BernardSmith
Senior Member
Started a batch of t'ej on 12/30 using
40 oz of clover honey
1 gallon of local spring water. (my fermenter is a 3 gallon carboy. My goal is to have enough t'ej to fill a gallon carboy after I rack with about a pint or so of excess t'ej that I can refrigerate and use to top up the carboy).
8 oz of kitel (gesho leaves - powdered - I prefer crushed leaves but these are the only ones I could find)
4 oz of inchet (gesho twigs)
and a starter from a bottle of t'ej (about 1/4 C from the bottom of the bottle mixed with about 2 oz of clover honey dissolved in about 1/2 pt of water to which I added about 1/8 t of nutrient. The starter was kept in a beaker (with bung and airlock for about 2 .5 days. I don't have a stir plate so I agitated the jar a few times a day).
I warm the honey in its jar in a pot of hot water to increase its viscosity and pour small batches into a sanitized blender into which I have added a volume of water and whip the honey and water together to aerate then pour this aerated honey water mix into the fermenter.
Added 1 t of nutrient and 1/2 t energizer
Activity was very slow until this morning when it is clear that the fermentation has taken off.
I have made t'ej a few times and while traditionally this is bottled and drunk before the mead is absolutely clear and indeed fully fermented I treat this like any mead and allow it to age several months. Already thinking about my next batch - which I think will use orange blossom honey.
40 oz of clover honey
1 gallon of local spring water. (my fermenter is a 3 gallon carboy. My goal is to have enough t'ej to fill a gallon carboy after I rack with about a pint or so of excess t'ej that I can refrigerate and use to top up the carboy).
8 oz of kitel (gesho leaves - powdered - I prefer crushed leaves but these are the only ones I could find)
4 oz of inchet (gesho twigs)
and a starter from a bottle of t'ej (about 1/4 C from the bottom of the bottle mixed with about 2 oz of clover honey dissolved in about 1/2 pt of water to which I added about 1/8 t of nutrient. The starter was kept in a beaker (with bung and airlock for about 2 .5 days. I don't have a stir plate so I agitated the jar a few times a day).
I warm the honey in its jar in a pot of hot water to increase its viscosity and pour small batches into a sanitized blender into which I have added a volume of water and whip the honey and water together to aerate then pour this aerated honey water mix into the fermenter.
Added 1 t of nutrient and 1/2 t energizer
Activity was very slow until this morning when it is clear that the fermentation has taken off.
I have made t'ej a few times and while traditionally this is bottled and drunk before the mead is absolutely clear and indeed fully fermented I treat this like any mead and allow it to age several months. Already thinking about my next batch - which I think will use orange blossom honey.
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