alurpal
Junior
I made my first wine last month and decided to make a mead as well at the same time, despite doing heavy research into wine, not much into mead. It just felt like a missed opportunity to not marry the spring flavors of dandelion and honey.
3/27/23
For one gallon- Cold brew method
152g of near pure dandelion pedals (twist method ftw!)
757g of water
784g more water
1/2 Camden tablet
3/28 - 2.5L to boil. Add 2.5lb honey (1.5 lb wildflower, 1lb sourwood), scoop off foam, let cool.
Mix cold brew and honey must (filtering flowers into a mesh bag. Cold flower brew already has a nice apparent dandelion taste that’s not as bitter/vegetal as the hot brew method with some sepal remaining). 19 brix.
Add acid blend to achieve 4.0pH. 1tsp yeast nutrient. Pitch K1-v1116 starter.
Fermenting at 66-68f.
Degassing by swirling fermenter every couple of days.
Removed mesh bag of flowers after 3 days.
4/2 racked to secondary. Fit an airlock, at 1.001 (5 days). Mead was surprisingly crystal clear.
5/13 tasted the mead, surprisingly good. Doesn’t have the same “wine” taste that the dandelion wine has at same age (duh?). I didn’t really perceive the alcohol that came through when tasting the wine, but I only tasted around a 1/4 ounce.
I’m planning on aging for around a year, I think it has great potential, but what do I know.
3/27/23
For one gallon- Cold brew method
152g of near pure dandelion pedals (twist method ftw!)
757g of water
784g more water
1/2 Camden tablet
3/28 - 2.5L to boil. Add 2.5lb honey (1.5 lb wildflower, 1lb sourwood), scoop off foam, let cool.
Mix cold brew and honey must (filtering flowers into a mesh bag. Cold flower brew already has a nice apparent dandelion taste that’s not as bitter/vegetal as the hot brew method with some sepal remaining). 19 brix.
Add acid blend to achieve 4.0pH. 1tsp yeast nutrient. Pitch K1-v1116 starter.
Fermenting at 66-68f.
Degassing by swirling fermenter every couple of days.
Removed mesh bag of flowers after 3 days.
4/2 racked to secondary. Fit an airlock, at 1.001 (5 days). Mead was surprisingly crystal clear.
5/13 tasted the mead, surprisingly good. Doesn’t have the same “wine” taste that the dandelion wine has at same age (duh?). I didn’t really perceive the alcohol that came through when tasting the wine, but I only tasted around a 1/4 ounce.
I’m planning on aging for around a year, I think it has great potential, but what do I know.
