I found this recipe off of meadworks. It is called howling jack: honey pumpkin mead. It sounds very interesting so i am going to try it for a mead on halloween. Do you think this mead will taste ok? I like sweet meads...but anywayz i had a question about the procedure of this mead. In the recipe below it states that after the must is placed in the pumpkin, seal the top with wax...if you have mead fermenting in a sealed pumpkin wouldn't the pumpkin build pressure and explode? And will the finished product be carbonated? This sounds like a question that should be posted in the newbie section lol..but i hope someone could help me :-[ here's the recipe:
1 sound, large-bodied pumpkin-somewhere in the neighborhood of 1-gallon capacity (if you can’t find a jumbo-plumpo boy, use two smaller ‘kins and split the liquid between them)
3 pounds fall wildflower honey
1.5 unpeeled citrus fruits – orange, lemon, lime, or any combination thereof – well-scrubbed and chopped coarsely
1 tbsp strong black brewed tea
2 tbsp bee pollen (or 1 tsp yeast nutrient)
1 package of wine yeast
Good water sufficient to make up 1 gallon total
Procedure
prepare yeast starter
2. Sterilize honey-water by boiling to 10 minutes, skimming the froth as it rises
3. remove pot from heat, stir in fruit, tea, yeast nutrient. Allow to cool.
Pitch the Yesat
Pumpkin preparation:
Cut the top off, carefully making sure it will re-seat securely
Gut and clean it; rinse
Fill a plastic bucket full of hot water. Melt the parafiin wax on the surface of the water
Dip the pumpkin, bottom first, until it is coated up to the rim (do not get the wax inside)
Remove the coated pumpkin and quickly pour your prepared recipe into the body cavity of Mr. Jack. Leave about an inch of air space between the liquid and the rim of the opening. Top with water if needed.
Replace the top. Seal the seam with melted paraffin.
Place in a quiet dark spot for about 2 months
After 2 months, liberate the brew by breaking the seal and siphoning off into bottles. For you more cautious types, you might want to siphon off into a glass secondary, fit with an air lock for evaluation. If the fermentation is not complete and you bottle prematurely, the corks may blow and all your patient efforts will come to naught.
1 sound, large-bodied pumpkin-somewhere in the neighborhood of 1-gallon capacity (if you can’t find a jumbo-plumpo boy, use two smaller ‘kins and split the liquid between them)
3 pounds fall wildflower honey
1.5 unpeeled citrus fruits – orange, lemon, lime, or any combination thereof – well-scrubbed and chopped coarsely
1 tbsp strong black brewed tea
2 tbsp bee pollen (or 1 tsp yeast nutrient)
1 package of wine yeast
Good water sufficient to make up 1 gallon total
Procedure
prepare yeast starter
2. Sterilize honey-water by boiling to 10 minutes, skimming the froth as it rises
3. remove pot from heat, stir in fruit, tea, yeast nutrient. Allow to cool.
Pitch the Yesat
Pumpkin preparation:
Cut the top off, carefully making sure it will re-seat securely
Gut and clean it; rinse
Fill a plastic bucket full of hot water. Melt the parafiin wax on the surface of the water
Dip the pumpkin, bottom first, until it is coated up to the rim (do not get the wax inside)
Remove the coated pumpkin and quickly pour your prepared recipe into the body cavity of Mr. Jack. Leave about an inch of air space between the liquid and the rim of the opening. Top with water if needed.
Replace the top. Seal the seam with melted paraffin.
Place in a quiet dark spot for about 2 months
After 2 months, liberate the brew by breaking the seal and siphoning off into bottles. For you more cautious types, you might want to siphon off into a glass secondary, fit with an air lock for evaluation. If the fermentation is not complete and you bottle prematurely, the corks may blow and all your patient efforts will come to naught.
