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Blueberry Mead

Barrel Char Wood Products

pearlheartgtr

NewBee
Registered Member
Mar 27, 2006
29
0
0
Hey all!

Here's the recipe:
1 gallon batch
2lbs frozen blueberries
approximately 3 1/2lbs (maybe a bit more)clover honey
1 cinnamon stick
splash of vanilla extract
about 1/2 tsp of nutmeg
1 tbsp bread yeast

I basically followed the AO recipe.

It bubbled wildly for about 3 weeks or so and not without an initail blow-up all over the cabinet. I waited til the bubbling stopped and gave it a couple of days before I racked it the other day.

I gave it a taste and it is real blueberry sweet with a lot of body to it. To me, it is too sweet, but my parents (in house guinea pigs) say it is good and not to futz with it. I topped off the carboy (about a pint of filtered water) and we are still too sweet for my taste.

I was wondering if it would be wise to restart fermentation with a dry yeast and let it ride to get out some of the sweetness and up the alcohol level. I couldn't tell you the alcohol level since I didn't check it with a hydrometer.

Maybe I should just leave it alone, bottle it and try another batch with a drier yeast. That might be my best bet. See how indecisive I am?
 

Oskaar

Got Mead Partner
Administrator
Dec 26, 2004
7,874
8
0
34
The OC
Hey Pearl,

When I end up with a mead that is a bit sweeter or drier than what I was shooting for I'll generally make up another batch of the same stuff with more or less honey, and end up blending them. That's my preference.

I think at this point it's a good idea for you to take a gravity reading and post it so we can get an idea of where you are based on this recipe. I'll guess that it should be somewhere between 1.060-1.090 or higher. Let us know. There are other options too, but we need to know what the current gravity is.

Cheers,

Oskaar
 

memento

NewBee
Registered Member
Aug 3, 2005
379
1
0
53
www.flickr.com
This all depends on how we perceived sweet. My mother loves 1.070, so I saved her some of my cyser at that point, but that is way too sweet for me - and I don't even care for dry wines. Someone who likes dry wines could easily find 1.015 too sweet.

You may also want to let it age a bit. The taste will definitely change, slthough it probably won't get any less sweet.
 

palecricket1

NewBee
Registered Member
Jul 8, 2005
165
0
0
It seems like the problem is that you started with a potential alcohol level of a whopping 18%. Bread yeast usually doesn't go past 12-14%, unless you step feed it (which I don't reccomend). The calculator says your OG should be around 1.133. If you want a drier mead next time, shoot for around 2.5-3 pounds of honey instead of 3.5. That'll bring you're PA between 12-15%, which is much more feasible for bread yeast and should leave you a little residual sugar. Or you could keep the same amount of honey and use a stronger yeast like KI V1116 or EC 1118, which can handle 18% ABV.
 

pearlheartgtr

NewBee
Registered Member
Mar 27, 2006
29
0
0
Thanks guys!

I have to grab a new hydrometer from work (I work in a pet store)and check my SG.

Next time I'll go with about 2lbs of honey since I didn't realize how much the blueberries would sweeten it. This batch amd my forthcoming raspberry batch were tests to see what I can do with bread yeast.

As it sits, it is sweet with strong blueberry aroma and taste and as I mentioned before, very sweet. It might be me because I am not into sweet alcohol drinks but my personal guinea pigs (mom and dad) find it very pleasing. I am bottling it this week and next month I am taking it to the grand inquisitor of wines and all things alcohol, my aunt, to see what she thinks of it.

I see this one as being an after dinner cordial myself.

But I'll get a new hydrometer (since the ones I do have were used for my marine tanks at home) and give it a whirl.
 
Barrel Char Wood Products

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