home brew Sour Green Apple Mead

[Quietmaninthecorner 1,945]

 

[Tiger Refuge 6,662]

Dammit, that looks good!

[Quietmaninthecorner 1,945]

7 minutes ago, Tiger Refuge said:

Dammit, that looks good!

Taste test at bottling was young,  but delicious.    I need to wait 'til thanksgiving or longer to let it age before opening one.   I'm not sure I can make it that long with this batch.  There are 3 bottles not in the picture that have cinnamon sticks added  to make them green apple  pie  mead.

[Tiger Refuge 6,662]

37 minutes ago, Quietmaninthecorner said:

Taste test at bottling was young,  but delicious.    I need to wait 'til thanksgiving or longer to let it age before opening one.   I'm not sure I can make it that long with this batch.  There are 3 bottles not in the picture that have cinnamon sticks added  to make them green apple  pie  mead.

Mead is something I haven't gotten into big yet. I bought a bottle from a local meadery (that subsequently burned to the ground and is rebuilding) that I am sitting on until the fall/winter. I always have my eye out for other bottles when I travel, especially Schrams(sp?).

[Quietmaninthecorner 1,945]

Just now, Tiger Refuge said:

Mead is something I haven't gotten into big yet. I bought a bottle from a local meadery (that subsequently burned to the ground and is rebuilding) that I am sitting on until the fall/winter. I always have my eye out for other bottles when I travel, especially Schrams(sp?).

Try brewing mead.   It is extremely easy.  No boiling or dealing with wort.  Just mix it up and wait,  and wait and wait and wait.   Like beer,  complete and obsessive sanitation is the key.   If everything is sanitized it is hard to screw it up.

[Tiger Refuge 6,662]

1 minute ago, Quietmaninthecorner said:

Try brewing mead.   It is extremely easy.  No boiling or dealing with wort.  Just mix it up and wait,  and wait and wait and wait.   Like beer,  complete and obsessive sanitation is the key.   If everything is sanitized it is hard to screw it up.

I have a good buddy that sent me his base mead recipe a little while back. He indicated exactly what you did.

 

I have a hankering to make a mead with some of our local wild fruit...kinda like a mix between a cranberry and muscadine...it's called mayhaw. Very popular to make jelly with. 

[Quietmaninthecorner 1,945]

17 minutes ago, Tiger Refuge said:

I have a good buddy that sent me his base mead recipe a little while back. He indicated exactly what you did.

 

I have a hankering to make a mead with some of our local wild fruit...kinda like a mix between a cranberry and muscadine...it's called mayhaw. Very popular to make jelly with. 

DO IT!   you can make mead out of just about anything.   from peppermint candies and runt candy to rose petals to any fruit or berry or pepper.  Follow a recipe to start until you understand the relation of quantity of sugar,  and what is the max Alcohol the yeast can produce before the alcohol becomes toxic to them.  Then you can control the sweetness.

 

A mead made with berries is called a melomel.   There is a specific name for just about everything you can make in a mead.  They are all technically meads tho.

tip:  hard freeze fresh fruit before introducing it to the must (mead wort).  It will break up the cells and increase flavor.

 

edit:  BTW,  if the mayhaws are not in season,  you can make mead out of jell/jam/ or preserves. You just need to account for the sugar in the jellies.

Edited September 18, 2021 by Quietmaninthecorner

[Tiger Refuge 6,662]

9 minutes ago, Quietmaninthecorner said:

DO IT!   you can make mead out of just about anything.   from peppermint candies and runt candy to rose petals to any fruit or berry or pepper.  Follow a recipe to start until you understand the relation of quantity of sugar,  and what is the max Alcohol the yeast can produce before the alcohol becomes toxic to them.  Then you can control the sweetness.

 

A mead made with berries is called a melomel.   There is a specific name for just about everything you can make in a mead.  They are all technically meads tho.

tip:  hard freeze fresh fruit before introducing it to the must (mead wort).  It will break up the cells and increase flavor.

See, this is the REAL reason I come here.

 

Thanks for the tip! I gotta go gather some ingredients now…

[Quietmaninthecorner 1,945]

25 minutes ago, Tiger Refuge said:

See, this is the REAL reason I come here.

 

Thanks for the tip! I gotta go gather some ingredients now…

https://www.amazon.com/Home-Brew-Ohio-Twinbubble-Polyseal/dp/B01BO12A0G/ref=asc_df_B01BO12A0G/?tag=hyprod-20&linkCode=df0&hvadid=312150499647&hvpos=&hvnetw=g&hvrand=801667872737217300&hvpone=&hvptwo=&hvqmt=&hvdev=c&hvdvcmdl=&hvlocint=&hvlocphy=9025798&hvtargid=pla-570563116735&psc=1&tag=&ref=&adgrpid=67825985171&hvpone=&hvptwo=&hvadid=312150499647&hvpos=&hvnetw=g&hvrand=801667872737217300&hvqmt=&hvdev=c&hvdvcmdl=&hvlocint=&hvlocphy=9025798&hvtargid=pla-570563116735

you will also need a hydrometer. This is a must have!  or you will only be gussing when you brew is ready for bottling.  Don't forget to take a reading as soon as everything is mixed.    https://www.amazon.com/Lab-Hydrometers/b/ref=dp_bc_aui_C_4?ie=UTF8&node=393263011

 and swing top bottles unless you have a bottle capper.  you can get them at bars ask a bartender to save some and go in right before they close to pick them up.

Honey 3-4 pounds per gallon.  It is the most expensive ingredient /equipment.     yeast,  spring water, fruit or no fruit.   

Spend the money and get this yeast for your first mead... (cheaper when you feel more confident picking a yeast. but I just use the below brand now  now)    

https://kegfactory.com/products/oyl-401-sundew-ale-yeast?gclid=Cj0KCQjwnJaKBhDgARIsAHmvz6f5MwN9ueHV_2CJq3Vo0ijtMjLSOW6-EKMSkUEZJ5oCWEanZch3lhUaAjJmEALw_wcB

This yeast is pricey but AWESOME.    and  is not so temperature reliant.   you wont have to worry about a stalled fermentation with it.  This pack will do 4-5 gallons.   I use 2 times as much as it calls for.  like 2 ounces for a 1 gallon it called for one.   You can't over-do yeast unless you get ridiculous with it. I once accidently dumped 5 gallons worth of yeast into   one gallon of must.   Turned out fine.

Edited September 18, 2021 by Quietmaninthecorner