beer RocketMan's BrewLog

Read just about anything about making Mead and you'll see that it takes anywhere from 6 months to a year or more. Well, when my wife came up with the idea to celebrate Shakespeares birthday with a full blown Tudor party she's calling "Ballads, Bards and Maidens Fair" it became my mission to find out if a Mead could be made that would be decent to drink in 2 months or less. So after many minutes spent cruising the net I came across this one. It is supposed to produce a good Mead in 2 months. Here's the recipe:

1 Gallon jug of Spring Water
3 Pounds of honey
25 Raisens
1 Medium Orange
1 packet of bread yeast

Now, I'm sorry to the originator of the recipe, but Ish ain't usin no bread yeast, especially when I have a packet of Cotes De Blanc sitting round

So, pour out half of the water but keep it to top off the jug and put a little in a cup to start hydrating the yeast.

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Next add the 25 Raisens and cut the Orange into 8ths and put it in the jug.

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Its easier to pour the honey in by warming it in some hot water first.

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Then in it goes.

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Now put the cap back on and shake the snot out of it for 5 minutes.
The OG came out at 1.110

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On the left is wildflower honey and the right is clover

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In 2 weeks I'll rack them over to secondary.

Cheers
 
Made me cringe when I read bread yeast! Glad to see you had some Côtes des Blanc to pitch in there.
If you have a way to put a blowoff on there I would. Not much head space in those jugs. The catch trays should be plenty to catch any spillover. I learned my lesson several times :)
Nothing like waking up in the morning to find a carboy spewing in the brew room.
What final gravity are you shooting for?
 
Might be fun to see what it would do but no way would I use bread yeast to brew on any kind of on going basis.

Yeah, I'd use a blowoff tube but I don't have a cork that fits the opening.

I have no idea what the FG is going to come out to. Just have to wait and see.
 
We do a New England cider exactly this way, only instead of water, fresh pressed juice
 
for 15 gallons its 5 oranges, 25 raisins, 15 pounds of sugar, and 2 pounds of honey. Comes out around 13% ABV
 
it takes a good 6 months to age at that ABV
 
doing a mead around 5-6% will get you an easy 3 week mead
 
Yep, changed the name of the thread and I'll use it to track both the Mead Project and the Tudor Ale I'm planning for the party for Shakespeare's Birthday. So, here's the Tudor Ale:
 
In the time of the Tudor Dynasty, which ruled England from 1485 to 1603, there was a very great difference between Ale and Beer. Ale was a sweeter drink and didn't use hops in the making while Beer was in the beginnings of what we know today. Just take a look through "Sacred and Herbal Healing Beers" by Stephen H. Buhner and you'll get an idea of what all has been used throughout history in the making of beers before hops came along. One of the things I found particularly interesting while I was figuring out how to make a Tudor Ale is that the people in Tudor times were either Ale People or Beer People; they loved one and hated the other.
 
So, I found a recipe that was used by Summit Brewing in a collaboration project they did with Minneapolis Institute of Arts for a Supper with Shakespeare. They allowed Northern Brewer to post a 5 gallon home brew version:
 
5 Gallon Batch Size (scaled for 70% efficiency)
O.G: 1.046
F.G: 1.012
BUs: 15

 
MASH INGREDIENTS
7.25 lbs. Crisp Maltings Floor Malted Organic Pale Malt
1.2 lbs Simpson’s Crystal Medium
0.5 oz Simpson’s Black

 
MASH SCHEDULE: SINGLE INFUSION
Sacch’ Rest: 154° F for 45 minutes
Mashout: 172° F for 5 minutes

 
BOIL ADDITIONS & TIMES
60-minute boil
0.5 oz East Kent Goldings (55 min)
2.5 oz Honey (50 min)
0.1 oz Fresh Sage, chopped (5 min)

 
YEAST
Wyeast 1028 London Ale
Fermentation Temp: 68° F

 
FERMENTATION SCHEDULE:
One week primary fermentation
“Dry-hop” with 0.5 oz dried sage for one week.
Two weeks bottle conditioning

 
I showed this to wheebz and asked a couple questions about changes I was thinking of making and came up with this modified version:
 
5 Gallon Batch Size (scaled for 70% efficiency)
Estimates by Beersmith

O.G: 1.039
F.G: 1.010
BUs: 6.4 (This is so low because Beersmith has no numbers to go on for estimating Sage. I would think it'll be the same as the original at 15.)

 
MASH INGREDIENTS
8.0 lbs. Maris Otter
12 oz. Crystal Malt - 60L
0.5 oz Black Patent

2.0 oz. Peat Smoked Malt
 
MASH SCHEDULE: SINGLE INFUSION
Mash In: 154° F for 1 hour 15 minutes
Mashout: 172° F for 5 minutes

 
BOIL ADDITIONS & TIMES
60-minute boil
0.5 oz East Kent Goldings (55 min)
2.5 oz Honey (50 min)
0.1 oz Fresh Sage, chopped (5 min)

 
YEAST
Wyeast 1028 London Ale
Fermentation Temp: 68° F

 
FERMENTATION SCHEDULE:
One week primary fermentation
“Dry-hop” with 0.5 oz dried sage for one week.

 
If you’ve seen any of my sauce threads you’ll know I’m a very out of the box kind of thinker. So I’m really excited to be using Sage in this brew. Sage actually has a very grand history in brewing. It has tremendous antibacterial, antimicrobial, and antiseptic properties and has been used medicinally since ancient times. In fact there was a saying of the ancients: Cur moriatur homo cui Salvia crescit in horto? – “Why should a man die whilst sage grows in his garden?” It is a relative of Wormwood and as such contains thujone but on a lower level but it still had the reputation for increasing the inebriating effects of ales.
 
The ingredients have been ordered and I’m hoping to be brewing next week.
 
One week in Primary and a little Krausen has built up at the top and the Wild Flower Honey based Mead seems to have lightened up by a shade or 2.

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One more week and I'll rack them into secondary's

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If I like this and we want to do it againIll have to measure it and get some corks to fit them.

Cheers
 
Brew day for my first AG is coming up soon.

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Brought 3+ gallons of H2O to a boil for 10 minutes this morning, then into the primary bucket and the fridge to "Chill Out" till time to brew. That morning I'll drop my air stone in for a bit of bubbly action until time to dump the wort in and pitch yeast
 
Brew Day for Tudor Ale
 
This was my first go at AG Brewing and it was a lot simpler than I had expected it to be. Brought my strike water up to 165 dF expecting to get a mash temp of 154 but it only got me to 150. Added a little heat to warm it up and then wrapped the pot in Beach towels to keep it toasty.
 
Mash in
 
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All warm and toasty
 
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Since all my grains were in a bag it was simple to transfer them to the Lauder/Tun. Placed a salad plate on top of the grain to pour onto so it would bother the grain bed very much and ran the wort through the grain bed 3 times, lost a gallon of water to the grain. Sparge water was at 172 dF and 1.25 gallons. Rinsed it through 2 times.
 
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Adjusting for temperature my OG out of the mash was 1.081
 
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Ready to boil
 
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At Hot Break I started my 60 time and added the Hops. 10 minutes later the Honey and 5 minutes from flame out the Sage. Once the boil was done it was into a big sink of water and 5 frozen 2 liter bottles of water. Whirlpooled for 5 minutes and when it was down to about 100 dF into the 3 gallons of Cold water. I'd had an air stone going in the cold water all morning. The OG after mixing it the 3 gallons of cold water was 1.046
 
Pitched yeast
 
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Into the fermentation chamber for a week at 68 dF (20 dC and shown in the picture)
 
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Then I cleaned up, had a cold one and made the house smell even better by making homemade Red Sauce and Alfredo for the crew, Game Club coming over tonight. 
 
Heck yeah man. When you are doing extract beers, doing all grain does sound like it will be complicated, but once you dive in its like "oh... that's it?" I think all grain is far less complicated than doing a mini mash or extract batches. You'll never look back!
 
I see now, are you using the orange bucket as your mash tun?
 
Yes, there's a blue one in the top of the Orange one that has a bunch of holes in the bottom. I drained the wort from the bag and transfered it over. That fridge works great as a fermentation chamber with the control box on top keeping at temperature. Super easy to build
 
Had to go out to the RocketRoom for a minute and looked in on the Tudor Ale. It was bubbling along nicely and I have to say it has the most AWESOME aroma. Different than any other beer I've brewed. It wasn't the hoppy sweet aroma but more of a spicy (it is dry hopped with half ounce of Rubbed Sage but it wasn't really a sage spice aroma) malty aroma. Now I really cant wait to try this!
 
Got to take a taste of the mead while i was racking it over. The one made with the Clover Honey was a really nice kind of medium sweet flavor and very good. The one made with Wildflower was really dry and not very good at all. I'm going to finish them both out and see if the Wildflower one can be resurrected in some way, maybe it needs more aging to mellow out and become good. 
 
BTW, as I was researching this and the use of sage I read a lot about the medicinal uses of sage, dang what an it is! Defiantly worth checking out:
 

Medicinal Action and Uses---Stimulant, as tringent, tonic and carminative. Has beenused in dyspepsia, but is now mostly employed as a condiment. In the United States, where it is still an official medicine, it is in some repute, especially in the form of an infusion, the principal and most valued application of which is as a wash for the cure of affections of the mouth and as a gargle in inflamed sore throat, being excellent for relaxed throat and tonsils, and also for ulcerated throat. The gargle is useful for bleeding gums and to prevent an excessive flow of saliva.
 
When a more stimulating effect to the throat is desirable, the gargle may be made of equal quantities of vinegar and water, 1/2 pint of hot malt vinegar being poured on 1 OZ. of leaves, adding 1/2 pint of cold water.
 
The infusion when made for internal use is termed Sage Tea, and can be made simply by pouring 1 pint of boiling water on to 1 OZ. of the dried herb, the dose being from a wineglassful to half a teacupful, as often as required, but the old-fashioned way of making it is more elaborate and the result is a pleasant drink, cooling in fevers, and also a cleanser and purifier of the blood. Half an ounce of fresh Sage leaves, 1 OZ. of sugar, the juice of 1 lemon, or 1/4 OZ. of grated rind, are infused in a quart of boiling water and strained off after half an hour. (In Jamaica the negroes sweeten Sage Tea with lime-juice instead of lemon.)
 
Sage Tea or infusion of Sage is a valuable agent in the delirium of fevers and in the nervous excitement frequently accompanying brain and nervous diseases and has considerable reputation as a remedy, given in small and oft-repeated doses. It is highly serviceable as a stimulant tonic in debility of the stomach and nervous system and weakness of digestion generally. It was for this reason that the Chinese valued it, giving it the preference to their own tea. It is considered a useful medicine in typhoid fever and beneficial in biliousness and liver complaints, kidney troubles, haemorrhage from the lungs or stomach, for colds in the head as well as sore throat and quinsy and measles, for pains in the joints, lethargy and palsy. It will check excessive perspiration in phthisis cases, and is useful as an emmenagogue. A cup of the strong infusion will be found good to relieve nervous headache.
 
The infusion made strong, without the lemons and sugar, is an excellent lotion for ulcers and to heal raw abrasions of the skin. It has also been popularly used as an application to the scalp, to darken the hair.
 
The fresh leaves, rubbed on the teeth, will cleanse them and strengthen the gums. Sage is a common ingredient in tooth-powders.
 
The volatile oil is said to be a violent epileptiform convulsant, resembling the essential oils of absinthe and nutmeg. When smelt for some time it is said to cause a sort of intoxication and giddiness. It is sometimes prescribed in doses of 1 to 3 drops, and used for removing heavy collections of mucus from the respiratory organs. It is a useful ingredient in embrocations for rheumatism.
 
In cases where heat is required, Sage has been considered valuable when applied externally in bags, as a poultice and fomentation.
 
In Sussex, at one time, to munch Sage leaves on nine consecutive mornings, whilst fasting, was a country cure for ague, and the dried leaves have been smoked in pipes as a remedy for asthma.
 
In the region where Sage grows wild, its leaves are boiled in vinegar and used as a tonic.
Among many uses of the herb, Culpepper says that it is: 'Good for diseases of the liver and to make blood. A decoction of the leaves and branches of Sage made and drunk, saith Dioscorides, provokes urine and causeth the hair to become black. It stayeth the bleeding of wounds and cleaneth ulcers and sores. Three spoonsful of the juice of Sage taken fasting with a little honey arrests spitting or vomiting of blood in consumption. It is profitable for all pains in the head coming of cold rheumatic humours, as also for all pains in the joints, whether inwardly or outwardly. The juice of Sage in warm water cureth hoarseness and cough. Pliny saith it cureth stinging and biting serpents. Sage is of excellent use to help the memory, warming and quickening the senses. The juice of Sage drunk with vinegar hath been of use in the time of the plague at all times. Gargles are made with Sage, Rosemary, Honeysuckles and Plantains, boiled in wine or water with some honey or alum put thereto, to wash sore mouths and throats, as need requireth. It is very good for stitch or pains in the sides coming of wind, if the place be fomented warm with the decoction in wine and the herb also, after boiling, be laid warm thereto.'
Pretty cool herb good for more than seasoning breakfast sausage and cornbread dressing :cool:
 
Ok, racked the Tudor Ale to the secondary where it will rest at 64 dF for then next 2 weeks. Picked up an OG of 1.010 which gives it currently an ABV of 4.78. Didn't get any pics as my 2 hands were busy holding lines but I did get a taste. It was a little more bitter than I expected and the sage gave it a really good flavor and a bit of a bite. It was very interesting and I can't wait to try the final product.

Cheers
 
if you have the chance, or the ability, crash it down to 32-40 degrees after like 3 or 4 days in the secondary and let it condition cold
 
let all that nasty stuff settle out, better for the beer
 
Had to rack the Mead again, a lot of yeast had settled out. Took the SG (1.005) which puts it at 13.78 ABV. The light colored one is sweet and the dark one is pretty dry. Combined they're really good and a mid sweet. The dark one, wild flower honey, tastes a lot better now too. Here's some

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Cheers
 
Neat, I've never had mead (yet), so I can't comment on that ...
 
In this case, is the purpose of the re-racking to move the liquid from one vessel to another to be free of the sediment, which requires not disturbing it? ...
 
Kind of like cave diving, I guess you could say? ...
 
Yes, There was a nice big Yeast Cake at the bottom of the jug and I wanted to get it off of that so that if the bottle was disturbed it wouldn't go back into solution and have to settle out again. Now it's building up in the new jugs as more of the yeast settles out and last night I moved them into the freezer of the fermentation fridge and set it to 40 dF to cold crash them and settle them out ready for bottling.
 
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