Copy Link
Add to Bookmark
Report
Mead Lovers Digest #1342
Subject: Mead Lover's Digest #1342, 17 September 2007
From: mead-request@talisman.com
Mead Lover's Digest #1342 17 September 2007
Forum for Discussion of Mead Making and Consuming
Dick Dunn, Digest Janitor
Contents:
soggy honey (Michael Kiley)
2nd mead in 15 years ("Gary Smith")
RE: Mead Lover's Digest #1341, 10 September 2007 ("Paul Jenkin")
Re: Need less alcohol content (Marc Shapiro)
Re: Mead Lover's Digest #1341, 10 September 2007 ("Dennis Key")
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
A searchable archive is at http://www.gotmead.com/mldarchives.html
----------------------------------------------------------------------
Subject: soggy honey
From: Michael Kiley <michael@beeherenow.com>
Date: Mon, 10 Sep 2007 12:49:10 -0400
There's one good way to turn it back into honey; feed it to bees,
they'll dry it out. There will be a considerable loss in quantity and
its nature (buckwheat) will be altered by whatever else they might be
doing at the time.
Commercial honey packers have expensive machines to do this but they
can only deal with small amounts of excess moisture, nothing like what
you've got. Turn it into mead before it spoils.
That said, I never could stand buckwheat honey.
Best,
Michael Kiley
2beeherenowcom.wordpress.com
------------------------------
Subject: 2nd mead in 15 years
From: "Gary Smith" <Gary@doctorgary.net>
Date: Mon, 10 Sep 2007 12:00:50 -0500
I made my first batches of mead in 1992 and only made beer
afterwards. Last fall I decided to uncrystalize the honey I had left
over from back then and make a batch of mead. I used a Wyeast Mead
strain and fermented it in a Sabco 15 Gal Stainless fermenter. I
can't give you the specifics as to which strain & Original SG
readings as that data is in CT & the Mead is in IN at my old domicile
(which I'm visiting as we speak)
I do have to say this is truly an enjoyable mead. The Stainless
fermenter is perfect and sampling is easy. Next time I will use a
Stainless conical so I can discharge the trub & then transfer it to
corny kegs for long term aging.
The nice thing about this particular mead is how it's clear as a bell
& has a great aroma & hints of sweetness yet the alcohol level is low
enough I can easily drink three glasses and it's not too much.
It's really nice to be back to fermenting mead again.
BTW, I do have 10 or so bottles of raspberry mead still left from my
initial foray into mead making back in 92. Tried one last night and
it was stellar. Yum,
Just sharing the fun with you,
Gary
------------------------------
Subject: RE: Mead Lover's Digest #1341, 10 September 2007
From: "Paul Jenkin" <paul@legionenterprises.co.nz>
Date: Tue, 11 Sep 2007 17:40:40 +1200
Marcia, re Leon at Havill's - thanks for that bit of info, I'll see if I can
contact them by phone, email suits me better as I usually think of these
things late at night when people don't like phone calls :). I've heard good
things about their mead, and are the only Meadery(?) I've found in NZ that
is close-ish.
Paul
------------------------------
Subject: Re: Need less alcohol content
From: Marc Shapiro <mshapiro_42@yahoo.com>
Date: Tue, 11 Sep 2007 20:14:49 -0700
Rick <beekeepers@insightbb.com> wrote:
> * *I have a question about alcohol content. I made the mead that is
> described below. It was too high in alcohol content for everyone that
> tried it. It tasted pretty "hot". I would like to have 2 glasses at a
> time, but I start falling over. :-) *
> *Assuming that I stay with the 71B-1122, how do I reduce the amount of
> alcohol? If I start with more honey, I'm afraid that it will end too
> sweet. I would really like to stay away from chemicals to stop the
> fermentation. If I start with less honey, won't I end up with a very dry
> mead? I like it pretty dry, but don't want to get so darn drunk so fast.
> How do I get a dry mead with less alcohol content?
> * --*Rick*
> _
> _ _Purple Haze_*
>
> From Ken Schramm?s recipe in The Compleat Meadmaker (minus blueberries)
>
> _July 22, 2006_
>
> 12 lbs honey (I may have used 15 lbs) My apiary is in a enormous
> blackberry field, with clover and tulip poplar.
> 4 gallons spring water (1 gallon too much probably). Don?t think there
> will be room for fruit in two weeks. I should probably have used 3.5
> gallons.)
> 2 tsp. nutrient
> 2 tsp. energizer
> 2 packets of 71B-1122 yeast
> O.G. 1.14
> F.G. 1.00
>
I'm guessing that you used 15 lbs of honey to get that O.G. I usually
used about 12 lbs of honey in a 5 gallon batch. Also, the fruit added
even more sugars to the must. Going from an O.G. of 1.14 to a F.G. of
1.0 would yield about 19% alcohol! I have not used that particular
yeast before, but I am surprised that it would actually ferment all of
the sugars in that batch. Those were some HUNGRY yeasty beasites! Aim
for an O.G. of between 1.090 and 1.100. That should yield an alcohol
content of between 12% and 13%. Yes, it is going to be dry if your
yeast acts the same as for the prior batch. The only way to prevent
that is to use a yeast with a lower alcohol tolerance (Note: This does
not always work) or to use some other method (probably chemical) to stop
fermentation before the sugars are all used up.
- --
Marc Shapiro
mshapiro_42@yahoo.com
------------------------------
Subject: Re: Mead Lover's Digest #1341, 10 September 2007
From: "Dennis Key" <dione13@msn.com>
Date: Wed, 12 Sep 2007 11:37:22 -0600
Just a note to the digest: There is a new meadery (a little over a
year) in Santa Fe, NM--the Falcon Meadery. I bought a couple of bottles
(Mountain Mead and Cherry Mead) at the Bernalillo Wine Festival over
Labor Day weekend. It is sweet and very good. Check out the link below.
http://www.falconmead.com/<http://www.falconmead.com/>
Waisel! =20
Dione Greywolfe
------------------------------
End of Mead Lover's Digest #1342
*******************************
