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Mead Lovers Digest #1336
Subject: Mead Lover's Digest #1336, 9 August 2007
From: mead-request@talisman.com
Mead Lover's Digest #1336 9 August 2007
Forum for Discussion of Mead Making and Consuming
Dick Dunn, Digest Janitor
Contents:
mead for cooking (re: New to the group) (Dick Dunn)
Re: sugar vs honey (Dick Dunn)
calculator follies vs rules-of-thumb (Dick Dunn)
Re: Water (MeadGuild@aol.com)
Re: New to the Group (Phil)
Mead for Cooking ("Eric Wescott")
Re: Mead Lover's Digest #1335, 5 August 2007 ("Dave Chubb")
BJCP / IMA Mead Exam ("Julia Herz")
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----------------------------------------------------------------------
Subject: mead for cooking (re: New to the group)
From: Dick Dunn <rcd@talisman.com>
Date: Sun, 5 Aug 2007 22:22:13 -0600
jared miller <jaredmiller23@yahoo.com> introduced himself and mentioned
that he works as a sommelier, then later in his note, asked:
...
> I am also looking for any advice on making a mead for my chef. He wants
> a lower alchol level and high residual sugar varietal mead. The time
> frame I have is about 4-6 months, is that possible?...
In a word, no...er, NO!
In order to produce mead for commercial use, you must be licensed. You
cannot begin production until you have an approved winery license and
premises. (That is, you can't start something fermenting ahead-of-time
and move it into the winery once it's approved.)
If you could start production today, then yes you could (just barely)
produce a good lower-alcohol/higher-sugar mead within that time frame.
Your best bet would be to find an existing commercial mead that meets
your needs--there are enough of them around, esp in CA where you are.
Second best, or best if you want to make it yourself, would be to hook
up with a winery which would allow you to make mead on their premises.
Lastly, what do you mean by a "varietal mead"?
- --
Dick Dunn rcd@talisman.com Hygiene, Colorado USA
------------------------------
Subject: Re: sugar vs honey
From: Dick Dunn <rcd@talisman.com>
Date: Sun, 5 Aug 2007 22:39:52 -0600
Dick Adams (MeadGuild@aol.com) wrote in response to the experiment proposed
by Rick <beekeepers@insightbb.com>:
> > I am going to make two batches of Ken Schramm's "Mambo in Your Mouth";
> > one with honey, one with sugar. Also, is there any reason not to attempt
> this?
>
> The only reason I can think of to ferment sugar is so you can
> know the foul fusel aroma/taste of undistilled whiskey...
I don't buy this at all--how do you figure? Which of the various trace
components in honey do you think prevent production of fusels?
The three factors we notice most (and can control) which increase fusel
production are: choice of yeast, lack of nutrients, and elevated
fermentation temperatures. Surely Rick's experiment would use the same
yeast and comparable environment (temperature), and a recipe from Ken
Schramm is sure to have suitable nutrient level.
- --
Dick Dunn rcd@talisman.com Hygiene, Colorado USA
------------------------------
Subject: calculator follies vs rules-of-thumb
From: Dick Dunn <rcd@talisman.com>
Date: Sun, 5 Aug 2007 23:27:15 -0600
(Sorry to be piling it on at the start of a new digest.)
I want to suggest that folks let their calculators cool down and start
using simple rules of thumb for simple numbers.
The sugar content of honey is NOT 0.796. 12 lb of honey is NOT
equivalent to 9.13 lb of cane sugar addition to 5 gal.
One bogosity here is expressing values to 3 significant figures. Honey is
not that consistent, not even close! Note that the two figures in
separate, careful articles in the last digest came up with 9.13 lb and
9.552 lb--if nothing else, a lesson in the difference between "precision"
and "accuracy".
Try, instead, a few "rule of thumb" numbers that are easy to jot down
and remember:
Honey has a specific gravity of 1.5. A gallon of honey weighs 12 lb.
Hey! Those are inconsistent! A gallon of water weighs 8.33 lb. But
we're talking rule of thumb, that is to say useful numbers. The SG of
honey isn't all that consistent; an error of less than 5% won't matter
(unless/until, perhaps, you're up to Mike Faul's production quantities!).
Stop and think...Do YOU know where the exact 5-gallon line is on each of
your carboys? Do you always fill to exactly that line?
The thing is, if you put a gallon of honey and four gallons of water into a
carboy, you can figure on a starting gravity close enough to 1.1 as you can
reasonably care about. It's pointless to -calculate- what it will be; just
mix it up and measure! Your hydrometer will give you a number you can use
and believe.
Another neat, useful, simple rule-of-thumb (you see, I'm all thumbs): Dry
sugar behaves AS IF the weight of the sugar is equivalent to a volume of
liquid with SG 1.5. Now, go back and re-read that before you commit it to
memory and mix up the weight and volume phrases! Also remember we're
talking useful approximation (5% or so). This rule-of-thumb takes into
account the effect that dry sugar takes up a lot less space when it
dissolves in water, but it does take up -some- space. The useful aspect
is that you can weigh out some sugar and add it in to a batch, then do
a v:v calculation to figure the effect. It erases the problem of sugars
being different density depending on how they are milled (finer sugar being
less dense). Concomitantly, you can figure how much sugar you need for a
given gravity increase, without tripping over weight vs volume.
- --
Dick Dunn rcd@talisman.com Hygiene, Colorado USA
------------------------------
Subject: Re: Water
From: MeadGuild@aol.com
Date: Mon, 6 Aug 2007 03:48:18 EDT
From: Dick Dunn <rcd@talisman.com>
Date: Wed, 1 Aug 2007 11:27:55 -0600
In the last digest, I wrote and Dick Adams replied:
>>> First off, very hard water can give off-tastes in mead. But as long
>>> as it's within reason (presumably Burton-on-Trent's water wouldn't
>>> make a great mead) it's OK.
>> With all due respect for your opinion. what is the evidence that
>> Burtonized water will ???give off-tastes in mead????
> I did say "presumably" in the second sentence, but I think I've got
> good reason even though I've not actually done the experiment of
> making mead with such hard water. Two points:
I think trying it is a "Four point play"!
> Water with the mineral content of Burton actually -tastes- mineral-ish.
> Try this: pour a taste sample of relatively soft water. Then to a quart
> of that water add about half a teaspoon of gypsum and stir to dissolve.
> It takes a while. Pour a sample of that and compare with the first.
> (This roughly reproduces the calcium and sulphate contents of Burton
> water; it doesn't get the carbonate [also substantial], nor the sodium
> and magnesium [not a lot but higher than most water supplies].)
"Yuck"! Thank you for saving me the honey I would have wasted.
Dick
- --
Richard D. Adams
Moderator: misc.taxes.moderated
------------------------------
Subject: Re: New to the Group
From: Phil <dogglebe@yahoo.com>
Date: Mon, 6 Aug 2007 05:14:01 -0700 (PDT)
> I am in the San Diego/Del Mar area and I am looking
> to establish a relationship with other mead makers
> and local beekeeper's, anybody out there?
You can check either http://www.gotmead.com to meet up
with other people and learn more about mead-making.
For local beekeepers, you can look up
http://www.honeylocator.com.
> I am also looking for any advice on making a mead for
> my chef. He wants a lower alchol level and high
> residual sugar varietal mead. The time frame I have
is about 4-6 months, is that possible?
You make make a very light mead by using one pound per
gallon of water. After fermentation is complete, you
could add potassium sorbate and potassium
metabisulphite to stop fermentation. From there, you
back sweeten it with additional honey.
> I know it might sound bad to use mead in a sauce, but
> its just a job and all of my other meads are for
> personal comsumtion.
I think you'll run into legal problems with this as
you can't use homemade wines (which mead is, legally)
in a commercial establishment as it's a non-taxed
alcoholic beverage. Check your state's laws; YMMV.
Why not just dissolve some honey in water and cook
with that. I don't think the alcohol will make any
difference.
Phil
------------------------------
Subject: Mead for Cooking
From: "Eric Wescott" <eric.wescott@gmail.com>
Date: Mon, 6 Aug 2007 08:43:12 -0400
Jared Miller sent an email about using mead for culinary purposes for
a chef. I've used my meads in place of wine a few times in dishes.
It's not sacriligious - it's awesome! The best lamb steaks I ever
made was accompanied by a light sauce of mead used to deglaze the pan
then reduce. It was heavenly - notes of honey and flora standing up
to the robust flavors of the lamb. Really good!
To make a light mead like that, I'd give the initial must a low
concentration of honey, just enough to ferment to about 5%. Then let
it finish (should be quick), hit it with preservatives (sulfites and
sorbates), and back-sweeten with half-honey half-water (to get a good
mix). I think in 4-6 months you could have something pretty good.
------------------------------
Subject: Re: Mead Lover's Digest #1335, 5 August 2007
From: "Dave Chubb" <wyrdone@gmail.com>
Date: Mon, 6 Aug 2007 10:23:22 -0400
On 8/6/07, mead-request@talisman.com <mead-request@talisman.com> wrote:
>
> Subject: New to the group
> From: jared miller <jaredmiller23@yahoo.com>
> Date: Sun, 5 Aug 2007 20:23:23 -0700 (PDT)
>
> <snip>
> I am also looking for any advice on making a mead for my chef. He wants
> a lower alchol level and high residual sugar varietal mead. The time
> frame I have is about 4-6 months, is that possible? I know it might sound
> bad to use mead in a sauce, but its just a job and all of my other meads
> are for personal comsumtion. Any help, recipe's, suggestions would be
> greatly appreciated.
For fine cuisine, I would give your meeds at least a year aging. As a
sommelier you will appreciate the need for a fine beverage to age. Would you
suggest a 4 month old Chardonnary stored in oak for a sauce?
For some good commercial meads available in the US, I sugest the following:
Lurgashall, Life Force Mead or T&A Vinters 'Mead Harbor', all of which I
have found decent to good depending on the year and varietal you select. I
personally would avoid Chaucers as I find it is horrid stuff with an
aftertaste of soap. (Then, I can tell if a vinter has been using particular
pesticides on their grapes too. Malathion should never be used on grape
crops if you want a drinkable product....or any other oil based
insecticide.)
------------------------------
Subject: BJCP / IMA Mead Exam
From: "Julia Herz" <jherz@honeywine.com>
Date: Tue, 7 Aug 2007 09:44:41 -0600
Hello Dick,
In reply to the below we do have a honey list we are preparing for the mead
exam. It is not published yet as it is a work in progress. Recently, during
the AHA conference in Denver several committee members met and this list was
the primary focus.
Both the BJCP and the IMA (International Mead Association) joint committee
members look forward to testing and tweaking the exam questions over the
next few months. We are shooting for the 2008 International Mead Festival
(February 8-10) as the time when we will present an exam in it's early
stages. Additionally, a study guide is in the works.
Again when we have updates they will be announced on MLD in addition to
other key places.
Cheers and thank you for your post, Julia Herz
Julia Herz of Honeywine.com
and
International Mead Association
www.meadfest.com / www.meadfest.org
<I sincerely appreciate Julia's contribution. The last target date I was
told was the 2007 AHA Finals. We are seven <months away from the next
target date. It would be nice to have a reading list, examples of essay
questions and a list of <always asked questions now as opposed to in
December or January.
<In a recent private conversation with a high level BJCP officer, I
expressed my concern about the IMA getting this exam <out on a timely basis.
He said that the IMA & the BJCP had agreed on a list of honeys for the exam.
Has anyone seen this <list? Where is it available?
------------------------------
End of Mead Lover's Digest #1336
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