15 pounds dandelion/alfalfa/clover honey
4 gal water dipped from continents biggest fresh water spring
2 tsp yeast nutrient
1 tsp yeast energizer
10 grams lavlin ec 1118 yeast
Oh yeah 3 pounds more honey after I realized I had screwed the pooch, used wrong yeast and it was going to work out real dry.
My first venture at mead making was derived from Mr. Schramm's Compleat Guide to Mead Making and I chose to use his recipe for a medium sweet Orange blossom honey, his recommendation for a first attempt. Well since I am a Montana beekeeper with forty some gallons of my own honey and I couldn't find anyone who wanted to sell me affordably OBH, I used my own. Then some way or another I used the wrong yeast. So to make my long story shorter, I have ended up with some still settling torpedo fuel that went from SG 1.125 to just over 1 ; and how to I adjust for honey added in the middle of the fermentation? It was in the primary for four weeks at about 66 degrees. I worried about it being that cool, but decided it would be better to leave it alone than change conditions. After a couple weeks it was still actively working and I added three more pounds of honey. I realized that i had somehow brain froze and used the wrong yeast. When it had mostly stopped working, I racked it off into a carboy and managed to lose syphon twice and had know I got a lot of air into it! I know I got pye eyed sucking on hose to get syphon back, not wanting to spit on the carpet. It has now been in the secondary for eight more weeks and I have never observed a single bubble thru the fermentation lock. It is still pretty murky and I am debating racking it again as there is about two inches of cloudy loose white muck at the bottom of the carboy. I had a liter coke bottle full of it in my refrigerator that I periodically sample. It has clarified completely and left a thin hard cake on the bottom. It is starting to taste like it might have a future but is pretty non descript, highly alcoholic, with a light citrus taste. Where did that come from? Now for questions. Should I put it outside and chill it as I wonder if chilling is what clarified the sample in the fridge and then rack it again? It is going to be in the twenties and thirties and it would chill without freezing pretty quickly.
I believe that the mead would easily bear the insult of being adulterated with say raspberry juice or peach or such from concentrate and served that way for the holidays. Is that worth a shot? I am satisfied to reserve most of it for a year or more if anyone thinks it might refine into something worth waiting for. I think if I carbonated it and corked it and layed it away, it would be at least as good as most of the champagne I have been fed over the years. Any and all comments gratefully recieved. You don't need to tell me I am a fool who can't follow directions, I know that already:<}
4 gal water dipped from continents biggest fresh water spring
2 tsp yeast nutrient
1 tsp yeast energizer
10 grams lavlin ec 1118 yeast
Oh yeah 3 pounds more honey after I realized I had screwed the pooch, used wrong yeast and it was going to work out real dry.
My first venture at mead making was derived from Mr. Schramm's Compleat Guide to Mead Making and I chose to use his recipe for a medium sweet Orange blossom honey, his recommendation for a first attempt. Well since I am a Montana beekeeper with forty some gallons of my own honey and I couldn't find anyone who wanted to sell me affordably OBH, I used my own. Then some way or another I used the wrong yeast. So to make my long story shorter, I have ended up with some still settling torpedo fuel that went from SG 1.125 to just over 1 ; and how to I adjust for honey added in the middle of the fermentation? It was in the primary for four weeks at about 66 degrees. I worried about it being that cool, but decided it would be better to leave it alone than change conditions. After a couple weeks it was still actively working and I added three more pounds of honey. I realized that i had somehow brain froze and used the wrong yeast. When it had mostly stopped working, I racked it off into a carboy and managed to lose syphon twice and had know I got a lot of air into it! I know I got pye eyed sucking on hose to get syphon back, not wanting to spit on the carpet. It has now been in the secondary for eight more weeks and I have never observed a single bubble thru the fermentation lock. It is still pretty murky and I am debating racking it again as there is about two inches of cloudy loose white muck at the bottom of the carboy. I had a liter coke bottle full of it in my refrigerator that I periodically sample. It has clarified completely and left a thin hard cake on the bottom. It is starting to taste like it might have a future but is pretty non descript, highly alcoholic, with a light citrus taste. Where did that come from? Now for questions. Should I put it outside and chill it as I wonder if chilling is what clarified the sample in the fridge and then rack it again? It is going to be in the twenties and thirties and it would chill without freezing pretty quickly.
I believe that the mead would easily bear the insult of being adulterated with say raspberry juice or peach or such from concentrate and served that way for the holidays. Is that worth a shot? I am satisfied to reserve most of it for a year or more if anyone thinks it might refine into something worth waiting for. I think if I carbonated it and corked it and layed it away, it would be at least as good as most of the champagne I have been fed over the years. Any and all comments gratefully recieved. You don't need to tell me I am a fool who can't follow directions, I know that already:<}
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) you should try something like this again with different yeasts to find the right combo that really lets the honey character shine through.
