Mead help

[dragonphoenix73]

Hi,

I've been over at gotmead.com and been reading about making mead.... and I have to say it sounds rather complicated.

For those of you who have made a mead on this website, does it matter if it is 'brewed' in the standard plastic fermenters we use for homebrew? Everyone over at gotmead.com talk about using glass carboys.

And if I racked a mead into a demijohn, could I leave it in that until ready to serve (I don't want carbonated) instead of bottling?

A few people mention putting yeast into the racked mead (the 2nd process) - is this necessary?

And (another yeast question), do I need to rehydrate the yeast before adding to intial fermentation, or can I just sprinkle it in?

Thanks all....

[yardglass]

No offence dragonphoenix73 but wouldn't the gang at gotmead.com be a bit more qualified to answer your q ?

the only bloke here i know of that has brewed a mead is Dogger, from his account it's a long process.

cheers

[rwh]

Yeah, never done it myself, but I have a friend who has... he talked about racking it like three times over a six month period, all in glass (because over that amount of time there'd be too much oxygen diffusing through plastic). So yeah, not for the faint of heart.

[NTRabbit]

I made my mead in plastic, didn't rack it, and just aged it for 6 months in 1L glass bottles. Turned out quite nice.

I would compare 6-12 months of aging racking between glass carboys to brewing with All Grain - probably gets you a nicer result, but not really that much nicer to justify the extra cost and effort.

[rwh]

Wow, that sounds a bit more like it. How long did primary take? And is it just honey, water, yeast nutrient and yeast?

[NTRabbit]

Primary took all of about 7-10 days, i used water, honey, yeast nutrient, champagne yeast, lemon juice and the fruit I desired (melomel rather than a plain mead)

Next time I might rack it once, just an average one to clear some sediment.

[dragonphoenix73]

Hey NTRabbit....

How did you go with the yeast nutrient? Is it worth going through all that process, as opposed to throwing yeast in alone?

Can you post up the recipe/process for me? that would be awesomely appreciated.....

My HBS has some second-hand demijohns quite cheap, so I think I may buy one anyway to rack it into. Plus it'll make for a visually spectacular thing come handfasting/wedding day...! That and it leaves me with fermenters to get back to brewing beer and ciders!

[rwh]

Ooh, which HBS and how much (I promise not to buy them all until you have yours)?

[dragonphoenix73]

Hmmmm..... I dunno if I should give away such a treasured secret....

Oh, OK - all in the name of supporting local small business....

Greensborough Home Brewing - don't know address or phone number, just how to get there.

The guy in there is a really nice bloke, helpful and smells like he makes nice beer (his own brews are stored all over the shop).

Unfortunately he doesn't have a website, but if you go over to pint.com.au, they have a map of all the home brew shops in Melbourne.



PS: and don't touch the 25L demi - thats mine!!!!

[rwh]

Haha yeah I know where it is, been there a couple of times. I won't go get a demi for at least a week or two, that long enough for you?

[dragonphoenix73]

sweet, have to wait until next pay-day anyway...

[dragonphoenix73]

Hey Dogger Dan, I have a question for you - sure hope you read this....

I read in one of your posts that you just pitch the yeast dry, ie just sprinkle it into the must in the fermenter..... am I reading that right?

I just picked up some really nice honey for $8/kg. A local guy has his own bees, so the honey is coming from all sorts of flowers dotted around the eastern suburbs, mainly natives I'd say, but plenty that wouldn't be. He only sells at local Farmers Markets too, staying on the eco-sustainability theme....

Are yeast nutrients fairly easy to get in Melbourne? Does anyone know? I hope so, I'll have to head out on Sat..... unless I get my home-brew addicted partner to go shopping again for me tomorrow....

Oh, and NTRabbit - she loved your story about impressing the girl with brewing mead. Are you still with the lass, or did your mead scare her off?

[DarkFaerytale]

tell me how you go with the honey dragonphoenix as i'm looking for a good supplier in SE melb

you should be able to get yeast nutriant from any home brew store

nothing wrong with sprinkling dry yeast but probably best to let it re-hydrate in some 30C water first IMO

-Phill

EDIT forgot to add that if your having trouble getting ahold on dogger dan you might find him over at Brodies Castle

[dragonphoenix73]

Thanks Phil.

His honey's good - we bought some for general consumption was the red stringybark - not the sweetest, but a full aroma and flavour.

[dragonphoenix73]

Hi,

Just to let you know, I put down this mead tonight.

Basically, I rehydrated a pack of Lalvin ec-1118 yeast, added 5kg honey to 2lt warm water, added yeast, then yeast nutrient, and poured it into fermenter, then splashingly added water (filtered) up to 20Lt. I read somewhere that splashing everything and stirring vigourously helps get O2 into the mix for the yeast.

Gravity reading was 1.085.

I plan to add spices during after I rack it in a week or two (whenever its time to rack...) - I'll let you know what spices and quanities then....



Oh - and my partner and I have come to a consensus on a name for this one: Nymph's Nectar..... I wanted Aphrodite's Panties, but she thought that was over-stepping the boundaries of good taste.....

[rwh]

Er, don't you need to boil the honey to kill any bacteria? Unless it's pasteurised I guess...

[dragonphoenix73]

I've read contradictory info on this matter.

Most 'commercial' honey has been heat-extracted, which means its probably devoid of said bacteria.

From the other point of view, cold-extraction means the honey is 'alive' - this is the honey you can use for anti-septic or other medicinal purposes. Will this make a difference to the Mead? I'll tell you in some months when I partake in a little tipple....

I've been looking at it this morning - its bubbling away nicely...

Is it a sign of madness that I talk to my brews like I do to my Vegies?

I've had a thought - once I rack this mead in a couple of weeks and throw in the spices, would throwing in another 5gm of yeast nutrient do anything?

[dragonphoenix73]

Er, don't you need to boil the honey to kill any bacteria? Unless it's pasteurised I guess...

This reminds me of a joke...

Q: what's the fastest food in the world?
A: Milk - because its 'past-your-eyes' before you drink it!!

[DarkFaerytale]

thats the worst joke... no more christmas crackers for you

personally i prefer to "steep" the honey in 60-70 degree water for half an hour or so instead of boiling as aparently boiling drives off some of the flavour. mind you this is a massively heated topic and i doubt there is any right way of doing it, just do what you think is right

i don't think any more yeast nutriant would do anything...altho i could be wrong as i have nothing to back that up

don't worry about talking to your fermenters i do it all the time, but if there talking back then you have to worry

-Phill

[dragonphoenix73]

No, I can't getmuch sense out of them.... just a lot of gurgling....