3 new meads

[sangwitch]

Looking good there Sang. What reaction do you get to visitors showing up like that. Here some people ask what that horrible smell is while others are genuinely excited to see the operations going on.

People walk in my house and see all the carboys covered with
just the S-locks sticking up and they think I'm running a meth lab!

I have to uncover the wine to show them.

Well, I tasted the meads today and they all taste kinda flat. Not much flavor to them at all. I'm going to rack them later this week after I free up a 5-gallon carboy. I think I'll add some oak to them as well. I'm sure they'll come into their own at some point (I hope)


Edit: Oh yea, I also tasted my 1-gallon batches and the blueberry still tastes like jet fuel (yes, I know what that tastes like) and the ancient oranges are nice, a little sweet, but nice.

Edited by: sangwitch

 

[grapeman]

Do the people that think you are running a meth lab know what one would look like? If so I'm not sure I would get too close to them!

I had a batch a couple years a go smelled like paint thinner. It was a raspberry. Not sure if that's just like jet fuel, but probably close. I bottled it after 6-8 months and it doesn't smell like that anymore, but still isn't the best in the world. Maybe another year and it will be good..

 

[Waldo]

Hmmmmmmmm rasberry meth.......How interesting appleman

 

[dsiddall]

I have a honey mead that Ive had in the carboy for about a month an a half. I'm worried that it will taste flat since all I used was what was in the kit which was honey, yeast, nutrient and instructions. I did do an orange juice starter for it. Is it too late to add oak? Would that help?

I'm really confused when people write about tasting their wine/mead in between primary/secondary etc...are they pouring some in a glass and drinking it? Mine smelled like baby sh*t till the last rack and I haven't taken off the airlock recently to see what it smells like now..

Any advice, this is my first attempt at mead. I expected to age it at least a year per the recommendation of some friends. thanks.

de

 

[Wade E]

You can oak it at any time as long as you use cubes or spirals. I
personally would use a spiral on a pce. of fishing string so that you
can easily pull it out when it reaches the point at where you want it.
As for tasting it, they probably just pull out a little sample with
their wine thief. By the way, welcome and dont be afraid to ask any
questions you want.

 

[dsiddall]

Thanks a bunch! I have the chunks so will try the pantyhose method I've read about.
de

 

[masta]

I can tell you mead takes a long time to age and start to taste good and at 1.5 months yes it will taste and smell bad!

Edited by: masta

 

[sally3]

Mine seriously tasted like I might imagine lighter fluid would taste
for about 7 months...now it is amazing.....Masta helped me out with
being patient and having faith. Hang in there,,,,it will work
out.

 

[sangwitch]

Racked the meads tonight from the nasty carboys to nice clean ones. They taste a whole lot better. They're not quite there, but you can taste the fruit struggling to come out and hints of honey that were not there the last time I tasted. You can't tell from the pic, but the blueberry and cherry are pretty clear. The peach is still a bit hazy as expected. From left to right: Blueberry Chamomile; Tart Cherry; Ginger Peach. The three amigos!

 

[masta]

Sweet!!! I still have to bottled my meads I have so they will be ready to test at Winestock this fall.

 

[Wade E]

Nice colors.

 

[Waldo]

Looking very good sang !! How is the ginger-peach developing?Edited by: Waldo

 

[sangwitch]

Looking very good sang !! How is the ginger-peach developing?

Right now it's my least favorite of the three. It tastes really flat. I'm not going to worry about it though... I'll give it lots of time and I'm sure it will develop into a winner. (trying to stay positive!) In any case,you'll get a chance to taste itand decide for yourself.

 

[sangwitch]

hey y'all. Hope someone can answer this one...


I racked my meads back in early May and I left a couple inches of head space in the carboys. I got home from Peru the other day and noticed that all three of the meads are full up to the bung. The Ginger Peach even had some yuck in the air lock looking like it had boiled up there at some point.


How could the volume have expanded? ??


I changed the airlock on the peach and gave it a sniff when I had the bung off. It smells awesome. I was afraid it got contaminated, but it doesn't seem so.

 

[Wade E]

Temperature will do this and so will a low pressure system. My
Watermelon Merlot did this last week when it got really hot and went up
into the airlock as you described and I was shocked at how much it
dropped when it cooled back down.

 

[grapeman]

Either that or Waldo came over and topped them off for you while you were gone. Nice to see you agin, hope you can stay a while soon.

 

[Waldo]

Shhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh !!! Dont tell appleman...I'm a trying to confuse him