Small batch and honey supplies

[Khyber]

I've never tasted mead, but I like the idea and want to try to make some; however, the year long wait seems distressing. Anyone out there have a one gallon short time recipe that I can try to see if i like it?

The local honeys in this area are all wildflower, and according to the LHBS guy, it takes twice as long to clear as orange blossom. Does clover honey take as long? And what prices are you guys giving for honey? I found 5 gallons of OB honey that i can get shipped for $150.

 

[AToE]

My 1 gallon batches of traditional clover honey mead were drinkable and reasonably clear in a couple months. Age would probably have improved them, but they were surprisingly not bad.

 

[wayneb]

For a small batch product that is drinkable relatively young, try Joe's Ancient Orange. Just use the search tool and enter those words, or the letters JAO, and you'll find lots of information, including the recipe.

I've never found a significant correlation between the type of honey used, and the clearing time.

 

[akueck]

I've never found a significant correlation between the type of honey used, and the clearing time.

It might be the belief that most supermarket-type honey is clover and has been heated/filtered to remove most of the fun stuff. Maybe?

 

[wayneb]

It might be the belief that most supermarket-type honey is clover and has been heated/filtered to remove most of the fun stuff. Maybe?

Yup - I think that you're probably right. For that same reason, clover honey often gets short shrift among meadmakers, yet I have made some of my most flavorful and most satisfying traditional meads with it -- using honey from an unheated, unfiltered source.

 

[AToE]

My manuka mead is still very cloudy, and is the same age as my clover batches which are all clear enough to read print through now. There could be other factors involved than just the darkness of the honey contributing to the slower clearing though.

I think the clover batches taste pretty fantastic considering I had almost no idea what I was doing and completely under-fed the yeast. I'll definitely be using clover as at least the primary honey in all my dark melomels and tea/coffee based meads, partially because it's the only honey I can get my hands on locally that is not just "unpasteurized" but labeled "raw" (meaning less filtered I think?).