Caramel Apple Mead

[jojoscoot]

Im getting everything ready to start this mead thanksgiving day for next years holiday. Just one question if anyone could help. in the final racking before bulk aging should i just pour the remaining pound of honey in the carboy with the chemicals and rack the mead right into it and hope it dissolves on its own over the next 6 months or add the honey after the mead to spread it out some? Maybe a noob question but ive never made anything quite like this before. Thanks in advance.

 

[mphymel]

I heated a bit of the wine in a saucepan to dissolve my buckwheat honey. I I had the same concern, I all went well, I am due to bottle soon

 

[greyday]

I've never done a mead before, but I have around 40# of blackberry honey laying around. How important are the different types of honey in the recipe? Can they be substituted or are they part of what makes the flavor?

 

[greyday]

Yeast is pitched! I varied the recipe a bit, and will have to adjust the sg values for when to pitch more nutrient as my starting was a bit, um, higher than planned (was at 1.150, was only comfortable watering down to 1.138). It won't turn into jet fuel as I used a different yeast strain that's only hardy up to 14%, so I will just ferment to dry and use half as much buckwheat on the rack. Smells and tastes amazing! Swapping out honeys worked fine, I used 5# of clover and 5# of blackberry. Excited for, you know, a year or two from now!

 

[winewrangler]

LOVE IT, thank you for sharing it...

 

[VitruvianMan]

I am a newbie as well, Ive been making some wines, but this really caught my eye and Im gonna give it a shot! I will only start with a 1 gallon batch so I dont get in too over my head lol, but anyone have any suggestions or lil info that might be helpful so I dont have to learn by trial and error lol, thanks for your time guys

 

[Pumpkinman]

This is on my list, now to get the items on the list!

 

[Brew and Wine Supply]

Caramel Malt is a sub for Crystal Malt. there are also about 5 different types of DME (dry malt extract) from light to dark, there is also liquid malts extract (LME) that you can use. I don't think you would want hopped malt though.

 

[VitruvianMan]

This has proven to be a very popular mead on another forum I frequent.

Caramel Apple Mead


4 Gallons apple juice
2 lbs DME
3 lbs 60L Crystal malt
7 lbs Orange blossom honey
2 lbs clover honey
2 lbs buckwheat honey

Lalvin K1v1116

Original Gravity: 1.120
Final Gravity: 1.010

2 vanilla beans

Steep grains in 1.5 gallons of apple juice at 155F for 45 minutes and remove from heat. Stir in the DME and honey. Rinse grain sack with 1/2 gallon apple juice. Add the remainder of the apple juice. Aerate by vigorous stirring for at least five minutes. Aerate some more. I now use oxygen with a diffuser stone to aerate (better). Pitch yeast starter (hydrated with Go Ferm per container instructions) directly into the primary (plastic pail fitted with an air lock).

At about 1.075 add 5g Fermaid K
At about 1.035 add 5g Fermaid K
(Dissolve your nutrients in water before adding them to your must. This helps to minimize foam.)

Within about two weeks this should ferment out to 1.012 or so. Rack to secondary and add vanilla beans. Allow to remain in the secondary for about a month.

Rack again onto 1 lb of buckwheat honey and 1/4t potassium metabisuphite or 5 campden tabs and 2 1/2t potassium sorbate to stabilize. Add Super Kleer to clarify. Bulk age for six months to a year before bottling.

I adapted this recipe from one I saw on gotmead.com and it tastes just like caramel apples. It's a medium sweet mead that's very drinkable. At about 13.75% alcohol and no alcohol bite one should exercise caution since it goes down so smoothly.

So I notice it says steep grains, meaning the DME? Ive never ventured into the world of grains and honeys or vanilla beans. I plan to start a batch real quick here so I also need to know if this is based off a 6 gallon batch as I will be starting with a smaller batch. I also will not be able to get the different honeys but am guessing that clover honey which is most common here should suffice. Also specify a type of apple uice to use, Im assuming its not just plain ole apple juice from the juice aisle, id probably get the concentrate unless told differently. Thanks for your time and help.

 

[greyday]

No, the DME is stirred in during the adding honey phase (best to do it before it cools too much, it's kind if a pain to dissolve). I added DME and honey after removing the grain sack, then rinsed the sack. The grains are the crystal malt listed in the ingredients.

Edit to add: the recipe yields 5 gallons, so definitely do the math if you want a smaller batch. I think you can substitute (I did), but the buckwheat honey should be used for the second racking. The flavor of buckwheat adds to the caramel flavor, you want to have some of that darker profile (alternatively, you can caramelize some sugar or clover honey, that would probably work too).

My only other change is that I plan to use Bentonite when I'm ready to clear. I prefer to avoid super kleer whenever I can, as it can (however unlikely) impart flavor.

I used regular store bought apple juice and cider (most brands they are the same thing). I'd shy away from concentrate if possible, but it should suffice, just figure out the yield of each can plus water, don't do a 1:1 can to gallon ratio. Good luck!

 

[phineascoates]

I don't like the taste by combining the apple and the caramel. I am wondering, how can caramel and apple can be healthy? and what are the benefits when you are going to combined it?

 

[VitruvianMan]

Healthy? No one said anything about healthy lol, well I dont believe they did anyways. As for benefits, the people seem to rave about the flavor. Im going to start a one gallon batch to see how it turns out in the next week or two. If its good Ill upgrade it to my Lil Grenade ( 3 Gallon Carboy ) as Im in an apartment and dont have the space needed for a 6 gallon carboy operation.

 

[VitruvianMan]

Ok I re read some of these and I wanna just start with a one gallon batch but im not sure on the conversions for it and we dont have access to the different honey here so Id have to use your basic honey, clover Im assuming? Anyone has some conversions or helpful hints to make this a success.

 

[VitruvianMan]

I need to know what the initial recipe is. I'm guessing a 5 or 6 gallon batch but I don't believe it says antwhere....someone please let me know I'm gonna start this once I know for sure

 

[VitruvianMan]

I figured it out thanks though

 

[greyday]

Just curious--what are you all topping up with? I made some straight mead to use but it's not quite ready yet, so last night I just used apple juice (around 8oz, so not much, but still). I have a high abv on mine so I'm not worried, just curious...

 

[thasista]

Anyone still drinking this? Anything you wish you did differently? I just mixed up a 5 gal batch today. Tastes awesome!