Hi all,
I'm new to the meadmaking game (and this forum
) and plan on starting my first batch hopefully this weekend, which is when I'll go to a local farmers market to buy my honey. I have read "The Compleat Meadmaker", gone through the NewBee Guide, and perused the forum for tips on how to go about this, so I feel fairly confident in this run. Below is my Recipe:
Brew Date – xx/xx/xx
Batch Size – 2 Gal.
Honey Varietal – Orange Blossom , Bare Bees (a local business here in SoCal)
Target OG - 1.108
Target SG for Racking - 1.030
%ABV goal ~ 14%
Ingredients:
2 qt. Honey
1.6 gal. spring water
5 g (1 pack) Lalvin K1 - V1116
6.25 g Go Ferm
25 g Fermaid K
Some Notes on my planned methods:
- No Boil method
- I plan on sanitizing everything with Star San
- The fermenter will be in its own fridge. I don't plan on helicoptering the temp too much, but knowing that it is in a fridge will let me sleep better since its been 90-100F in SoCal.
- Aerate a few times/day for three days (shaking)
- Measure S.G. after two weeks and then every week
- When SG = 1.030, Rack
Now, here's where I'd like some advice or guidance. Part of me wants to deviate from solely using honey on my first go and add peaches to the secondary. If I do, I plan on using 4 lbs of peaches (which I'll slice and remove the stones). I know that I need to dunk my fruits down to prevent capping and I have read of a method where pectic enzyme is added with the fruit during the racking, and after 24 hrs a new SG is obtained. What would I use this SG reading to calculate? I have a feeling that it will eventually give me some direction on when to rack from the secondary into another carboy or for bottling.
My second concern is adding the Fermaid K. I've read that I can add it all at once, at 1/3rd sugar depletion, or in two doses: at the end of lag phase and at 1/3rd sugar depletion. I'm leaning towards the once at 1/3rd sugar depletion, but how do I figure out when that is? Also, I apologize in advance in case I may have missed something that has been posted and discussed before.
Cheers!
I'm new to the meadmaking game (and this forum
) and plan on starting my first batch hopefully this weekend, which is when I'll go to a local farmers market to buy my honey. I have read "The Compleat Meadmaker", gone through the NewBee Guide, and perused the forum for tips on how to go about this, so I feel fairly confident in this run. Below is my Recipe:Brew Date – xx/xx/xx
Batch Size – 2 Gal.
Honey Varietal – Orange Blossom , Bare Bees (a local business here in SoCal)
Target OG - 1.108
Target SG for Racking - 1.030
%ABV goal ~ 14%
Ingredients:
2 qt. Honey
1.6 gal. spring water
5 g (1 pack) Lalvin K1 - V1116
6.25 g Go Ferm
25 g Fermaid K
Some Notes on my planned methods:
- No Boil method
- I plan on sanitizing everything with Star San
- The fermenter will be in its own fridge. I don't plan on helicoptering the temp too much, but knowing that it is in a fridge will let me sleep better since its been 90-100F in SoCal.
- Aerate a few times/day for three days (shaking)
- Measure S.G. after two weeks and then every week
- When SG = 1.030, Rack
Now, here's where I'd like some advice or guidance. Part of me wants to deviate from solely using honey on my first go and add peaches to the secondary. If I do, I plan on using 4 lbs of peaches (which I'll slice and remove the stones). I know that I need to dunk my fruits down to prevent capping and I have read of a method where pectic enzyme is added with the fruit during the racking, and after 24 hrs a new SG is obtained. What would I use this SG reading to calculate? I have a feeling that it will eventually give me some direction on when to rack from the secondary into another carboy or for bottling.
My second concern is adding the Fermaid K. I've read that I can add it all at once, at 1/3rd sugar depletion, or in two doses: at the end of lag phase and at 1/3rd sugar depletion. I'm leaning towards the once at 1/3rd sugar depletion, but how do I figure out when that is? Also, I apologize in advance in case I may have missed something that has been posted and discussed before.
Cheers!
