Mead Lover's Digest #14 Sun 11 October 1992


Forum for Discussion of Mead Brewing and Consuming
John Dilley, Digest Coordinator


Contents:

Yeast starters (Roy Rudebusch)

 


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Date: Fri, 9 Oct 92 16:52:00 -0500
From: roy.rudebusch@travel.com (Roy Rudebusch)
Subject: Yeast starters


From: roy.rudebusch@travel.com

BCM:>Most local raw honey is made mostly from soybean blossoms here
BCM:>in Illinois farm country. Anybody have any experience with this
BCM:>stuff as far as flavor? I'm wondering what kind of mead it
BCM:>will make. Otherwise I'm forced to use grocery store
BCM:>pasteurized stuff.


How does it taste? Would you like to drink
something that was fermented from it?
I once made a mead from sorghum honey. Yuk!
Great honey for rootbeer and ginger cookies but not for a mead.

BCM:>My question today is about starters. I realize that when brewing beer and
BCM:>using Wyeast, a starter is imperative. When making mead however, if all I
BCM:>have is dry yeast (Lalvin, Pasteur, etc), do I need to do more than rehydr
BCM:>If I do make a starter, is it made with honey and nutrient?

You can, but it is best to use malt extract. Dried yeast is of great
want for nutrition, in fact, labs use malt extract for raising yeast
because nothing is better suited.

Boil 1 cup of dry malt extract in 1 qt water, cool. Pitch a re-hydrated
pack of yeast into it, (including the sediment form the malt extract
boil – it has necessary vitamins). Shake for a __full hour__. When it
has started to release CO2, boil another 2 cups of dry malt extract in 3
pts water, cool, add, shake again.

By doing this you should be able to have your mead ferment out in less
than a week!

BCM:>Finally, does Wyeast make a wine yeast?

Yes, but I have not heard a single person having good results with it,
in fact, on R.C.B. somebody discovered a contaminant in a W-yeast wine
pack.

The reason sterilty is so important with beer is because of the low
alcohol amount, when a wine (or mead) starts pushing 8% wild yeasts
start dying, and with a good quality dry yeast like Prise De Mouse
that's all you would have in there that you don't want – wild yeast.

OLX 2.2 Cure insomia by putting hops in your pillow



End of Mead Lover's Digest