Mead Lovers Digest #1549

Published in

· 7 months ago

Subject: Mead Lover's Digest #1549, 23 October 2011 
From: mead-request@talisman.com 

Mead Lover's Digest #1549                                  23 October 2011 

                      Mead Discussion Forum 

Contents: 
  How much vanilla ("Wout Klingens") 

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Subject: How much vanilla 
From: "Wout Klingens" <wout@nivo-media.nl> 
Date: Sun, 16 Oct 2011 10:47:59 +0200 

Hi, 
So I have made a showmead, about 5 USG. Orchard honey only and an 
all-purpose yeast (don't ask). Acid balance it good. FG 1.040. 
Taste is good. But then all sweet meads taste good. I found it lacking 
complexity. Very one-dimensional and no wow-factor. 1 year in the carboy so 
sufficiently long enough to evaluate. 
I considered this batch a failure. I could bottle it and enjoy it, but I was 
sure I would not be very enthusiastic. 
Reading about vanilla which is said to have one of the most complex flavors 
with about 250 flavor descriptors I thought I'd give it a try. 
So I added a vanilla bean. Split and cut to pieces of 0,5 inch. 
First day: WOW! It makes an amazing difference. Not much vanilla, but what a 
difference in complexity! It turned into a very interesting mead indeed. 
Second day: a lot of vanilla. 
Third day: racked off the vanilla to prevent too much flavor. 

3 weeks later: the vanilla blended in, but it is clearly there. So far it is 
one of the best meads I ever made in  terms of complexity and acid balance. 
I can't wait until it's ready to bottle. 

Things learned: listen to the people who have experience: put that kind of 
spices into some teabag and taste every day. Take out the teabag when flavor 
is up to your taste. 

Now for my questions: I read a lot of recipes which call for 5 beans or so 
and leave it on for the duration until ranking/bottling. 
1. I now have experience with leaving 1 bean on the mead for only 2 days in 
a 5 gallon batch. What happens to the flavor when leaving it to age for 3 
years or so? 

2. What does a mead taste like in terms of complexity, which was made with a 
few beans and  left a few weeks to macerate? 

Thanks for any answers. 
Wout. 

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End of Mead Lover's Digest #1549 
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