoiding jumping the gun. Patience
in meadmaking isn't sitting by, waiting and waiting, it's
knowing your mead and knowing when it's ready. From
what you've been saying, you've been very patient!
JAO is a really easy recipe, yielding good results in a
short amount of time. It can be drinkable almost right
away, but nine months of bulk aging can also get good
results. "Hot" alcholic tastes should subside after awhile.
Myself, I don't bother with gravity readings when making
a JAO. So long as I follow the Ancient One's instructions,
rack when clear for bulk aging, let it sit for awhile before
bottling, it comes out great.
Meadmakers, as a group, are a very congenial community.
It seems to go with the territory. Keep posting here and
keep us updated on your mead ventures!
<><><><><><><><><><>
<><><><><><><><>
Dan McFeeley
"Meon an phobail a thogail trid an chultur"
(The people's spirit is raised through culture)
------------------------------
Subject: Proper use of go-ferm, fermaid-k
From: "Eric and Peg" <zeee1@frontiernet.net>
Date: Thu, 19 Oct 2006 21:46:35 -0600
Hello all
Tried making wine a few weeks ago by simply juicing whatever grapes
were in the back yard, sulfiting for about 36 hours, adding table sugar
til the SG was around 12% potential, rehydrating the yeast for about 15
minutes in a mixture of go-ferm and cooled hot tap water, dumping yeast
in carboy and adding fermaid-k. # weeks later there is certainly alcohol
present, down to about .996, but it tastes and smells awful, sulphury
sorta.
I would like to know specifically if the go-ferm can be a source of
contamination, as it smells a little strange too? First time I have ever
used this, so the smell may be normal.
Does one boil the go-ferm then let the mixture cool, or just add the
required amount to cooled, boiled water?
Just seems that as careful as we need to be with yeast, that go-ferm
and fermaid-k, things we add with or to the yeast, isnt really
"sterile". I should mention I am using "bulk" go-ferm and fermaid.
I dont want to ruin a mead by trying to help it!
Eric
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End of Mead Lover's Digest #1285
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