Homebrewing wine, mead, and cider discussions http://www.brewboard.com/index.php Thu, 17 May 2012 09:52:13 +0000 30 http://www.brewboard.com/index.php http://www.brewboard.com/index.php?showtopic=115531
As for tannins, I thought that adding a tea bag or 3 to the mead wort should do that. Is that correct?

As for acid, I have a malic and tartaric acid blend, but don't know how much to use on a 5 gallon batch. Granted I could experiment, but figured to invoke the sage counsel of this board. Any thoughts?

Cheers]]> McBurtney McBurtney Fri, 16 Mar 2012 22:10:22 +0000 Tue, 10 Apr 2012 14:24:44 +0000 115531 http://www.brewboard.com/index.php?showtopic=115519 I am very new to brewing. I stumbled across a recipe for Ancient Mead and gave it a go in two one gallon jugs, it turned out so yummy I now have 7 gallons of it on the go. I do have a question, It has been just two weeks and one of the smaller jugs seemed to have slowed right down so I racked it, it still seems quite slow..what do I do if anything? Meowna Dave F Mon, 13 Feb 2012 16:02:24 +0000 Fri, 17 Feb 2012 21:03:49 +0000 115519 http://www.brewboard.com/index.php?showtopic=115507 ]]> Thorhale Thorhale Sat, 28 Jan 2012 00:06:20 +0000 Sat, 28 Jan 2012 21:29:50 +0000 115507 http://www.brewboard.com/index.php?showtopic=114925 I am a homebrewer and i am trying my hand at hard cider. I am following a recipie from the latest edition of Zymurgy. I would like to naturally carbonate but am wondering if I can do it like my beer. I do not add corn sugar to the whole batch but rather add 3/4 of a tsp. to each bottle. Yes I know this is a little bit more time consuming but I am very satisfied with the end result. Will this amt. be sufficient? chewybrewie YeastWrangler72 Wed, 29 Sep 2010 02:08:09 +0000 Sat, 31 Dec 2011 02:29:47 +0000 114925 http://www.brewboard.com/index.php?showtopic=115468 When I got into brewing, I read "Homebrewing for dummies" and it talked me through it step by step. WAY dumbed down. But when I read "Home Winemaking for dummies" I was surprised that it still wasn't "dumb enough" for me...it explains a lot of theory and presents a lot of options, but doesn't really hold my hand through the specifics of the first batch.
In Homebrewing, Charlie Papazian's book "the Joy of Homebrewing" is kind of like the intro bible...is there an equivalent on the winemaking side?
Thanks in advance!]]> cfiffpm cfiffpm Sat, 03 Dec 2011 23:47:12 +0000 Sat, 03 Dec 2011 23:47:12 +0000 115468 http://www.brewboard.com/index.php?showtopic=115419
The way they make the cider in Spain is using wild yeast. And it is bottled before fermentation is finished, so that it will become lightly carbonated in the bottle.

I tried this a couple of years ago, but completely winged it. I bottled at different times, so carbonation was different in each group of bottles.

This time I'd like to be a bit more scientific. If I'm just using the juice of the apples (no additional sugars during fermentation or bottling), what should I expect the final gravity to be?

Is there a way to calculate at what gravity above that FG I should bottle in order to achieve "light" carbonation? Thanks...]]> ChrisB1 ChrisB1 Wed, 28 Sep 2011 17:17:49 +0000 Mon, 28 Nov 2011 22:56:33 +0000 115419 http://www.brewboard.com/index.php?showtopic=115417
We do have categories for Meads, Melomels, Pyments and Cysers.

For the past 37 years we've gotten only a few honey-based entries and this year we're really trying to get the word out.

The 2011 Cellarmasters 38th Annual US Amateur Winemaking Competition will be held on November 19, 2011.

Entries must be received between 10/14/2011 and 11//11/2011 at the Home Beer, Wine and Cheesemaking Shop in Woodland Hills, CA. (www.homebeerwinecheese.com)

Entry forms and rules are posted on our website at: http://www.CellarmastersLA.org.

Cellarmasters has been running this competition since the club was founded 38 years ago. The competition is an all-volunteer endeavor on our part and it's one of, if not the, oldest home wine competitions in the US.

Thanks and good luck to all!

Andy]]> acorad acorad Tue, 27 Sep 2011 20:45:49 +0000 Tue, 08 Nov 2011 19:16:54 +0000 115417 http://www.brewboard.com/index.php?showtopic=115146
I really want that Belgian yeast character, a la your favorite saison or Belgian IPA, to shine through, but what yeast to use? I need something that will stand up to the OG / potential ABV of a mead starting at least 1.100 if not 1.110, and I don't want to end sweet. I generally prefer dry meads, and at most lightly semi-sweet (which would probably work with this idea), so I'm looking at ABV's of at least 12, if not 13 or 14%.

What yeast will give me that fruity/spicy Belgian feel and still tolerate up to 14% ABV? (Obviously I will be paying close attention to proper pitching rates by making a big starter and doing staggered nutrient additions, so the question refers to the yeast and it's abilities only...)

Here's a second question while were at it: I use 1 oz of coriander seed and 1/2 oz of bitter orange peel in my usual saison recipe (5 gal batch size, ~ 7% ABV). Would you increase the amounts any for this idea? I usually do 6 gallon mead batches, so I'm considering a slightly increased volume, but also the increased ABV...do I need to up the ante with the spices to deal with a mead ABV?]]> Dave F Dave F Fri, 04 Feb 2011 03:22:34 +0000 Fri, 04 Nov 2011 01:28:28 +0000 115146 http://www.brewboard.com/index.php?showtopic=115445
The cider is from a local wild orchard, harvested and pressed on 9/20/2011. The carboy on the right was pitched with yeast immediately after pressing. The cider in the carboy on the left went with me to my wedding on 9/24. This is the leftovers from what we served as sweet cider. Then, on 9/26, I pitched the same yeast into the remaining 10 gallons of leftovers. Three carboys sat together in the basement while we went on the honeymoon.

Tonight I racked it all into secondaries. The flavors are identical. The only difference is the color and clarity. The darker one is ever so slightly cloudy, whereas the lighter is crystal clear.



The only thought I have is that by immediately starting the fermentation, the oxidation was halted before it could pick up the reddish hues. Generally, when we press cider it comes out lighter, but over the course of the next hour or two it turns dark like what you'd buy in a store. I'm having a hard time understanding why it wouldn't oxidize in the couple hours after pressing but before fermentation really took off. Anyone have ideas???

jeff]]> jefflane510 jefflane510 Sat, 29 Oct 2011 02:32:41 +0000 Sat, 29 Oct 2011 02:32:41 +0000 115445 http://www.brewboard.com/index.php?showtopic=115425
How much sugar should I add when I bottle to get rid of the sour taste?]]> dta5207 BobH Sat, 08 Oct 2011 17:25:08 +0000 Sun, 09 Oct 2011 03:13:28 +0000 115425