Well Alrighty Than..

[WyldWytch]

Hi all, just wanted to stop in real quick while I was home and say hi and ask about the recipe I am going to prep for my first mead tomorrow. Not unfamiliar with wine making, but would like to run this recipe by you guys so that I actually get what I want or close to it the first time out.

Using Lavlin D-47 for the yeast...

I would like my finished product to be somewhere between a semi-dry to slightly sweet, not talking dessert wine sweet either, that will be for another batch.

Here is what I will be using:

6.2 lbs Apricot Nectar
15 lbs orange blossom honey
enough spring water to top off at 5 gallons

Yeast Nutrients and Booster.

Now my question is the following: Is 15 lbs enough honey to leave a residual sweetness after my Lavlin D-47 hits its mark of approx. ABV 14% or should I add more honey. My biggest issue is I do NOT want a dessert wine and I am not into the absolutely pucker your eyes dry either and would prefer not to have to back sweeten this batch. I would also like to keep my husband from killing me if I screw this up...LOL

Thanks in Advance for any help you guys offer.

Also have to test batches of hard cider working right now, one with D-47 and one with Safale-04. The activity in the D-47 is amazing the Safale well lets just say it's producing almost the same amount of bubble in the airlock but looks totally different. Also had to save the D-47 batch because a chunk of my 1g growler broke off. Thankfully had a teetotaler apple cider in the fridge and switched out the containers, just hoping I can finish fermenting this in the plastic jug versus having to run down to the LHB to grab another growler.

Rosie

 

[Bee Serious]

Depends on the FG... I have seen for mead:

FG of 0.990-1.010 - dry.
FG of 1.010-1.025 - semi-sweet.
FG of 1.025-1.040 - sweet.

3 lbs. of honey per gallon is pretty standard for a middle of the road mead. You are adding some Apricot Nectar which will bump it up... Took a quick look at the beer calculus:
http://hopville.com/recipe/1652493
(had to add hops for the recipe to go through - and used Apricot puree, which might not have as much sugar as nectar?)
And you are looking at an FG of 1.012 - so semi-sweet... if the yeast ferments all the way to 14% - according to the computer - ymmv.

There is also a calculator on this site that is pretty legit:
http://www.gotmead.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=745&Itemid=16

If it is too dry - you can always stabilize and backsweeten, which can be a pain. Or play around with the numbers on 16 lbs of honey vs. 15.

Good luck!

 

[WyldWytch]

Thanks for checking it out, in my quest for trying to get my sorry butt back to work on time this afternoon I used the word nectar instead of puree..I have puree, they were even nice enough to list the Brix count on it...LOL

I'm thinking I might drop in the 15.5 lbs of honey, split the difference and see where it goes.

Life...always an adventure!!!

Guess in the meantime I will have to actually drink my stored bottles of wine, I'm going to need them as a negotiator in a union contract...fermented fruit will have to save me!

Rosie

 

[akueck]

I've had D47 end in the "medium sweet" kind of level, around 1.014, when starting in the range of 1.120-1.125. YMMV.

 

[WyldWytch]

I've had D47 end in the "medium sweet" kind of level, around 1.014, when starting in the range of 1.120-1.125. YMMV.

Well I finally got around to making my Apricot Melomel today, I am going to go post it in thr brew log area, figure someone might chime in there.

Thanks fornthe round about where yiurs finished.

Rosie

 

[Bee Serious]

Well I finally got around to making my Apricot Melomel today, I am going to go post it in thr brew log area, figure someone might chime in there.

Thanks fornthe round about where yiurs finished.

Rosie

"Thanks fornthe round about where yiurs finished."

...nice.

Let's not forget why we ferment. This is serious business.