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The Extra Strong Weak Mead

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Overfiend

NewBee
Registered Member
Jul 20, 2005
3
0
0
Hi. First time I've posted, although I've been lurking for many many months. The reason I haven't posted is that I don't consider my own creations to be mead. Although they contain honey, I can only ever afford to put one pound of honey in the mix at a time (and yes, money really really is that tight).

I have been brewing all sorts for ages, but the first mead I tried was the one found here http://www.greydragon.org/brewing/mead.html#Robyyan

Obviously I wasn't expecting a very high alcohol content, but I found it pleasant to drink. I made more, but this time removed the ginger and added 300g normal cane sugar (just to give it a bit of kick ;) )
The weirdest thing happened. It started fermenting, but in five days it had fermented, and in seven days in had cleared in the primary fermenter!

Assuming I'd killed the yeast, I cursed, bottled at anyway (never hurts to keep it, just incase) and started another. After two days I tried it, and it was gorgeous! Very light, slightly sparkling, and was the perfect accompanyment to a sunny afternoon in the back garden watching the weeds grow. It obviously had a decent alcohol content, because I woke up with a splitting hangover.

The second batch, although brewed for longer, never reached the same standard. My most recent brew has cleared after 6 days. I'm thinking some nutrient may be in order, and that the yeast is dying very quickly because there's no nutrients for it. Would you agree with that?

Also, since I've so many money problems, any suggestions for cheap ingredients for mead would be appreciated ;D

Cheers
 

Overfiend

NewBee
Registered Member
Jul 20, 2005
3
0
0
Actually it was a really hot spell when this was brewing. It probably churned away at high speed the first few days, then the heat became too much and it died very quickly. I may have answered my own question.

Oh, and it was 3/4 of a sachet of ale yeast I used, not a quarter as in the recipe.

Anyway, its nice to tell people about my experiments :)
 

briankettering

NewBee
Registered Member
Jun 2, 2005
174
0
0
You are not the only one experimenting with short meads (meads made with a small amount of honey). Last year I did an experiment making 4 half-gallon batches of mead using only a cup of honey in each batch. They all ended up very dry.

This shows the importance of keeping good brewing log notes. That way if you want to re-create a wonderful batch, you know the ingredients, procedure, and even the brewing environment to start with.

Brian K
 
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