# Base Mead



## gaudet (Dec 26, 2009)

So today I had a good friend come visit. My buddy Thom whom I have known for at close to 20 years now. I introduced him to my hobby earlier this year at Mardi Gras. We shared a bottle of Joe's ancient orange I had made last November. He wanted to see how to make a mead, so off to the market we went. I bought 6 3# jugs of clover honey to prep a 6 gallon batch. He bought 5 jugs to bring home with him to try his first batch when he leaves to go back to Nashville. Anyways, recipe as follows......

2.25 gallons of Honey or 18#s
4.00 gallons of water (to make just over 6 gallons)
Yeast Nutrient 2 TBS
Yeast Energizer 1 TBS 
2 pkg cotes de blanc yeast
Original gravity came out to 1.12 at 98 degrees

I heated some water to loosen up the honey to make it easier to pour out into the fermenter. When all was said and done we had close to three gallons of must in the stockpot on the stove. I slowly heated it up (not boil) to help bring some of the scum to the top. We skimmed the scum and then put it all into the wine fermenting bucket. Topped it up to the 6 gallon level with bottled spring water. Added the nutrient and energizer. Stirred well. 

For all intents and purposes I am going to make this into two separate batches. I might actually have enough to make 3 three gallon batches. It depends on how much fruit juice I use when I dilute it for stage two. 

I won't figure it out tonight, but I have strawberry, blackberry, and blueberry juice to add to the party at a later time. Or if I figure to have enough I might make all three meads since I should have 3 three gallon carboys in the near future.....


----------



## paubin (Dec 27, 2009)

Sound like the start of something wonderful my freind !!! Keep us posted !


Pete


----------



## gaudet (Jan 5, 2010)

Opened the lid to give it a slight stir and get a sg reading today......

Wow its at 1.010 in 10 days............... Down from 1.126 OG (temp corrected). Almost 16% ABV

Need to figure out the next step today. Do I want to use blackberry, blueberry, or strawberry for the two melomels I want to make. Or can I split this into 3 batches? Probably not likely.

I'm leaning to go black and blue with this one. I've got several quarts of juiced blackberries and blueberries in the wine closet. As well as 2 empty 3 gallon carboys.


----------



## vcasey (Jan 5, 2010)

Blackberry &amp; Blueberry Mels are terrific. A good way to get 3 is to make 2 then blend some when all is finished. Don't forget a med toast oak will work very well. And at 16% you will need aging time, this will be pretty good in 3 years and mouth watering in 5.


----------



## gaudet (Jan 5, 2010)

I was not intending it to finish that high. I thought the cotes would stop at 12%-14%. I could stabilize it with k-meta and k-sorb, and then dilute the ABV with the steamed juice. Will have to take sg readings to get the residual sugar of the juice. I guess I could just use pearson's square to figure dilution.


----------



## gaudet (Jan 5, 2010)

Wine Calc has a nice blending feature which I just discovered how to use.

to dilute down to 12% I need to use this ratio

2.25 gallons Base
0.75 gallons juice

That would leave me with 1.50 gallons leftover mead


----------



## Beowulf (Jan 5, 2010)

There is no such thing as "leftover" mead. A use can always be found for mead


----------



## gaudet (Jan 5, 2010)

Beowulf said:


> There is no such thing as "leftover" mead. A use can always be found for mead



I am contemplating that too Beowulf....

Looks like 1.50 gallons and 0.50 gallons of strawberry juice will yield 2 gallons of 12% strawberry mel....... Sweetness abound. This planned 6 gallon batch should yield 8 gallons of finished product. ($40 of honey for 40 bottles of mead) What a bargain!!!!!


----------



## vcasey (Jan 5, 2010)

Beowulf said:


> There is no such thing as "leftover" mead. A use can always be found for mead



No kidding!
Gaudet looks like you have a nice plan.


----------



## gaudet (Jan 5, 2010)

vcasey said:


> Beowulf said:
> 
> 
> > There is no such thing as "leftover" mead. A use can always be found for mead
> ...



Waste not want not. I think that's my plan now to crank out the mead into three batches. Going to get some medium toast oak to soak them in, but there is plenty of time to do that as its got a long way to go to be finished. I will transfer and stabilize them this weekend.


----------



## vcasey (Jan 5, 2010)

I've also just made extra to use as my topping off. What ever is left over is a show (plain) mead or I'll experiment.


----------



## gaudet (Jan 6, 2010)

Today was moving day..........

I moved the mead to carboys to rest for a while.

I cleaned and sanitized all my needed equipment. Then, I gathered up the juices.......











Next step was to put the juice in each vessel. I decided to put the appropriate amounts of k-meta and k-sorbate into the carboys and jugs. Each 3 gallon had 1.5 tsp of k-sorbate and 1/8 tsp of k-meta to stabilize, each 1 gallon jug had 1 campden tablet and 1/2 tsp k-sorb added. Juice was added to dissolve the k-meta and k-sorb.






Using the trusty old racking cane, I started with a 3 gallon carboy to fill. When it was close to full I stopped the flow and wiped down the tubing with a k-meta soaked paper towel and started the second 3 gallon carboy. Following the same procedure I again stopped the flow and wiped down the tubing before transferring the last 1.5 gallons of precious mead into the two remaining 1 gallon jugs. 






The final picture I topped off everything to acceptable levels with spring water. The 3 gallons needed less than 10 ounces of water.

The one gallon jugs needed an addition of about 20 ounces each to top it up. I went out and splurged $10 on some rot gut vodka to fill the airlocks.





All in all I think it went extremely well and hope that it rests comfortable in the wine closet for the next 3 months..... Til it needs my attention again.


----------



## Goodfella (Jan 7, 2010)

Wow... Looks like a productive day!!! 










P.S. Thanks for posting pic's


----------



## vcasey (Jan 7, 2010)

Looking very good!


----------



## fivebk (Jan 7, 2010)

Looks great!!!!

BOB


----------



## xanxer82 (Jan 7, 2010)

Bet that'll be tasty!


----------



## gaudet (Jan 8, 2010)

I was reading another thread and realized that I did not add any pectic enzyme to any of the meads I just stabilized. All of the juice was steamed. Doesn't that break down the pectin in the juice? Or do I need to add some pectic in the near future?


----------



## vcasey (Jan 9, 2010)

I have gone back to some of my meads and added P/E after fermentation and it has helped clear faster then the ones I choose not to add any P/E. I've also held off and added it when I added the fruit/juice in the secondary. So its really up to you.


----------



## boozinsusan (Jan 14, 2010)

That looks FABULOUS! Something I think I will try in the future....... did not know when i started my apple cyser that it would take so long to be drinkable.... can you age (letting it sit for a year or 2like mentioned) in the bottles, since I will need to empty my carboys when spring comes?


BTW gaudet - whatcha doin' with all those kumquats?


----------



## gaudet (Jan 14, 2010)

We et dem kumquats.... I was gonna make a mead with them, but I already got 8 gallons of mead going


----------



## boozinsusan (Jan 15, 2010)

Ettin dem is good too.....


----------



## gaudet (May 23, 2010)

Got off my lazy butt and cleaned some bottles, racked the 2 gallons of strawberry mead and put some k-meta in them (1 campden tab for each gallon), racked em off the bottom sediment and I got 10 full bottles and 1 half bottle for tasting tonight. Ok I took a sip already and its pretty darn good. I think the strawberry is a little hidden, but it has a really nice flavor and mouth feel to it. Its got a golden with reddish hue. I'll snap a pic of the glass later tonight.


----------



## Wade E (May 23, 2010)

Sure sounds good there buddy!


----------



## gaudet (May 23, 2010)

Here is the Strawberry Mel


----------



## Wade E (May 23, 2010)

Looks a little bit hazy still but I bet it tastes reeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeal good!


----------



## gaudet (May 24, 2010)

A little, but it did taste good. 

Phew what a day. Finally finished all the wine work. I just need to clean the last carboy that's going to get an overnight soaking....

I racked the blueberry and blackberry melomels to fresh carboys, I added 1/8 tsp of k-meta to each and 1.5 tsp of pectic enzyme. That is probably why the strawberry mel is a little hazy. I'll let these baby's set for a couple more months then bottle them up before hurricane season.


----------



## Runningwolf (May 24, 2010)

you had quiet a day. I love the picture of you holding up the glass of wine and catching the vines in the background and through the glass. looks like your ready to do a presentaion or commercial!


----------



## gaudet (Oct 26, 2010)

Put a fork (er cork) in em.......... They are done. Bottled up the blackberry and blueberry mels today. Off to slumber after I label them. Hope I don't mix them up


----------



## Waldo (Oct 27, 2010)

How did the Blackberry turn out?


----------



## gaudet (Oct 27, 2010)

Both were excellent. Kind of floral with a nice honey finish. Gonna give em some Jim Croce treatment some "time in a bottle" and it ought to be even better


----------



## fivebk (Mar 9, 2011)

Gaudet, I tried ( which means drank ) the blueberry mead you sent me. All I can say is DAMN GOOD !!!!!!


BOB


----------



## gaudet (Mar 9, 2011)

Bob,

I still have your Chocolate Cherry Port, its collecting some gray hairs and dust, but I'm holding out on it. I want it to get a few more months then will pop it open... 

I am pleasantly surprised with the meads as they are only 1 year old as of January.


----------

