Copy Link
Add to Bookmark
Report
Mead Lovers Digest #1468
Subject: Mead Lover's Digest #1468, 29 April 2010
From: mead-request@talisman.com
Mead Lover's Digest #1468 29 April 2010
Mead Discussion Forum
Contents:
Re: Mead Lover's Digest #1467 ("Charles Scheffler")
Re: cyser ingredients ("Patrick St. Jean")
Reverse Osmosis? (Nathan Boettcher)
NOTE: Digest appears whenever 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 and admin requests.
Digest archives and FAQ are available at www.talisman.com/mead#Archives
A searchable archive is at http://www.gotmead.com/mldarchives.html
Digest Janitor: Dick Dunn
----------------------------------------------------------------------
Subject: Re: Mead Lover's Digest #1467
From: "Charles Scheffler" <c_scheffler@verizon.net>
Date: Tue, 20 Apr 2010 20:51:19 -0400
In MLD #1467 Captain Chuck asked>> "I've made several batches now and even
though I started to rack two or three times, my mead still seems to be
cloudy. Should I be filtering it somehow?"
C2C -
I've steered away from filtering for mead and beers I've brewed, primarily
out of a general desire to avoid the extra work, something else to clean,
potential contamination, etc. generally, any excuse that works.
But, as an alternative would suggest a period of cold storage, post
fermentation, but before racking, as a means of promoting coagulation and
settling. Haven't devoted to much thought to the physics behind it, but I
believe the same mechanism responsible for formation of a "chill haze" in
beer that makes cold filtering more effective works in your favor even if
simply racking from one carboy to another.
I have no experience with using finings, irish moss, or other agents to
promote settling like is commonly done with beers. Maybe others could
comment on this and the practice of chilling before racking.
Regards,
Chuck Scheffler
------------------------------
Subject: Re: cyser ingredients
From: "Patrick St. Jean" <stjeanp@pat-st-jean.com>
Date: Tue, 20 Apr 2010 21:31:13 -0500
> Subject: Re: mead complexity
> From: mail-box <mail-box@comcast.net>
> Date: Tue, 06 Apr 2010 22:51:38 -0400
>
> If the competition uses BJCP standards, a Cyser
> in most categories can only be apple juice and sugar (and not even
> honey!).
Ken,
I checked the BJCP standards for a Cyser (category 25A) and it does not
say anything about that. Here's what they say on page 55:
Ingredients: Standard description applies. Cyser is a standard mead made
with the addition of apples or apple juice. Tradi- tionally, cysers are
made by the addition of honey to apple juice without additional water. A
spiced cyser, or a cyser with other ingredients, should be entered as an
Open Category Mead.
Also, up above in the general guidelines (page 53) they say this:
Ingredients: Mead is made primarily from honey, water and yeast. Some
minor adjustments in acidity and tannin can be made with citrus fruits,
tea, chemi- cals, or the use of oak aging; however, these additives should
not be readily discernable in flavor or aroma. Yeast nutrients may be used
but should not be de- tected. If citrus, tea, or oak additives result
in flavor components above a low, background, balance- adjusting level,
the resulting mead should be entered appropriately (e.g., as a metheglin
or open category mead, not a traditional).
The preceding quotes were taken from
http://www.bjcp.org/docs/2008_stylebook.pdf
Pat
------------------------------
Subject: Reverse Osmosis?
From: Nathan Boettcher <kalendrinn@gmail.com>
Date: Thu, 22 Apr 2010 08:58:43 -0700
Hey all,
I finally found an answer to a question I posted a while back about
getting a (slight) vinegar taste in my first batch of mead. I can't
remember the exact term at the moment but it's basically due to normal
bacteria that's on everything around us. I am guessing I probably
didn't clean the carboy well enough and got too much fresh air in the
carboy to start with. Thankfully it's not too bad and the vinegar
taste hasn't gotten worse at all. I did read that it can be taken
care of by either using diluted honey to mix and wash out the vinegar
taste, or by reverse osmosis. The book said that reverse osmosis is
usually a very expensive option.
My questions are these, does anyone know if there's a special filter
that needs to be used for reverse osmosis of mead or can a regular
filter (like for water) be used? Will the mead lose any of it's
body/flavor/etc in the process as honey will probably be filtered
during the process? Has anyone tried reverse osmosis on their mead
before, commercially or privately with your own equipment? Anyone
know of someone that has?
On another note, I started a methelgin a week ago. I'm keeping my
fingers crossed that it will turn out well. I'm taking extra care to
clean my equipment like the dickens before I use it. :)
- -Nathan
- --
Nathan Boettcher
kalendrinn@gmail.com
------------------------------
End of Mead Lover's Digest #1468
*******************************
