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Pappy

NewBee
Registered Member
Jul 26, 2013
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Hi!

Couldn't find an introduction thread (didn't really kill myself looking though) so i decided this would be as good a place as any to introduce myself.

Been lurking here for years and finally joined.

Look forward to chatting with many here and learning many things.

Just made a JAOM (literally finished about an hour ago). Trying to occupy myself and fighting the urge to go check it every 5 minutes :-)

Oh well wanted to say hey. I'm a guy. Medium old. Come to think of it medium everything. Never brewed or anything so this is the maiden voyage so to speak.

I'm sure i will be back with questions in the next 48 hours :-)

pappy

Oh Yeah. Already got a question. Any general ballpark for starting gravity of JAOM? Mine was 1.17 and I am little worried that is slightly high. Can't find many posts but some seem to have starting gravity lower than 1.1. Worried I may have "eyeballed" the 3.5 pounds of honey a little wrong :-)
 
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Welcome and a quart jar holds 3 pounds of honey so that might be a yardstick for your measure. I started my jaom a couple weeks ago and was deadly worried about that thick layer of honey in the bottom of the carboy and was positive I had overshot some way. It is all gone and the ferment is just now starting to slow and my SG is down to the very high end of acceptable for a sweet mead to me I hope it works further down. That is a windy way of saying I never dissolved my honey so I wasn't able to get an OG. Go to the meadlog and read the JAOM and variant threads as I believe that Chevette Girl just recently answered that same question.
 
Welcome to the forums.......

If you filled the JAO jug/carboy right to the top, it might be worth thinking on taking some of the liquid out and keeping it in a bottle for a week or so, in the fridge......

Cos if the ferment really does get going, then it can foam up right out the airlock. Giving it some foaming space helps prevent that.

Then once its settled down after a week or two, give it a gentle stir with a sanitised plastic spoon handle to knock the gas out of it and top it up with the reserved liquid........
 
Pappy said:
Hi!

Couldn't find an introduction thread (didn't really kill myself looking though) so i decided this would be as good a place as any to introduce myself.

Been lurking here for years and finally joined.

Look forward to chatting with many here and learning many things.

Just made a JAOM (literally finished about an hour ago). Trying to occupy myself and fighting the urge to go check it every 5 minutes :-)

Oh well wanted to say hey. I'm a guy. Medium old. Come to think of it medium everything. Never brewed or anything so this is the maiden voyage so to speak.

I'm sure i will be back with questions in the next 48 hours :-)

pappy

Oh Yeah. Already got a question. Any general ballpark for starting gravity of JAOM? Mine was 1.17 and I am little worried that is slightly high. Can't find many posts but some seem to have starting gravity lower than 1.1. Worried I may have "eyeballed" the 3.5 pounds of honey a little wrong :-)
Click to expand...
Heya Pappy!

Join the club! I'm over the hill and screamin' down the other side! <grin>

Your JAOM sounds fine. By the very nature of JAOM, SG isn't usually taken into account. However, I just so happen to have made a batch and checked the SG, which was 1.120, so you're right there in the ballpark.

At least you didn't do what I did my first time out, and cut down on the honey to make it drier. I don't care for dry wines, so i figured it couldn't hurt. Little did I know. :(

JAOM is really a remarkable recipe. And the author knew what he was doing and how to hook us and reel us in. When the directions are followed, its ALMOST foolproof. Of course, nothing can be made truly foolproof because we fools can be so ingenious. ;)

The important thing is patience. You've got, probably, 2 months or so now before that batch is ready to sample. You'll end up using the time digging around here and learning all you can and, in no time, you'll be planning your next x batches.

You're on your way now. Welcome to the compulsion. ;)

Joe
 
Yes! What Joe said! And if you can, give fatbloke's advice some consideration. That fermentation can get very vigorous. And it will do it from 3AM to 5AM when most of us are asleep.
 
mannye said:
Yes! What Joe said! And if you can, give fatbloke's advice some consideration. That fermentation can get very vigorous. And it will do it from 3AM to 5AM when most of us are asleep.
Click to expand...
DEFINITELY take fat bloke's advice!

When making a batch in a gallon or 4 liter jug, I make the full measure of must (right up to the top of the bottle) and siphon some out into the empty honey container so that the level in the glass jug is just at the 'shoulder' where it goes from straight to curved. The honey bottle goes in the fridge for 3 or 4 days until the activity has slowed, at which point I add about half of the extra after degassing. A couple of days after that I add more to about half way up the neck. The rest of unused must goes in the freezer to add to the secondary should I want to top it off.

And they're right that it ALWAYS happens between 3 and 5 AM when we're asleep. Them thar yeasts be tricky buggers.


Joe
 
1.170 might be a bit high for a starting gravity, you may end up wanting to dilute this out a little bit unless you like it really sweet. My JAO's and variants that have been measured are generally around 1.120-1.130.
 
I'm Back

Hi! It's me again. Sorry to have post and run. I did read all of your advice and appreciate it very much.

I was already worried about foaming so what I did was leave space by mixing up honey in slightly less water than needed and come back in a week or two and topped off with water. This probably explains my slightly higher OG. It probably also voids the warranty:-)

Anyway. Been two moths and like magic the stuff has cleared in the last couple of days. Almost no bubbling. No fruit drop yet (not sure if that is ever gonna happen).

I have been good and not tasted or touched. Think I'll check a gravity and taste it soon. I deserve it for being patient :-)

Pappy
 
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