Homebrewers of ENWorld (A Thread About Beer, Wine, and Mead)

[CleverNickName]

Started a new batch last Monday, since I had the day off.

Cherry Mead (Melomel)
10 lbs. wildflower honey
1 gal. sour cherry juice, unsweetened
2 gal. boiling water
2 gal. chilled water
Mangrove Jack's^TM M05 Mead Yeast

Instructions:

1. Smack the yeast in a solution of 1 pint of lukewarm water and 1 oz. liquid malt extract.
2. Combine the honey and the boiling water, and check the temperature. The mixture should exceed 185°F...if not, add more boiling water.
3. Let rest 10 minutes, then add the cherry juice and remaining water. Check temperature, it should be at or below 95°F. If not, wait.
4. Check and record the specific gravity, then pitch the yeast.
5. Ferment to completion at 72°F, then rack, clarify, and bottle.

Mine started with a specific gravity of 1.101 (24 Brix). It's bubbling away cheerfully in my kitchen right now; I'll let ya'll know how it turns out. It smells fantastic, so I've got that going for me.

 

[Ralif Redhammer]

That sounds like it'll be a nice balance between the honey and cherry flavors!

Started a new batch last Monday, since I had the day off.

Cherry Mead (Melomel)
10 lbs. wildflower honey
1 gal. sour cherry juice, unsweetened
2 gal. boiling water
2 gal. chilled water
Mangrove Jack's^TM M05 Mead Yeast

Instructions:

1. Smack the yeast in a solution of 1 pint of lukewarm water and 1 oz. liquid malt extract.
2. Combine the honey and the boiling water, and check the temperature. The mixture should exceed 185°F...if not, add more boiling water.
3. Let rest 10 minutes, then add the cherry juice and remaining water. Check temperature, it should be at or below 95°F. If not, wait.
4. Check and record the specific gravity, then pitch the yeast.
5. Ferment to completion at 72°F, then rack, clarify, and bottle.

Mine started with a specific gravity of 1.101 (24 Brix). It's bubbling away cheerfully in my kitchen right now; I'll let ya'll know how it turns out. It smells fantastic, so I've got that going for me.

I just bottled my latest mead. It's a sweeter, less alcoholic mead than my past efforts. I added juniper, cinnamon, and lemon, but all that really came through from those is the lemon.

Not sure what I'm going to do next. I'm contemplating something radical and weird, like adding mushrooms.

 

[CleverNickName]

@Ralif Redhammer Nice label art!

I really wanted to use meadowfoam honey, but I couldn't find it anywhere (for a reasonable price, anyway). I like the marshmallow-y, vanilla flavor it brings.

Ah well, wildflower will have to do.

 

[Hex08]

I recently started brewing and I'm enjoying it. I made an IPA which turned out ok, I'm currently drinking my second batch, an American Pale which turned out pretty good. My next, which I will probably start this weekend, will be a Red. I'm currently using kits since it seems like an easier way to learn.

 

[Ralif Redhammer]

Thanks! I took the art from Doug Kovacs' illustration of Sezrekan the Mad.

For my honey, I am generally torn between flavor and economy. When you're buying that much honey, it can get expensive.

@Ralif Redhammer Nice label art!

I really wanted to use meadowfoam honey, but I couldn't find it anywhere (for a reasonable price, anyway). I like the marshmallow-y, vanilla flavor it brings.

Ah well, wildflower will have to do.

 

[CleverNickName]

Thanks! I took the art from Doug Kovacs' illustration of Sezrekan the Mad.

For my honey, I am generally torn between flavor and economy. When you're buying that much honey, it can get expensive.

I feel ya. Orange blossom honey and meadowfoam are my favorites to make mead with, but I've seen them at $12/pound and up. Wildflower honey has a decent flavor, and it's a lot less expensive...I can get it on sale at the farmer's market here for about $5/pound.

Once the cherry mead is done, I think my next project is going to be an imperial braggot: something rich and heavy, a little bit of a "winter warmer" for the holiday season.

 

[Sacrosanct]

Don't know how I missed this thread the first time lol. Am I a brewer? yeah, you could say that

so far my favorites are:
Cherry mead
Skyrim mead (yes, the juniper recipe from the game)
Rhubarb wine.

My chocolate mead was OK, but it took 2 years of racking, and I don't know if it was worth it. I've since found out I'm allergic to wheat and gluten, so I don't do beer any longer. Only mead and wine.

 

[Sacrosanct]

I've also done a ginger bug soda, and I highly recommend it. So good.

 

[CleverNickName]

Re: Skyrim Mead

How did that one turn out? I've done that one before, and it was a little disappointing. I used 2 full ounces of crushed juniper berries in a 5-gallon batch (during the primary fermentation), and I couldn't even taste it...I think most of the juniper fermented out.

 

[Sacrosanct]

Re: Skyrim Mead

How did that one turn out? I've done that one before, and it was a little disappointing. I used 2 full ounces of crushed juniper berries in a 5-gallon batch (during the primary fermentation), and I couldn't even taste it...I think most of the juniper fermented out.

I really like it. You can see I used full berries. Normally it doesn't take much to get that faint juniper taste. It was universally the favorite when I did a tasting for my friends. I can't recall the exact recipe I used though...it was a few years ago.