Hi all,
I'm a new meadmaker, and I just checked one of my test batches. The recipe I used was this one (from what I can tell, a variant on Joe's Ancient Orange): http://www.stormthecastle.com/mead/fast-cheap-mead-making.htm
Actual amounts were:
1.5 kg Manuka honey
approx. 2-2.25 L spring water
1. red fleshed orange
1 packet of raisins
1 packet of Fleischmann's Traditional Active dry yeast
I didn't have what I needed to do any measurements at the beginning, but the mead log reads:
July 20, 2009: Mead aerated, primary fermentation begun
July 24, 2009: Mead checked, specific gravity 1.062 (estimate approx. 5% alcohol by volume, quite possibly more)
Aug. 16, 2009: Mead racked, specific gravity 1.0, 0% potential a.b.v., primary fermentation completed
So, here's the puzzler - test batch number two (same recipe, but with Acacia honey), which I did have the equipment to measure at the beginning, had a starting gravity of 1.120 (16% potential alcohol). Now, about 150g was lost to honey sticking on the inside of containers for the first batch that wasn't for the second. Still, though, the yeast, which supposedly has an alcohol tolerance of 12%, ate 15% or more's worth...
Anybody know how this is possible? Is this still a medium mead, or is this going to be a dry mead?
(For the record, the mead does not taste terribly dry at this point, and the flavors are mellowing nicely. Fermentation conditions were under a sink with a temperature fluctuating between 19-24 C due to lack of air conditioning, and due to a pouring taking place due to a lack of a wine thief, some oxygen was added on the 24th.)
Best to all,
Robert Marks
I'm a new meadmaker, and I just checked one of my test batches. The recipe I used was this one (from what I can tell, a variant on Joe's Ancient Orange): http://www.stormthecastle.com/mead/fast-cheap-mead-making.htm
Actual amounts were:
1.5 kg Manuka honey
approx. 2-2.25 L spring water
1. red fleshed orange
1 packet of raisins
1 packet of Fleischmann's Traditional Active dry yeast
I didn't have what I needed to do any measurements at the beginning, but the mead log reads:
July 20, 2009: Mead aerated, primary fermentation begun
July 24, 2009: Mead checked, specific gravity 1.062 (estimate approx. 5% alcohol by volume, quite possibly more)
Aug. 16, 2009: Mead racked, specific gravity 1.0, 0% potential a.b.v., primary fermentation completed
So, here's the puzzler - test batch number two (same recipe, but with Acacia honey), which I did have the equipment to measure at the beginning, had a starting gravity of 1.120 (16% potential alcohol). Now, about 150g was lost to honey sticking on the inside of containers for the first batch that wasn't for the second. Still, though, the yeast, which supposedly has an alcohol tolerance of 12%, ate 15% or more's worth...
Anybody know how this is possible? Is this still a medium mead, or is this going to be a dry mead?
(For the record, the mead does not taste terribly dry at this point, and the flavors are mellowing nicely. Fermentation conditions were under a sink with a temperature fluctuating between 19-24 C due to lack of air conditioning, and due to a pouring taking place due to a lack of a wine thief, some oxygen was added on the 24th.)
Best to all,
Robert Marks
