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Mead Journal: Lemon Lime Mead
Jan. 28th, 2011 09:44 amOk, So I called in to work yesterday feeling blaa. Just a personal sanity day. I had the feeling that if I did go in to work that something aweful was going to happen. And I just couldn't deal with the day without at least 3 hrs more of sleep. So, I called in, went back to sleep and woke up 3 hours later. I guilted myself into making mead. I changed my normal style attempting to do a few things:
1. Make a lower alcohol mead.
2. Keep the good flavors.
3. Use a different type of yeast to promote more drinkablity and less alcohol content.
Here's the recipie so far:
4 gal of water
12 pounds of alfalpha honey
2 tablespoons of yeast nutrient (should have had one)
1 Tablespoon of Yeast Energizer (otherwise known as DAP)
1 Tablespoon of Lemon Zest
1 Tablespoon of Lime Zest
2 Packets of Notingham yeast
The Notingham has been suggested to me from the brew store to get a lower lager type of alcohol volume. I was going to use 1 packet but it seems that Notingham is slower starter than the Lavin D-47. I could smell the zest as I heated up the must to melt the honey. I found it quite pleasant. Citrusy honey. I plan on back sweetining it with 6 pounds in a galon of water to add volume and thin out the alcohol content by a few %. I know that if you take a 15% solution of 5 gal and add 1 1/2 gal it will bring the % down to about 12%. I don't think that Notingham will go that high.
Oh, and the curse of the day did affect me still. My Hydrometer broke, almost in the must. I think that it fell by my roomate opening a cabnet and he didn't notice. Either way I found out as I was tossing the yeast and getting a grav reading, By that time the brew store was closed so it was impossible to get a reading. Ah, well. Winging it on that end.
The smell was good and it had a darkish color. It was foaming up with a bit more foam, like beer foam, than I am used to and the fermentation hasn't reached the crazy stage yet. It was only getting started. Beings it's winter, I can gaurentee fermentation temp of around 60-65 for the primary. I have it by my sliding glass door where it can get rather cool when the heats not on. In the summer it would be hot.
Once out of the primary, I plan on adding 2 cups of lemon juice and 1 cup of lime, as lime is more potent than lemon. I may add 1/2 cup of each more, still not sure. My Lime came out very well and with that I just used juice and added 1 cup the the primary and 2 cups to the secondary for a 5 gal batch, with no zest. I have seen many recipies that have zest only for a lime or lemon or even orange flavor. That is were the oils are. I figured that I would try it and see, this will also allow me to use less juice than I did with the lime. We shall see.
Next Up, hopefully sunday, Start of the primary of the Bluebery lemon mead, starting off the primary with some lemon zest.
Other Projects update:
Pumpkin Toasted Almond Spice: Took out the spices and the 2 pounds of toasted almonds. I tried to dry the almonds and tasted it, had a funny off taste that I can only assume was the yeast. I tried grinding it to powder with some sugar and tasted it, and had my wife taste it. Both were horrible. The almond flavor is definitely extracted leaving a sour, yeastlike icky flavored cardboard. Not good for anything but compost. Too bad I don't compost. On another note, I put some pumpkin seeds in a jar, they were wet. The seeds apear to have germinated and should be excelent for planting this spring. I wanted to see if I can get some pumpkins, though I don't expect to. It would make another pumpkin mead easier and homegrown.
Peach Spearmint: I put the organic spearmint that I got from Herbs and Arts in the peach mead, which still hasn't cleared well. need to Sparkloid it. I put in the carboy the muslin bag that had about 2 tablespoons of dried spearmint in it. Plan on leaving it only a week. That way I can be sure not to overdue the flavor. I want a light spearmint with the peach. I plan on taking out the Spearmint on Sunday and if I am extra ambicous then I will rack it on to some sparkloid and potasium sorbate to clear it and end the fermentation.
Raspberry: It is still cloudy from the honey back sweetening, I plan on racking onto the clarifyer of Sparkloid as well. I haven't oaked it or added the Thyme yet. Waiting for fresh thyme from spring. Oaking and spicing will most likely come last. Going to go light on the thyme as well.
Future: So I picked up 1 pound of Malto Dextrin. A non-fermentable sugar that is supposed to add a very creamy body to beers, wines and the like. I plan on using it in my chocolate mead that I have sloted in the future. I need to find a source for coco nibs and roast them to bring out the flavor and then grind them coarse. Plan on doing that with 2 vanilla beans and back sweetening with the Malto-dexterin. I have many Ideas but I will put it here:
What flavors of mead do you think would be great? Make your suggestions, I may try it. I am looking to develop some sophisticated flavors, usually pairing a spice with a fruit or a couple of fruits. Looking to make some fairly complex and yummy flavors. What do you all think would be good?
1. Make a lower alcohol mead.
2. Keep the good flavors.
3. Use a different type of yeast to promote more drinkablity and less alcohol content.
Here's the recipie so far:
4 gal of water
12 pounds of alfalpha honey
2 tablespoons of yeast nutrient (should have had one)
1 Tablespoon of Yeast Energizer (otherwise known as DAP)
1 Tablespoon of Lemon Zest
1 Tablespoon of Lime Zest
2 Packets of Notingham yeast
The Notingham has been suggested to me from the brew store to get a lower lager type of alcohol volume. I was going to use 1 packet but it seems that Notingham is slower starter than the Lavin D-47. I could smell the zest as I heated up the must to melt the honey. I found it quite pleasant. Citrusy honey. I plan on back sweetining it with 6 pounds in a galon of water to add volume and thin out the alcohol content by a few %. I know that if you take a 15% solution of 5 gal and add 1 1/2 gal it will bring the % down to about 12%. I don't think that Notingham will go that high.
Oh, and the curse of the day did affect me still. My Hydrometer broke, almost in the must. I think that it fell by my roomate opening a cabnet and he didn't notice. Either way I found out as I was tossing the yeast and getting a grav reading, By that time the brew store was closed so it was impossible to get a reading. Ah, well. Winging it on that end.
The smell was good and it had a darkish color. It was foaming up with a bit more foam, like beer foam, than I am used to and the fermentation hasn't reached the crazy stage yet. It was only getting started. Beings it's winter, I can gaurentee fermentation temp of around 60-65 for the primary. I have it by my sliding glass door where it can get rather cool when the heats not on. In the summer it would be hot.
Once out of the primary, I plan on adding 2 cups of lemon juice and 1 cup of lime, as lime is more potent than lemon. I may add 1/2 cup of each more, still not sure. My Lime came out very well and with that I just used juice and added 1 cup the the primary and 2 cups to the secondary for a 5 gal batch, with no zest. I have seen many recipies that have zest only for a lime or lemon or even orange flavor. That is were the oils are. I figured that I would try it and see, this will also allow me to use less juice than I did with the lime. We shall see.
Next Up, hopefully sunday, Start of the primary of the Bluebery lemon mead, starting off the primary with some lemon zest.
Other Projects update:
Pumpkin Toasted Almond Spice: Took out the spices and the 2 pounds of toasted almonds. I tried to dry the almonds and tasted it, had a funny off taste that I can only assume was the yeast. I tried grinding it to powder with some sugar and tasted it, and had my wife taste it. Both were horrible. The almond flavor is definitely extracted leaving a sour, yeastlike icky flavored cardboard. Not good for anything but compost. Too bad I don't compost. On another note, I put some pumpkin seeds in a jar, they were wet. The seeds apear to have germinated and should be excelent for planting this spring. I wanted to see if I can get some pumpkins, though I don't expect to. It would make another pumpkin mead easier and homegrown.
Peach Spearmint: I put the organic spearmint that I got from Herbs and Arts in the peach mead, which still hasn't cleared well. need to Sparkloid it. I put in the carboy the muslin bag that had about 2 tablespoons of dried spearmint in it. Plan on leaving it only a week. That way I can be sure not to overdue the flavor. I want a light spearmint with the peach. I plan on taking out the Spearmint on Sunday and if I am extra ambicous then I will rack it on to some sparkloid and potasium sorbate to clear it and end the fermentation.
Raspberry: It is still cloudy from the honey back sweetening, I plan on racking onto the clarifyer of Sparkloid as well. I haven't oaked it or added the Thyme yet. Waiting for fresh thyme from spring. Oaking and spicing will most likely come last. Going to go light on the thyme as well.
Future: So I picked up 1 pound of Malto Dextrin. A non-fermentable sugar that is supposed to add a very creamy body to beers, wines and the like. I plan on using it in my chocolate mead that I have sloted in the future. I need to find a source for coco nibs and roast them to bring out the flavor and then grind them coarse. Plan on doing that with 2 vanilla beans and back sweetening with the Malto-dexterin. I have many Ideas but I will put it here:
What flavors of mead do you think would be great? Make your suggestions, I may try it. I am looking to develop some sophisticated flavors, usually pairing a spice with a fruit or a couple of fruits. Looking to make some fairly complex and yummy flavors. What do you all think would be good?