Recent content by machalel

exactly what I need! *fingers crossed* thanks :)

Nope, no real tastings as yet. I ended up racking it a while ago (August?) to get it off all the sediment and dead yeast, and it had quite a nice banana smell to it. It tasted not too bad (was room-temp), but definitely in need of some aging. I'll probably get around to bottling it around...

Well it settled down, then i had a sample, decided it wasn't banana-ey enough (Muggus was right), so chopped up and added about 500g more bananas. That made it flare up again, although nowhere near as active as before. It's finished fermenting, and I've transfered it to another container for...

I'm super keen to hear how this turns out... I don't care what anyone else says, if there is something weird that you want to try, or a crazy experiement you want to attempt, as long as you are having fun in the process, go for it! Too many people in the world are afraid of going out on a...

bugger :( This one sounded really good.

Hmmm, from what i've read, most meadmakers don't bottle until it is clear. It will eventually clear on its own, but you might have a bit of sediment in the bottom of your bottles. As long as you don't have crazy temperatures, I would just leave them at room temperature :)

Wow, that pdf is quite insightful. I think i'll have to start getting organised to get this one going :)

Fruit has all dropped, starting to clear a bit, and no longer really gassy. SG has dropped to 0.997, so sitting around 11% at the moment. There is a nice bit of banana aroma / taste, but I think I might add another one or two, as it's a bit mild.

looks nice! you might have a bit of trouble when racking, with all the seeds from the figs!

Not personally, but I have heard of it being done before. Apparently the figs are quite subtle in flavour, but do give a very nice body and mouthfeel. If you want noticeable fig character then roughly 3 lbs per gallon (if dried) or 5 lbs per gallon (if fresh) is recommended. If you want quite...

hmm ok... I have also read that a 100% oat beer will be a bit "boring" and astringent. Reading a bit more, I might leave out the honey, just because it appears that it will ferment out reasonably dry already. Hence why I was thinking about the lactose to counteract the possible astringency...

As a learning activity & an exercise in experimentation, I was thinking about making an Oat based beer (although I'm not planning on doing it in the short-term, I'll wait until I have more experience with grains). A bit hard to find much information on it, but I have found a few references which...

damn, too late... This would be awesome in my Scotch Thistle Mead :(

RobSee - I would recommend storing it away and come back to it in a month. I have an Amber Ale that I added blood-plums to in a secondary for 2 weeks. After another 2 weeks bottle conditioning, it was sour and fruity and weird (not in a good way). I then left it for about a month and now it's...

Super Active Fermentation Power! http://www.flickr.com/photos/78456231@N05/...tream/lightbox/ Every now & then it also has mini "explosions" of activity. Little eddies will form, and bursts of particles will swirl around up to 2-3 times faster than what's in the video! This is one that...