Amon Amarth teach how to make mead!
- Thread starter MenacingEye
- Start date
gnoff
Member
It's not hard to brew mead, you don't need much equipment either.
I'd do it differently than in that video though, for like Tyra said above, you need to make sure stuff are sterile/sanitized enough so you don't get an infection or a "wild fermentation".
But if you wanna try brewing mead yourself, check out the brewing thread for starters.
Video was funny though
gnoff
Member
hehe Sorry hun it's not a brand (yet) Gnoff is a member of the boards who makes excellent mead. I drank most of it in Bochum and not many others got to taste it, I was a tad greedy it was so good.
Gnoff you should start your own label for use to buy!
I'm glad you liked it, would have hated to see the guards take it away if we didn't finish the bottles before we reached the doors
I'm glad you liked it, would have hated to see the guards take it away if we didn't finish the bottles before we reached the doors
Oh oh I couldn't let that happen
I will expect a new batch when I come to Sweden! Are you going to the Swedish Rock Fest?
gnoff
Member
Oh oh I couldn't let that happen
I will expect a new batch when I come to Sweden! Are you going to the Swedish Rock Fest?
I'll teach you, then you can make some
Not sure about Sweden Rock, we'll see. Most likely no.
gnoff
Member
Well, if you can say beer taste like beer, wine taste like wine then you can say mead taste like mead.
You reach vast differences in look, scent, taste, mouthfeel, percent alcohol and other things depending on your ingredients and your process, as well as the ageing process.
Some mead are very sweet, other very dry.
Some are spiced, some have added fruits, some basically only have water, honey and yeast.
Some you add more honey to after it's fermented, some you let all the sugar ferment and leave it at that.
Sorry I can't help any more than this, but I'm trying to prove my point that mead doesn't taste a certain way, it depends on what you've used to make it.
Spanish_Lass
Dahar Mistress
Well, yes, obviously. Except the Lindisfarne mead brand (most common in the UK and now available in the USA) tastes like wine with honey added as an afterthought.
Gnoff, let me know when you start exporting
the only decent mead around here is made in Orkney...ok so im really thinking to do it, to drink and have fun in summer!
we were thinking to do it in my friends basement, however since i live in Canada winter here is fucking cold, and it gets really hot in summer (which the mead will be done) so i'm just wondering does the major weather change affects it somehow?
we were thinking to do it in my friends basement, however since i live in Canada winter here is fucking cold, and it gets really hot in summer (which the mead will be done) so i'm just wondering does the major weather change affects it somehow?
gnoff
Member
Fermentation temperature affects how long it takes to finish fermentation.
Cold = slow fermentation, warm = fast fermentation.
Faster fermentation leads to more esters and phenoles.
Beer is my expertice, not to knowledgable about mead yet, but I've fermented my mead at room temperature, or about 20 C, and it's turned out rather nice.
Slow fermentation don't really hurt much, so if your friends basement is above 15 C I'd say go for it now and your mead might be ready to drink come summer.
One reason to not brew during the summer is you've got far more active wild yeast spores around, riding in on pollen and stuff, you've got a much higher risk of infections if you brew in the summer.
Spanish_Lass
Dahar Mistress
That is why making mead with room temperature water to me is a bit like... uuuh...
will it be OK if not boiled? But gotmead.com says either boiling or doing it with room temperature water will give suitable results... And if you buy bottled water and use the original packaging there should be very little in the way of germs? Spring water should have been bottled in a clean environment...
gnoff
Member
That is why making mead with room temperature water to me is a bit like... uuuh...
But gotmead.com says either boiling or doing it with room temperature water will give suitable results... And if you buy bottled water and use the original packaging there should be very little in the way of germs? Spring water should have been bottled in a clean environment...
There are some separate schools on the matter.
Some will absolutely not boil the water and especially not the honey.
The honey itself, if it's not processed, will contain loads of pollen, so I always boil it.
Also it comes down to your tap water if you use that, the water in Sweden tends to be very clean, and very low on chlorine. Sure there are some minor bacteria living in it, but nothing that will make you sick or ruin your brew.
To be certain though, I always boil the water, unless I need to dilute the wort or honey mix before I start fermentation, then I use tap water straight to the bin.
If you were to use spring water I'd think you can use it without boiling for sure. Then again, if you use the honey as is without boiling, the water will not affect much since you'll have so much stuff in the honey anyways.
Mead seems to be far less sensitive compared to beer though, one part may be since a lot of brewers use wine yeast and another might be that the honey and water mix is less attractive to wild yeast spores than the beer wort.
Spanish_Lass
Dahar Mistress
Boiling or heating honey seems the way... spores are one thing, but also stirring thick honey onto cold water must be a bitch.
But boiling water... rather use spring water. Scottish water is very soft, next to no chlorine, but does carry some bacteria.
Sterilising containers sounds like a pain though.
But boiling water... rather use spring water. Scottish water is very soft, next to no chlorine, but does carry some bacteria.
Sterilising containers sounds like a pain though.
gnoff
Member
Well, I'd say at least heat some water to 70 or 80 C, then stir your honey into it.
Don't think you'll ruin the honey that way and most wild yeast will die as well.
The add your spring water to the amount you desire.
Sterilizing isn't that hard.
If you have a 30 liter plastic "wine barrel" with a lid that fits snug and where you can fit a rubber stopper and a plastic water lock you'll be fine.
First use regular "hand wash" liquid, not the stuff for machines though, and make it clean.
Now add some 5 liters of warm tap water with about half a deciliter of chlorine, then fit the lid. Shake the barrel for a while to make sure the solution gets around all inside, then leave it for 20 minutes.
Pour out the solution, rinse thouroughly with warm water several times. Also fill it up with 5 liters again and shake it again.
Repeat this a few times, until you can't smell the chlorine any longer, then fill the barrel to the top with cold tap water, replace the lid (lid should have been rinsed several times as well of course) and leave for 20 minutes.
When you've poured out the water you can be fairly certain nothing in the way of bacteria or yeast spores lives in your barrel.
Other stuff you use should be plastic, glass or stainless steel. This you may sterilize in your sink with water and choline. Make sure to get the rubber stopper and the plastic water lock as well.
Don't use copper, brass or aluminium with chlorine though!
Never use wood, it's impossible to get clean enough.
Anther way of sterilizing is placing stuff in the oven at 130 C for a good 15 minutes, or using boiling water.
Plastic will be a fairly bad idea for this, stainless steel usually works as doess glass.
Don't think you'll ruin the honey that way and most wild yeast will die as well.
The add your spring water to the amount you desire.
Sterilizing isn't that hard.
If you have a 30 liter plastic "wine barrel" with a lid that fits snug and where you can fit a rubber stopper and a plastic water lock you'll be fine.
First use regular "hand wash" liquid, not the stuff for machines though, and make it clean.
Now add some 5 liters of warm tap water with about half a deciliter of chlorine, then fit the lid. Shake the barrel for a while to make sure the solution gets around all inside, then leave it for 20 minutes.
Pour out the solution, rinse thouroughly with warm water several times. Also fill it up with 5 liters again and shake it again.
Repeat this a few times, until you can't smell the chlorine any longer, then fill the barrel to the top with cold tap water, replace the lid (lid should have been rinsed several times as well of course) and leave for 20 minutes.
When you've poured out the water you can be fairly certain nothing in the way of bacteria or yeast spores lives in your barrel.
Other stuff you use should be plastic, glass or stainless steel. This you may sterilize in your sink with water and choline. Make sure to get the rubber stopper and the plastic water lock as well.
Don't use copper, brass or aluminium with chlorine though!
Never use wood, it's impossible to get clean enough.
Anther way of sterilizing is placing stuff in the oven at 130 C for a good 15 minutes, or using boiling water.
Plastic will be a fairly bad idea for this, stainless steel usually works as doess glass.
gnoff
Member
If it taste absolutely horrible, or vinegar, and you can't drink it even for getting drunk, then it's most likely infected.
usually an infection in beer shows itself by a hint of acidic notes in smell and taste, this grows worse as time goes on, also the mouthfeel grows thin and all the nice character lessen until you are left with an utterly vile undrinkable liquid that you'll gladely pour down the drain.
Haven't had the pleasure myself to try an infected mead just yet.
Spanish_Lass
Dahar Mistress
Like wine that has been open for too many days? That is obvious from a distance.
If my great uncle could see me now he'd probably give me a pat on the shoulder
His thing was commercial wine and liqueur making, but you have to start somewhere. 
