Toggle sidebar

How to Buy Juice for Mels

  • PATRONS: Did you know we've a chat function for you now? Look to the bottom of the screen, you can chat, set up rooms, talk to each other individually or in groups! Click 'Chat' at the right side of the chat window to open the chat up.
  • Love Gotmead and want to see it grow? Then consider supporting the site and becoming a Patron! If you're logged in, click on your username to the right of the menu to see how as little as $30/year can get you access to the patron areas and the patron Facebook group and to support Gotmead!
  • We now have a Patron-exclusive Facebook group! Patrons my join at The Gotmead Patron Group. You MUST answer the questions, providing your Patron membership, when you request to join so I can verify your Patron membership. If the questions aren't answered, the request will be turned down.
Barrel Char Wood Products
S

Sabar

NewBee
Registered Member
Oct 28, 2009
84
0
0
Loganton, Pa
I have been reading different posts in brewlogs and one of the things I noticed people using, is bottled fruit juice from the supermarket.

What about preservatives in this stuff? Is there a special type that i should look for? Basically just look for 100% Juice?

I noticed a Cherry Melanoma that AToE was working on that sounded like it could be very good. ( I do like Cherry )

What about using D47? From what I have read so far it sounds like that is a good yeast to let the mead sit on. So I was wondering if I started a one Gallon batch of this and left it on the leese for a couple of months until it was clear. (Like JAO on bread yeast) then rack off to clear some more and age if that would work.

Gotta go shopping
Sabar
 
You should look for juice without preservatives such as sulfites, sorbates, and benzoates. There are ways around all of these if your juice has them, but it takes quite a bit of work. Juice with ascorbic acid in it is ok.

If you want to age your mead on the lees, search for "sur lie". Good lees aging is more than just not racking, and there are posts by Oskaar and WayneB (and I'm sure others) which discuss this technique in detail.
 
I look in either the organic supermarket, or the fancy organic section of superstore/whatever and I find pure juices of all sorts with no preservatives, just pastuerized.

I'd honestly rather do batches with the actual fruit, but I like the juices for doing test runs to see what I think of the end product, to see if it's worth the work and $ to do a proper batch. If the cherry mel I have going right now is decent, then next summer I'll buy a pile of cherries and get to work. The problem with cherry juice specifically is that they do not specify what kinds of cherries are in there, they just list a bunch that "might" be (all the brands I've seen do this).

For blueberry batches I've been mixing both berries and their juice, seems cheaper than just using berries, and I get a lot of colour and flavour for my buck.
 
That definitely sounds like the most economical way to make small batches. And I am sure it is cheaper than buying juice from the LHBS.

Looks like I will be ordering more yeast! Yep the moto of every new person. can't drink any yet? Brew More!!!

Sabar
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Barrel Char Wood Products

Viking Brew Vessels - Authentic Drinking Horns

Top Bottom