# Black Cherry Melomel



## K&GB

You all have me salivating over your mead batches, and I don't even know what mead tastes like.




Ah well. Time to jump right in.






I bought 10 lbs of honey and 6 quarts of black cherry juice at the store today. I haven't done any research on a recipe yet, but I'd like to make this into a 3-gal batch. I would appreciate any ideas or suggestions. Thanks!


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## NorthernWinos

i only have my first batch going...a Crabapple/Apple Cyser [mead]

I would use your juice straight up....add no water.

I like full flavor to my wines....so try not to dilute any store bought juices...

Just my 2¢


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## Wade E

Sounds great! I would use both nutrient and energizer. Add al the energizer up front and 1/3 the nutrient up front and then another 3rd at an sg of 1.065 and then the last 3rd around 1.030 and stir it well each time to get much 02 in there. Do a yeast starter or at least re hydrat the yeast to get it jump started.


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## K&GB

Thanks NW. Your 2 cents is priceless. Wade, I'm afraid I don't have yeast energizer, just nutrient. 
So having looked over several recipes, I dove in head first. I warmed 2 qts of juice on the stove and stirred in all of the honey. I added that and the remaining 4 qts to the primary and came up with 2.5 gal. I checked SG, and it was off the scale!



So 9 qts of water later, the SG is down to 1.104, roughly 13.6% potential ABV, or 25 brix. Yikes! I really had to dilute the mixture much more than I expected.



I now have just over 4.5 gal and not nearly as dark and thick as I imagined. Ah well, it's my first try. I'll probably back sweeten this with more black cherry juice to cut the ABV and add flavor.


I tried an acid test but it was so low as to be almost meaningless. So my initial recipe is-


10 lbs honey
6 qts black cherry juice
9 qts water
6 tsp acid blend
4 tsp yeast nutrient
1 tsp pectic enzyme
1/2 tsp liquid tannin
4 campden tablets


I'll let this sit overnight and make a yeast starter tomorrow.*Edited by: K&GB *


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## vcasey

Make sure the juice has no preservatives and you can either use all cherry juice or use apple juice/cider. Just be careful when you add the honey and stir like crazy and then stir like crazy again taking SG readings several times. For my 1 1/2 gal. batches I only ended up adding 3 1/2 lbs to bring the SG to 1090. When ever I use apple juice or cider I end up using less. You'll need to post your recipe. I'm planning a Cherry Mel. for next month, but I'm making it sweet and adding chocolate.
VPC


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## K&GB

Thanks vcasey. The juice is pure black cherry with nothing added. 


Forgot to post how I decided on black cherry. The grocery store where I shop has a natural foods section that includes "Knudson's Just Juice" products. I always take a peak when I go shopping. Quart jars of various juices cost about $7.50, and they usually only stock four qts of each variety. But yesterday they had a whole shelf of black cherry, and it was only $4.50 per quart. I knew it had to be a sign.



Or maybe that was just my obsession talking... 


Sometimes it's hard to sort out the voices in my head.






So I checked for honey on the jelly isle and found 5 lb bottles of "Desert Gold" for $16.00. I don't know much about honey, but 10 lbs for $32.00 sounded okay. At least that's what I told myself. (Those voices again) So $27 for juice and $32 for honey, and I'm looking at a $59 investment for what I thought would be a 3-gal batch of mead. (The voices told me that was just fine)






After mixing the ingredients together I came up with only 2-1/2 gal, but it was thick and dark and tasted heavenly so I was happy. I made my calculations for acid blend, yeast nutrient, campden tabs, etc. based on 2-1/2 gal and began adding ingredients.


But here's where I failed to make an important mental leap. 


*HONEY = SUGAR!!!* *



*

To be fair, those two 5-lb bottles of honey weren't near as big as a 10-lb bag of sugar. I guess that misguided volume comparison was the basis of my mistake. For some reason, I thought more honey would just mean more body. Okay, lesson learned there.






I'll head back to the store this morning and buy a few more jars of juice. Let's see, that's another $14. I plan to save one for back sweetening and topping up. But the other two are going to bring this batchup toalmost 5-1/2 gallons. Hopefully that'll lower the SG a bit more also. I've already recalculated most of the other ingredients, but I'm having trouble with the acid blend so I'll do another acid test after I add the rest of the juice. 


Unless someone has a different recommendation, I plan to use Lalvin EC-1118 yeast.I'll use some of the cherry juice to make a starter solution. 


So to recap, I'll wind up spending roughly $73 to make a 5-gal batch of something that may or may not turn out good enough to drink next year. That's worth it, right? Hmmm. Where are those voices when you need 'em? Somehow the only voice I can hear right now is my wife's telling me I ain't too bright.





*Edited by: K&GB *


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## vcasey

If you use D47 or 71B yeast it make stop earlier 14% or so. You may not need to back sweeten and you may get lucky and not get an 18% mead which will take a bit to settle down and become drinkable. Are you planning to oak this?


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## NorthernWinos

Some juices are very sweet on their own. 

Once I have all the juices in the primary bucket I take a S.G. reading before adding any sweeteners or other additives....

The volume and the S.G. of the just the juices gives you an idea of how much sweeteners you will need to get your desired S.G....

Some juices require water to dilute the flavors, acid, etc...other juices stand well on their own.

Keep us Posted on your adventure.


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## Wade E

I would use a yeast a little gentler on a mead personally.


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## K&GB

My yeast choices include the EC-1118, 71B-1122, and Red Star Montrachet and Cote des Blancs.


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## K&GB

NW,


I'm learning just what you said about the juices. The Blueberry I just used for wine had an SG of 1.046 and tasted good by itself. Other juices didn't taste so good. The pomegranite, for instance, tasted vile so I threw it out. Also, the cranberry I used to make wine was so tart I had to add calcium carbonate prior to fermentation and continue to cut with water as the wine aged. I didn't measure the sugar content of this black cherry, but it does taste sweet all on its own.


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## K&GB

Modified recipe-


10 lbs honey
8 qts cherry juice
9 qts water
12 tsp acid blend
5 tsp yeast nutrient
1 tsp pectic enzyme
1/2 tsp tannin
4 campden tablets


I added two more quarts of juice after my trip to the store this morning. Brought the volume to 5-1/4 gallons with an SGof 1.102 or 13.4% potential alcohol. I checked the acid and got a reading of about 4 g/L, so I added 6 more tsp of acid blend for a total of 12. I stirred well and checked again, reading 5 to 5.5 g/L. I'm skiddish about adding more, so I'll wait and check it again post fermentation. I started a yeast starter solution using the Lalvin 71B-1122.


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## Wade E

Much better choice of yeast!


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## vcasey

Yes I agree 71B is a much better choice! Also until I tasted a cranberry wine one of our local wineries made, I would have thought no way too tart also. I've change my mind. They also make a carrot and banana wine that are terrific. Buy 3 or 4 lbs. of fresh cranberries (that will make a gallon, toss them in the freezer for a month or so and give it a try. 
VPC


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## Wade E

I have a cranberry wine that if I say so myself came out very good. It tastes like Ocean Spray Cranberry cocktail which is very tart but with the alc addition is very nice. It just belongs with Cranberry!


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## K&GB

I bottled my 1-1/2 gal batch of cranberry recently. Turned out nice but a bit thin for my taste. Probably because I kept adding water to it...lol. 


vcasey, you mentioned oak earlier. Do you normally oak mead, or melomel? If so, I have the following options on hand: light toast American oak infusion spirals, medium toast French oak cubes, and house toast (very dark) French oak cubes. I'm planning to use the medium toast French cubes in a cab that's currently in secondary. But I could always order more. I would appreciate any recommendations.


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## K&GB

A few pics I snapped along the way. SG 1.102












Darker color after addition of 2 more quarts of cherry juice.












Yeast starter solution.


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## vcasey

I oak most of my meads. In fact I think I've only not oaked 2. One was a tropical mead (tropical fruit left over from my son's graduation party) and a traditional mead made with Orange Blossom Honey that we were using to top off the tropical mead. I wanted to oak - he didn't and it was his, but a light oak would have been great. Honey and oak really go great together and with the black cherry I would use either dark or med. oak. 
VPC


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## RkyMtnWine

Looks awesome... come on George... hurry with my goodies so I can get started on my mead. Geeze you guys... the mead I am planning is just your basic mead... no other juices... feel like I am out of place.. Oh well, been out of place before..and will happen again. I will be using the D-47 and hope for the best


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## vcasey

That basic traditional mead will taste fantastic in a couple of years. You can always add spices the mead, like vanilla and cinnamon.
VPC


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## Wade E

Most meads are designed to be very thin on fruit so just sneaking a bit of fruit in there would be very easy. I just like a lot of fruit flavor so I always go way beyond the fruit threshold on my recipes.


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## RkyMtnWine

think i have an apple in the fridge yet... and a banana on the kitchen table... wash them up good and toss them in the must...


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## Wade E

Hmmm, Cysermel!


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## RkyMtnWine

Naw... come on.. yur pullin my leg... yankin my chain or whatever


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## Wade E

Okay, you might want to pick up a few more nanas!


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## RkyMtnWine

Think this time I will stick to the basic recipe.... no other fruit. Its going to be a long winter so will have time to try others. Backstep just a bit. Does just the basic recipe reallymake a good wine


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## Wade E

Cant say as I have never tried a straight mead except for a commercial which was really nasty. Im positive that I ca make a better mead with my eyes closed then what was in that bottle!


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## RkyMtnWine

OK, ya got me wavering on my idea of a plain ole mead.. Now I have to go exploring... or.. like what I was talking about before, blend one gallon mead with one gallon blueberry.... or maybe my beet.


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## vcasey

Wade's right for the most part most meads are lighter on the fruit. The honey is supposed to be the star. 
If you want an easy and fun mead experience make Ken Schramm's Fall's Bounty Cyser. The backbone is apple cider and honey with a little bit of dark brown sugar, dates and raisins in the primary. In the secondary you add cinnamon, cloves &amp; nutmeg. I made this last year as part of a group brew with another board. Unlike everyone else I only make 1 1/2 gallons but I made another 1 1/2 gallons using pear juice. The half gallons were used to top off the gallons and I topped off the 1/2 gallons with equal parts honey and juice. Once the gallons were finished I stabilized and then combined the 1/2 gallons. They were very good at bottling and can't wait to try one next year after its got some age on it. Yes I did oak mine. A lot of the other folks who make this often, keg it to carbinate it. 
VPC


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## Wade E

Rcky, Im in no means saying that Plain mead is not good, just this 1 commercial bottle which I believe was Irish and called Meade. I have tried many many meads since then, all non commercial and havent disliked 1 yet. 
*Edited by: wade *


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## RkyMtnWine




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## K&GB

The 71B-1122 yeast hardly foamed at all. It seems to have gone straight to the fizz stage and is fizzing steadily today.



Here's a couple of pics.








I tossed in some house toast French Oak cubes. I know these are supposed to be used during secondary or bulk aging, but I'm a little leary of how much oaky-ness they might impart, so I put them in the primary to soften the effect.


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## Wade E

Looks great! Some yeasts dont foam like others do.


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## RkyMtnWine

Im jealous... nothing fermenting right now. Think I need to do some 5 gallon batches. My birthday was last month.. I think I need to buy a kit


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## Wade E

What kind of kit are you thinking of?


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## RkyMtnWine

Not sure Wade. Been scanning the ones available.. certainly open to suggestions.. really no preference. Once I learn to taste and enjoy wine like most of you I will be able to make an educated choice... So... what would you suggest..


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## Wade E

I need some kind of guidance from you, are you looking fro a dry red wine that is awesome and would like to age for when you have accepted your inner thoughts that wine is awesome or something a little lighter to help your inner voice talk to you? If you are looking for a good dry red then I would suggest the lower kit below as this is about as good as a wine gets or the upper kit to entice you into liking this type of wine. read the descriptions the lower 1 is dry and the above 1 is a tad sweeter.

<table ="Catalog" id="products" width="100%" align="center" border="1" bordercolor="#000000" cellpadding="2" cellspacing="0"><t><tr><td ="table" width="2%" align="default"><div align="center">RE078 </td>
<td width="5%"><div align="center">



</td>
<td width="20%">

Amarone (with raisins)


This powerful red wine bursts with tree-ripened fruit flavours balanced to an unrivalled finesse.
</td>
<td width="2%"><div align="right">$128.99</td></tr></t></table><table ="Catalog" id="productsnew" width="100%" align="center" border="1" bordercolor="#000000" cellpadding="2" cellspacing="0"><t><tr><td ="table" width="2%" align="default"><div align="center">3279 </td>
<td width="5%"><div align="center">



</td>
<td width="20%">

White Merlot


Medium pink rose' style wine with luscious berry flavors &amp; aromas with a crisp finish.</td>
<td width="2%"><div align="right">$96.99</td></tr></t></table>







*Edited by: wade *


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## RkyMtnWine

Red wine... but just a tad on the sweet side


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## RkyMtnWine

Hey... like the sound of that Amarone.. is that one that would back sweeten just a smidgin.


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## Wade E

Okay the computer was really giving me problems just like my whole day went today. I would really suggest you try that White Merlot as it has a slight sweetness to it and is a very nice kit. I traded wines with someone on the forum close to me and he gave a bottle of that and i was very impressed with it and have it on my wish list.


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## RkyMtnWine

sounds good to me Wade... when I order that it looks like everthing I would need is in the kit.... can you think of anything else I should add to it. I see it makes 6 gallons. So I would need a 6+ gallon primary and 6 gallon secondary..... and lotsa bottles*Edited by: RkyMtnWine *


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## Wade E

You should have a 7.9 gallon primary bucket for doing any kits and a 6 gallon carboy or 5+1 gallon jug which will be more work when you have to add stuff as youll have to transfer to bucket to mix all in correctly then rack back to glass but can be done to save money as well as use 2 smaller primary buckets but again you will have to deal with dividing up the ingredients.


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## grapeman

The 7.9 gallon bucket will work for about 90% of the kits out there. Just get one and unless you get a kit that others warn about, you should be good.


Now as far as those two kits, I can speak for the Mosti Renaissance Amarone - it is about as good as you are going to get in a wine that you can start drinking in a few months and will peak in a year. The other one is no more sweet- both being a sweetness of 1- and needs 6 months to be drinkable. It also doesn't peak for 2-3 years. I would go with the Amarone myself, but that's just me speaking (because I love that batch). 


If you are going to learn to like wine and develop a taste for it, you can't go wrong with learning on this one. You won't mistake it for a cheap jug wine!


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## RkyMtnWine

I have a 5 gal carboy... and lots of gallon jugs. Think my pail is 6 1/2.. will have to get a larger one. Try to catch George on my order but I think he was sending it out today. Cheap jug of wine? you mean like the Thunderbird experience I had. Well... good reviews on both of those wines. Think my choice then would be the Amarone. I am looking for something to let sit for a while. Thanks guys


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## RkyMtnWine

side note... Wife and I are planning another trip to the NE next fall.. spending about a week... would be fun to hook up for short visits with everyone up there.


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## vcasey

I can speak for the Mosti Renaissance Amarone as well. I aged it for 6 months in the carboy and a year in the bottle and it is one of the best to date. However I did ferment it in a 10 gallon container and am very glad I did because we had 8 inches of foam. If you search through the site you will find a lot of discussion on the wine - all positive. 
VPC


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## Wade E

Ill be here!


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## grapeman

RkyMtnWine said:


> Cheap jug of wine? you mean like the Thunderbird experience I had.




That was my thinking on the matter! Go with a decent wine! As you can tell, I am partial to the Mosti Kits (Wade really likes Cellar Craft because he has done a lot of them and has learned what is good). The point is, start with a good kit that won't break your bank. Learn which ones are good to you. Forget making them specifically for others. Let them enjoy the ones you like, not the other way around. They will gladly accept any of them as gifts.


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## Wade E

I make the RJS but you get the point and do make what you or your lovely wife wants and not anyone else unless they are paying for the kit!


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## grapeman

wade said:


> I make the RJS but you get the point and do make what you or your lovely wife wants and not anyone else unless they are paying for the kit!




That's right! I'm always mixing those two up! I should know by now! Thanks Wade for clearing that up


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## RkyMtnWine

Hey... I do have a silly observation on wine kits. You guys have been in this hobby for quite a while... When you order those they come with everything.. yeast, clarifier, ect. Most home winemakers have all those goodies.. Can you order just the grape concentrate and go from there?


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## gaudet

I found this place that sells grape juices

http://www.walkersfruitbasket.com/pail_price.htm


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## RkyMtnWine

Thanks Gaudet.. I was just curious on that... at this stage of the game I will order the kits from George... certainly has its advantages.. with directions. Maybe some day..... if my wines survive taste tests I will go that route.


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## K&GB

Fermentation is very vigorous this morning with some large bubbles accompanying the fizz. Almost like it's boiling. Took a look at the floating thermometer I just got from George and it read almost 90 degrees F



I've never monitored actual fermentation temp with a floating thermometer before. Should I be concerned?


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## NorthernWinos

How is yours and Gina's day going????

Glad you have your Melomel to look after while you are home looking after Gina....


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## K&GB

Going fine, thanks. Getting organized with all the medical bill statementsand insurance correspondence. Catching up on house work. Took Gina to a crafts store this morning to get her out of the house into the beautiful weather. She's dozing on the couch while I grill brats for lunch.


The melomel's kind of on auto-pilot. I was concerned about the temp this morning, but I moved it out of the pantry into the kitchen, turned on the ceiling fan and gave it a stir. I just checked it again and it's down to 85 degrees.


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## K&GB

Some lunchtime pics...


Brats on the grill.








Brats in the plates.








To go with lunch, I think I'll open a bottle of the Romance Red, which is officially 1 year old, finally!It's okay to drink wine with lunch whenyou're on leave, right?








Check the wine clock... yep definitely time for wine.








Careful to observe the warning signs...














Okay! Looks like we're go for brats, red wine, and a nap...


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## grapeman

Good thing you only had one bottle of wine with that next to last sign warning!


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## K&GB

Found a thick head of foam on top this morning. SG 1.012 temp 85 degrees. Gave it a good stir, put the lid on tight and attached an airlock. 






Interesting how much heat this baby is generating. The indoor temp is 75 degrees. The fermentation pattern seems backwards too. I'm used to seeing the head of foam on top as the first sign of fermentation, followed by a steady fizzing. This was just the opposite, fizz first, and then the foam on top. And the 71B sure burned through this batch in a hurry.


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## Wade E

Looks cool!


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## Waldo

Looking good......No, No, I'm talking about them brats !!!! So who got two and who got just one ?








Nice fermentation going on the wine too


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## K&GB

Thanks Waldo. I confess I ate two. Butmindful of the warning signs, I only had the one glass of vino.






As for the black cherry... Gina and I took a trip to San Diego yesterday for an appointment so we were gone most of the day. I had sealed the primary and attached an airlock, which was blooping rapidly when I left. But upon my return last night it was silent. So I transferred the-wine, mead, melomel ??? not sure what to call it- into a carboy along with the oak cubes and another dose of yeast nutrient. Got a few healthy bloops in the airlock last night, but it's completely silent this morning. Here's a pic.


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## vcasey

Meads can be funny. Sometimes they enjoy being racked and sometimes they get rather grumpy when they get racked. I've read that a lot of mead makers will let it ferment and clear in the primary. Just keep an eye on the SG, and yes it may move very slowly, and you should be fine.
VPC


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## K&GB

With that much headspace and no airlock activity, I hesitate to open it up just yet.My plan is to let it sit two days and then check SG a couple of times over the weekend. I'll give it a good stir each time to release some CO2 to re-fill the headspace. 


Question



Should I proceed like I normally would post fermentation? Add K-meta, K-sorbate, and de-gas? I do plan to back-sweeten, so I assume K-sorbate is a must. But I've read somewhere that cherries have lots of malic acid. Will this mead start malo spontaneously? Do I want it to? Haven't done an acid test since the initial one, but based on the pre-fermentation results, I suspect it's low.


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## vcasey

Yes just proceed like normal when the mead is finished and add acid blend as you like. I have no idea about the malic acid levels, I'm sure someone else will chime in soon I am curious however since I will be making my chocolate cherry melomel in a few weeks.
VPC


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## K&GB

Thanks vcasey. Can't wait to hear all about the chocolate cherry!


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## grapeman

If you add the k-meta and the sorbate, it will inhibit any natural MLF(you want to inhibit it). Cherry is not very acidic so you want to keep what is there. I would get it finished up soon and get it topped off. Sounds llike you have a good game plan with this one.


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## RkyMtnWine

just found this on sugar content and acidity of fruits.. not sure how accurate it is or if it would be helpful to anyone.
<BLOCKQUOTE dir=ltr style="MARGIN-RIGHT: 0px">
<BLOCKQUOTE dir=ltr style="MARGIN-RIGHT: 0px">
Fruit Sugar Content Acid Content
%of fresh weight %of fresh weight

Lime 1% 5.0%
Avocado10.2
Lemon 25.0
Tomato 30.5
Cranberry 4 3.0
Red Currant 61.8
Grapefruit 62.0
Guava 7 0.4
Cantaloupe 7 0.2
Strawberry 7 1.6
Raspberry 7 1.6
Blackberry 8 1.5
Papaya 8 0.1
Apricot 9 1.7
Watermelon9 0.2
Peach 9 0.4
Black Currant 10 3.2
Pear 10 0.1
Honeydew10 0.2
Orange 11 1.2
Plum 11 0.6
Blueberry 11 0.3
Gooseberry 11 1.8
Passion Fruit 11 3.0
Prickly Pear11 0.1
Mango 11 0.5
Pineapple 13 1.1
Pomegranate 13 1.2
Apple 13 0.8
Cherry 140.5
Kiwi 14 3.0
Persimmon 14 0.2
Fig 150.4
Grape 16 0.2
Banana 17 0.3
Litchi 17 0.3

</BLOCKQUOTE></BLOCKQUOTE>*Edited by: RkyMtnWine *


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## Wade E

This is a honey wine and topping up isnt as crucial as honey in itself is very anti-microbial. This is why I stage the nutrient and stir often as most meads will do this stop and go or just stop and the little nutrient and stirring will keep it going. I have never had any problems since I started doing it this way. Give it a try next time. all energizer and 1/3 up front, 1/3rd when it hits 1.065 and the another 1/3rd when it hts 1.030.


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## grapeman

I am going to risk stepping on a toe or two here, but I believe topping up is just as important for the mead as it is any wine. While honey may be slightly anti-microbial, it is not an anti-oxidant. Unless you can guarantee the headspace has no oxygen in it, you have no way of stopping interaction with the oxygen and all its downsides. Leave a bit of room for additives, but right now it is a bit low.


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## Wade E

Ow, my toes are killing me!



Here is a little something I have pulled up on honey and it would be safer to top up but nowhere near as detrimental as a typical wine is. Remember that honey can sit foreb=ver on a shelf without going bad but will eventually crystallize, but heating it up will bring it back to its original form.



The major antibacterial activity in honey has been found to be due
to hydrogen peroxide produced enzymically in the honey. The glucose
oxidase enzyme is secreted from the hypopharyngeal gland of the bee
into the nectar to assist in the formation of honey from the nectar. 



The hydrogen peroxide and acidity produced by the reaction: 


*glucose + H<sub>2</sub>O+ O<sub>2</sub> --&gt; gluconic acid + H<sub>2</sub>O<sub>2</sub>*

serve to preserve the honey. The hydrogen peroxide produced would be
of effect as a sterilising agent only during the ripening of honey.
Full-strength honey has a negligible level of hydrogen peroxide because
this substance is short-lived in the presence of the transition metal
ions and ascorbic acid in honey which catalyse its decomposition to
oxygen and water. The enzyme has been found to be practically inactive
in full-strength honey, it giving rise to hydrogen peroxide only when
the honey is diluted. This is because the acidity produced in the
action of the enzyme drops the pH to a point which is too low for the
enzyme to work any more. On dilution of honey the activity increases by
a factor of 2,500 - 50,000, thus giving a "slow-release" antiseptic at
a level which is antibacterial but not tissue-damaging.

*Edited by: wade *


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## JWMINNESOTA

While the peroxide levels do increase when honey is diluted with water,I would say the increase is negligible,otherwise it could actually hinder the yeast bacteria from performing their function, and the process of fermentation will again change the chemical make up of the honey. On a side note,Stirring the must would actually increase the peroxide levels, the reason when we make cheese starter, it is not a continuous agitation on the vat of starter, untill the process (fermetation) is completed. Topping up would be highly recomended as with any wine at this point.


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## vcasey

As long as the mead is fermenting it's fine and it can ferment a long time. But once it stops then it really should be topped up or racked to a smaller carboy. 
Honey may last forever and a day on the shelf but once it is diluted it becomes vulnerable to all the nasties in the environment.


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## K&GB

Thanks for all the advice guys. I'll rack this to a 5-gal carboy tomorrow and check SG. I'll wait a little while to stabilize (3-5 days) just to make sure fermentation is all done. Then I'll go ahead with the K-meta, K-sorbate, and degassing. Say, does anyone use Super Kleer on mead, or should I just let it clear naturally. No intention of drinking it anytime soon.


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## Wade E

If you have the time let it do its own thing. This is about the only time I dont use a fining agent as honey is a very delicate flavor and can be lost easily.


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## vcasey

I'd just let it sit and see if it clears on its own. But you can use super kleer as well. 
VPC


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## K&GB

Up early this morning checking on the Black Cherry. No airlock activity for three days. No bubbles and it's starting to clear. SG still at 1.004 with a slight hint of sweetness, but it appears to be done. Decided to go ahead and stabilize. Let's see, starting SG 1.102, ending SG 1.004. I estimate 13.4% final ABV. Should notch down a bit when I add the last quart of cherry juice at back sweetening. 


I racked out of the 6-gal carboy into a primary and degassed as I mixed in 1/4 tsp K-meta and 2-1/2 tsp K-sorbate. After another acid test, I also added 2 more tsp acid blend. Should put acid around .65%.


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## Wade E

Looking good!


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## NorthernWinos

You have empty carboys?????


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## K&GB

I know. I know. I can hear them out there in the garage calling to me,...longing for wine.


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## JWMINNESOTA

Hmmm, its getting close to time to try a few meads I've made. The Hoover "Dam Fine Mead" should be ready for a sample around the first of the year..Looking good Ken! I also found given time they clear very well on there own.


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## Waldo

By golly that looks good enough to drink !!!!!


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## K&GB

Racked and sampled the Black Cherry today. It's fairly clear now, but I'm sure it still has a ways to go. It finished off-dry, so I decided to leave it that way for now rather than back sweetening. I can't compare this to any other mead because I can't remember tasting one before (although Gina says I have). But I wasn't too impressed with my first taste. Kind of bland. Needs a bit more tart to it, so I may have to tweak acid somewhere down the road. But I'll let it age for a while and see how things develop.





















Nice body and color. I wound up with 4-1/2 gallons. Still not sure how to characterize the taste. It's something about the honey. It's kinda like fermentation stripped away the stuff that makes honey taste good (maybe the sugar, huh?) and what's left is just,...bluh.



Not a lot of cherry flavor either. But I'll reserve judgement until Spring when it's had time to age a bit.


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## jobe05

I made a gallon of Cherry wine and played with it for over a year, wondering what it was missing. 

Every time I would add something to another wine I was making at the time, I would take a little of the cherry and add it........... Nothing, still bland.

I haven't tried it since I bottled it........ might have to dig that one out and taste, it's been about a year in the bottle now.

One day I had a little in a glass standing in front of the fridge. I was digging for something, and ran across one of those plastic lemons with lemon juice in it! Added a touch and it was PERFECT!

I was so excited! I was finally able to bottle it after a long time aging in that gallon jug.


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## vcasey

Put this baby away for at least a year. Then bottle it if you must and wait a least another year or two. 
VPC


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## K&GB

vcasey said:


> Put this baby away for at least a year. Then bottle it if you must and wait a least another year or two.
> VPC




You do realize that's an eternity to a child, right?


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## vcasey

Why do you think my husband makes beer? 
VPC


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## gaudet

K&amp;GB said:


> vcasey said:
> 
> 
> 
> Put this baby away for at least a year. Then bottle it if you must and wait a least another year or two.
> VPC
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> You do realize that's an eternity to a child, right?
Click to expand...


That is worse than waiting for Santa................


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## uavwmn

gaudet, you only have to wait for Santa for 12 months.


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