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Bottling my first batch, JAOM

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J

JTKirkland

NewBee
Registered Member
Sep 8, 2011
3
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Coastal Georgia
Greetings Friends:

I am excited to bottle my first ever batch of mead this weekend. I followed the Joe's Ancient Orange Mead recipe (substituting ginger for cinnamon) and have collected a herd of flip-top bottles.

My question is this:

Am I going to be sorry I bottled with flip-tops for long term storage?

I don't own any capping or corking equipment and would like to avoid purchasing said equipment until I decide whether I will be producing mead regularly.

Thanks in advance for any suggestions.

jtk
 
B

Boogaloo

Worker Bee
Registered Member
Sep 13, 2011
147
0
16
Silver Spring (right outside of DC)
JTKirkland said:
Greetings Friends:

I am excited to bottle my first ever batch of mead this weekend. I followed the Joe's Ancient Orange Mead recipe (substituting ginger for cinnamon) and have collected a herd of flip-top bottles.

My question is this:

Am I going to be sorry I bottled with flip-tops for long term storage?

I don't own any capping or corking equipment and would like to avoid purchasing said equipment until I decide whether I will be producing mead regularly.

Thanks in advance for any suggestions.

jtk
Click to expand...

Awesome!! and good luck with the JAO. I'm new here also and have my first batch of JAO going now as well.

Since I'm new I can only give you advice I've gathered myself. The first thing someone might tell you is that it's way better to bulk age than separating it into individual bottles. Also, some suggest not using flip top bottles for long term storage because the plastic rings can deteriorate overtime.

Good Luck!!!
 
schlapppy

schlapppy

NewBee
Registered Member
Feb 28, 2010
287
2
0
Cranberry Twp., PA
As far as swing tops goes...
It'd my preferred method. I like swing tops much better than wine bottles. I've aged some wine 2+ years in them... no problems. If gasket is looking beat up at all.. replace it. The cost is only a few cents. Have a few of them on hand for later on.

Bulk v Bottle aging
The generally prefer way to age is indeed in bulk, so each bottle has a fairly consistant taste. Also, the other benefite is that if it drops some more lees as it clears more, it will be easy to get rid of it before doing your bottling.
 
jlerner

jlerner

NewBee
Registered Member
Oct 22, 2011
61
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0
www.tactics3d.com
Congrats on your first batch! I too would prefer to bulk age, but if you want to enjoy one bottle at a time, then ZORKS might be useful. They are synthetic corks that do not require special corking equipment.

A question for the more experienced mead makers out there... does JT need to be concerned about bottle bombs if he uses a flip top? I have read that even with JAO, the yeast can start up again unless it has been sorbated...Can anyone weigh in on this?
 
Chevette Girl

Chevette Girl

All around BAD EXAMPLE
Moderator
Lifetime GotMead Patron
Apr 27, 2010
8,447
59
48
Ottawa, ON
Unless it's been stabilized or carboy-aged for at least a year, I almost always bottle in swing-tops or screw-tops, just so I can check on the batch (and relieve pressure if required) without removing corks. It's saved my butt a time or two, although I've only ever had one batch (out of about 40) of JAO or variants start up again in the bottles.
 
Chevette Girl

Chevette Girl

All around BAD EXAMPLE
Moderator
Lifetime GotMead Patron
Apr 27, 2010
8,447
59
48
Ottawa, ON
Boogaloo said:
I have two bottles of traditional in 750ml swing tops right now. I'm worried about opening them though. Scared of the little bit of oxygen getting in there. Would this little bit of oxygen ruin the mead?
Click to expand...

Just to put things in perspective, you've got what, a tablespoon or two in headspace volume? Oxygen is 22 % of air and unless you've got a vacuum situation in your bottle, it won't fill with fresh air if you're quick about it. Not that much exposure to start with.

It's probably not going to be a problem. Especially given that traditionals are pretty resistant to oxidation.
 
J

JTKirkland

NewBee
Registered Member
Sep 8, 2011
3
0
0
Coastal Georgia
Thanks!

Thank you for all the tips and advice! Maybe i'll delay my bottling activities until the mead gets some age on it. But I'm glad I hounded my pals for flip-tops....

jtk
 
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