Mead 2014.04

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For this session of beer church, we made mead. Instead of doing one large 5 gallon batch, which would have been really expensive (because honey ain't cheap, Honey!), we each made 1 gallon batches of mead. Each batch was flavored uniquely depending on who was making it.

Overview

  • Style: Mead
  • Codename: Myriad of Meads
  • Brewmaster: Eric Stein
  • Type: Honey Wine
  • Brewed: 2014-11-16

Brew Participants

Those who stuck through thick and thin:

  • Eric
  • Donna
  • Michael
  • Justin
  • Arturo
  • Joseph
  • Ryan

Brewing

Each participant had slightly different techniques for their brew. See below for individual recipes. These are listed roughly in the order that people actually made their mead.

Eric & Donna

Blueberry, Blackberry, Raspberry Mead

  • 7oz blueberries
  • 7oz blackberries
  • 7oz raspberries
  • 1 cup water

smash up all the berries and simmer all of above ingredients for a few minutes until largely liquefied. strain through cheesecloth, keep only liquid.

  • 46 oz unpasteurized honey

add all of the above to a pot with the berry juice and top up to 1 gallon with water. Heat while continaully stirring to 150F. You want to pasteurize and also dissolve all the honey without burning it at all.

  • Add 1 tsp LD carlson yeast nutrient and stir until dissolved.

Cool to 100F or below with an ice bath or other method and pour into a sterilized glass 1 gallon jug. (sterilize using Star San)

  • Add 1/2 tsp raspberry extract.

Cool to 75F and add yeast - 4184 sweet mead wyyeast, use 1/6th of a smackpack.

Michael

Justin

Blueberry and Raspberry Mead.

  • 48oz Sunny Hill Honey
  • Enough tap water to bring it up to a gallon
  • Heat mixture to 161 °F while stirring to pasteurize
  • Remove from Heat
  • Add 1tbsp Blueberry Extract
  • Add 2tbsp Raspberry Extract
  • Cool mixture to 80 °F
  • Transfer to 1 gallon jug
  • Add 1tsp Yeast Nutrient (Diammonium phosphate)
  • Add 20mL Wyeast Sweet Mead Yeast (4184)

The plan is to let it ferment for 1 or 2 weeks (until it's done), then transfer it to another container and let it age for roughly 11 months.

  • Initial Gravity: 1.114
  • Racking Gravity: ???
  • Final Gravity: ???

Arturo

Joseph

Ryan

Ginger and Nutmeg Mead

  • 3 lbs Honey
  • 3/4 oz grated fresh ginger
  • Some ground nutmeg (mistake, didn't realize we had whole nutmeg)
  • Some whole nutmeg
  • Added cold water to jug to top up to near 1 gal
  • 1 tsp Yeast Nutrient (Diammonium Phosphate)
  • 1/2 tsp Yeast Nutrient (B Vitamin Complex & Thiamine)

Fermenting notes:

  • Initial Gravity: 1.074
  • Racking Gravity: ???
  • Final Gravity: ???

Fermenting

  • Primary ferment: 1 gallon Carboy
  • 1tsp Yeast Nutrient (Diammonium Phosphate)
  • 20mL Wyeast Sweet Mead Yeast


Tasting Notes