Jao The Ultimate Beginners Mead Recipe

[nuggetron]

my chocolate one has been in the fermentor for about 12 months now

12 months!!!! soooo patient!!!!
i put down a 44 liqueur yesterday and ive checked it like 20 times in 24 hours

 

[barls]

not really, i lost it in behind my sours. only found it the other day.

 

[cam89brewer]

I am about to go ahead with my first mead and the only thing I am unsure about is the fact of bottling something that in not carbonated and the layer of oxygen in the bottle.
How do you go about preventing this or doesn't this cause oxidation and off/stale Flavours?

 

[cam89brewer]

I am about to go ahead with my first mead and the only thing I am unsure about is the fact of bottling something that in not carbonated and the layer of oxygen in the bottle.
How do you go about preventing this or doesn't this cause oxidation and off/stale Flavours?

I am guessing this is one of those times where everyone thinks I should do more research? But I cant find anything.

 

[glenwal]

I am guessing this is one of those times where everyone thinks I should do more research? But I cant find anything.

Does this help?

 

[cam89brewer]

Does this help?

Yes thanks heaps for that! I suppose it must be pretty easy to miss something when there are 30+ pages to go through. :lol:

 

[FuzzyDropbear]

Hi Pete, thanks for the recipe, I've only really had a tiny sample of mead but was quite intrigued by it so thought I would give it a whirl. Put it down on Tuesday night and amazed at how simple it was (I know what I'll be doing next time I can't get to sleep). Talking to the guys at the homebrew shop, they gave me plenty of ideas on what can be done with meads so if all goes well then JAO might end up becoming a permanent feature next to the beers.

It's currently bubbling away in the living room but I'll move it into my fermentation freezer alongside the cider I have brewing as the temps a bit more stable in there. Might keep it a bit happier during some of these chilly Ballarat days.

Cheers. :beer:

 

[FuzzyDropbear]

Hi guys, the recipe says that after a couple of days when the foaming subsides that you should add some extra water, just wondering how much I should be looking to add and what the purpose of the extra water is?

I was thinking of just adding a couple of hundred mL to bring it up to 4L, or is more required?

Cheers.

 

[nuggetron]

what final gravity should we be aiming for? using the original posted recipe

 

[Jeff_beazley]

Firstly - thanks for the recipe!

I've just finished putting together 2 demijohns (one with less honey) however it's been about 6 hours and the honey is still very much undissolved at the bottom.

Is this normal? Will it eventually dissolve?

Thanks in advance.

Jeff

 

[Danwood]

My father in law is an apiarist in Mildura...I really should pull my finger out and have a go at a mead :lol: .

 

[Rob S]

Bottling today after 4+ months in the demijohn. The oranges dropped last week, weeks after the fermentation seemed to stop. Going to put it in 330ml stubbies as i only have about 4 litres. Going to prime half with sugar & leave the other half unprimed.

 

[FuzzyDropbear]

Firstly - thanks for the recipe! I've just finished putting together 2 demijohns (one with less honey) however it's been about 6 hours and the honey is still very much undissolved at the bottom. Is this normal? Will it eventually dissolve? Thanks in advance. Jeff

Hi Jeff, did you dissolve the honey in hot water as per the recipe or did you just bung it in? Actually, after reading back a couple of pages (thought I'd read it somewhere) someone stated that the honey will eventually dissolve, it may just take a while.
Cheers.
Rob
edit: To correct statement.

 

[Jeff_beazley]

Hi Jeff, did you dissolve the honey in hot water as per the recipe or did you just bung it in? Actually, after reading back a couple of pages (thought I'd read it somewhere) someone stated that the honey will eventually dissolve, it may just take a while.
Cheers.
Rob
edit: To correct statement.

Hi rob, I just dissolved it in some warm water to make it easier to work with (original recipe said not to boil). I didn't see the post saying it will dissolve after time, but I guess I'll just leave it to work it's magic! Thanks for the info!
Jeff

 

[nuggetron]

ok so my mead was fermenting it has stopped but its now on 1.040
no where near whatit should be?
ive kinda made an adjustment to the bottle so it cant be turned to add more yeast unless i risk losing some liquid gold
thoughts? is it done? its been on 1.040 for a month and a half
out of the fridge and on a stool in the garage

 

[Gop]

I made another batch of this but no orange and about twice the honey. I left it for about 3 months and it was quite clear, though not fully since our bees make "town honey" a dark honey which occurs as the bees visit all different flowers.

Anyway, the mead tastes great but it's about 14% or maybe more. I'm used to drinking from my half pint cup and nearly fell off my chair! It's a good recipe - recommended.

 

[mestoth]

Laid down my first double batch

2 X 5 Litre Demis currently doing the yeast thing.

Need to re-read but regarding topping up with water after a couple of days...to what volume? or is it just to top it back to the 3.8L mark previously established?

 

[Mr. No-Tip]

My fruit dropped last week so I've had it chilled for a few days in the hope of settling out the yeast...it's still pretty looseley caked - looks very cloudy in this photo as I've just moved it to the kitchen fridge from the brew fridge...

...but my main interest/concern is those spots (on the glass, not in the mead - that's some refloated raisins) . There was a bit of bread yeast on the walls that got stuck as I pitched. I guess this is the point of the growth....be interesting to see if it effects the taste/kills me...

 

[FuzzyDropbear]

Can't imagine the yeast would affect the flavour much, it's only what's in the mead anyway.

I just bottled mine last night. Had some of the leftover as a sampler and wow, what a kick. I haven't tried mead before but it's quite, dunno how to describe it, rich(?) maybe. I don't think I could sit there and knock it back, maybe as a desert wine or something over a couple of hours. The missus was impressed though, so thanks for sharing Pete :icon_cheers: I think this will be a nice Christmas present to a couple of family friends.

For the yeast I bought from my local HBS for my breadmaking, I'd have to up the honey for the next one to balance out some of the dryness I think.

On another note, would mead go off or go funny if I was to chuck it a port barrel? I was just thinking because I'll probably only have it as a nightcap type drink so I'm not sure if I'd finish a longneck.

 

[thanme]

Hi guys. A quick couple of questions.
After spending ages saying "Ooh I should make that", I finally pulled my finger out and did it. I have 2 5L Demijohns both using different types of honey. They've been sitting in my kitchen cupboard now since the end of June (so we're coming in to week 12) and I'm yet to see it go clear. At what stage should I start to worry?? That being said, I have noticed the oranges starting to sink this week. Is it worth sampling/gravity testing, or should i just sit tight for a bit longer?