There has been some question if this really was 30% due to some dilution from backsweetening.... well, we tested it in a video: ruclips.net/video/H_qQWHnIvy4/видео.html
13th warrior was written in 922 AD by the way.. by Ibn himself.. anyway, sat here sipping of my own mead I made last year.. All praise be to Grog., and Hail Odin of course.
My wife fully blames you two for me new hobby... Haven't even finished my first mead yet, and I've already made 10.5% grape juice wine and another mead is fermenting along with the first. You guys are awesome.
@TimBiden you can make a high abv sugar wash(sugar wine, first step in rum) then use that to make your favorite lemonade/ limeade recipe and you got easy homemade hard lemonade.
Just started watching y'all on my second mead brewing venture; excellent stuff and y'all make it so much less stressful. Bonus points for Critical Role reference! The first mead I made was for my D&D campaign. When my players went into a tavern that was "famous for it's mead", ordered some in character and then got actual mead the reactions were priceless.
I enjoy fortified wine. I usually set aside a 16oz bottle for fortifying and enjoy creating fortifying liquor (dried cherry and toasted French oak in amaretto for a cherry wine, candy orange peel and figs in grand marnier for a fig orange mead) so I enjoy when yall do it
I did this once. It was a kind of experiment of continuously restarting fermentation and adding more flavors and sugars in. And brewing it in a fridge. I can’t say exactly what I did entirely but damn was it strong. Jalapeño raspberry is about what it finished at with the flavor. We used our own honey we raised, which was 100% raw. And it was a bread yeast I used surprisingly. The yeast fairies def were with me on that venture.
@@alverygrissom2544 yep! Ovviamente, non è il top, per quello so che ci sono un sacco di lieviti specializzati apposta per idromele, ma per cose con poche pretese funziona anche già quello ^^ In genere, uso il lievito di birra, evitando quello per dolci (col quale non ho avuto gran fortuna), ma forse anche col lievito madre esce fuori qualcosa di potabile.
I’ve learned more from y’all’s channel then anyone else’s on here. So Thank you both for all of your videos and educating me and everyone who follows y’all. 1:53
You convinced me. Started brewing my first batch of mead yesterday (EC1118 + 3.8lbs honey + .5gal water) and I'm making a variant of this. Thanks for the inspiration. Wish me luck! Love your channel!
Oh yeah! Thanks for this. My dandelion mead is basically done and it's 18.5% again...second time already! Started it at 1.127, went down to 0.990 with Mangrove Jack's M-05 mead yeast! I know what I'm doing next with it! 👍👍
My son and I made a 5 gal batch of blueberry melomel recently. We split it into 1 gal jugs after fermentation was complete and fortified one of them with Kailua. The initial sample tasted like a cherry cordial. It has been conditioning for a week. Can’t wait to taste the final product. Your channel has inspired us to make many different meads. Thank you!
Your reference to "Alcohol is a Flavor" reminded me of a sign I saw at a renaissance festival which read "Technically, alcohol IS a solution". It was obviously talking about an alcohol and water mixture being a solution, but it was still funny.
What an EXCELLENT Recipe! I used Brazilian Pepper Honey (3+ pounds), 1/2 tsp Fermaid-O, 1/2 tsp wine tannin, & EC-1118. O.G. 1.124. F.G. was 1.010. 110 ounces of mead, added 51 ounces of 151 rum. 34+% ABV. Added about 1/2 pound BP honey to taste (hydrometer won't read, maybe 0.982 SG). Delicious sipping mead! Thanks again! God, I love this channel!
So happy to find your channel,, learning soooo much. Recently made 2 buckets of tomato paste wine for a neutral spirt run that had only cheese cloth over the stopper without the bubbler in a small room with a heater going . Even that mess only smelled like poured out wine when standing in the room checking on things...
im making my first batch rn about a week away from bottling and im so excited. ive been having a great time so i just typed "mead" into the search and yall came up. i love the video and the energy, yall just have me excited to start my next batch
Thanks for this video! Up to now I’ve always struggled with calculating ABV when fortifying. So… let me check if I’m getting this right: Volume unfortified liquid x ABV unfortified liquid = A Volume fortifying agent x ABV fortifying liquid = B Total volume unfortified liquid + fortifying liquid = C (A + B) : C = new ABV of fortified mead Correct?
@@CitySteadingBrews - Yay! The math-challenged one actually understands! 🤩 This makes me so happy. Especially since this formula is completely independent of which units are being used: metric or imperial. It doesn’t matter. As long as I stay within the same system/units, I’m good. Off to my brewing log/notebook/binder thingy to update my section on formulas and calculations. I might even whip out my pen with glittery ink, just to get a rise out of my maths-whiz daughter. 🤪
I’ve just turned 21 in April and I stumbled on your channel last month and I’ve been watching your videos almost every day! I’ve been interested in making meads n stuff for around a year bc golden hive mead came down my tl. You two have truly expanded my knowledge on what home brewing is. I didn’t even know you can make beer at home before I found you guys. Keep doing what you’re doing. Much love from Florida 🫶🏾
I have three batches in one gallon fermenters brewing in my bedroom in five gallon buckets right next to the door. I have not been able to smell anything sweet or anything remotely fermenting or have been able to hear any bubbling from the airlock outside of my door if my bedroom closed. So far neither of my roommates have complained about any weird smells or ask wtf! Is bubbling in your room. Not sure how anybody neighbors are complaining about fermentation smells? Depending how much room you have in your freezer there is always the fractional crystallization method to get a beverage 25-40% the same process when making applejack. Also goes without saying to anyone reading this comment check your local/ state laws before doing this process getting a higher abv brew, because I am pretty sure using this method of distilling is probably illegal in most states.
Fractional freezing is A) considered distilling in the US and therefore illegal, and B) concentrates the methyl alcohols and other nasty stuff. That's why we don't do it.
Brian, I know you two normally disregard the diluting impact of back sweetening - but I think it's a VERY important thing to consider if one is attempting to use fortification to achieve stabilization... There's a high risk of bottle bombs otherwise. Obviously your "not actually 30%" is still well in the safe zone, but someone thinking that 20% is safe, then adds enough sugar to add 20-40 points should probably do the math.
Good info to know, but you didn't sweeten much and you started high abv. I have no doubt your brew is safe, I just feel that when mixing back sweetening and stabilizing via fortification the topic of how much back sweetening drops the abv is relevant to the safety discussion. _P.s. I updated my post, adding the second paragraph, at the same time Brian responded... He was fast fast!_
Nice to see the thumb saver again! I have a couple of black plastic screw on caps i use for the same purpose. My local brewer supply has them for like 50 cents each.
After watching many of your videos I have convinced the wife we need to start brewing at home. You should have gotten a partnership with trbos. You probably trippled their sales.
Been making non honey wines for a while, but this video along with backward blueberry meade opened a whole new world with endless fortified and nonfortified meade combinations, along with simple abv math...keep it up!
I love the way you two make mead making accessible. I finished the last bottle of my first batch and have two ageing now with two more planned shortly.
Love this! I made a mead/rum back in 1998, that I lost my notes to that turned out an 11-13 rating as well. So glad to see you do this! Mead blends so well with a good rum ;) The oak cask from rum with smokie florals blended so well with the honey really was a great mouth feel, that wasn't a tongue slap and only got better after 6month, it didn't survive to 1 year as it was all consumed when new years 2000 rolled around :D I also made a jack daniels, blueberry mead at the same time, but the rum was my favourite.
I recently got the idea in my head to try making mead, most of the men in my family brewed some sort of alcohol in their lives, so now it's my turn. I found your channel on a side bar recommendation and clicked over. I now HAVE to learn to make mead so that I can try this. But when I told my family about it they all started mentioning different things. My son also suggested a Fireball Mead, as we both love fireball. I am going to price up the starting gear for me in the UK this month, and hope to have something to try by new years or just after. Thanks for the advice and inspiration.
Absolutely nothing wrong with the super-high octane 190 proof Everclear. I use it as a base when making liqueurs. Having to use less and being easier to proof down are two bonuses of using it over the 151.
I just finished my first batch if country rubarb wine and found this video some how. I had to watch half this video with one of my eyes closed. You guys are awesome. Were friends now and you don't have a choice in rhe matter. Thanks for the video.
Sorry, I usually don't comment because I watch on my TV app, but that looks AMAZEBALLS!!! 😂😂😂 I currently have two batches of mead going, and I over sweetened one (because my scale is for smaller things 😂) and I may have to go get a bottle of 151 for that! Love the new format and the shorts! Thanks for teaching me this amazing hobby that has improved the quality of my life and gives me something to do and look forward to ❤❤❤
@@CitySteadingBrews you guys are awesome, and I love how you (Brian) would give me tips from day one, how Derica gets my sense of humor, your love of fine spirits and roleplaying games... I just wish you lived closer! No way I'm going to Florida! I'd melt! 😂
I'm going to divide my meade and make the fortified and make a couple fizzy bottles been making ginger beer (unfermented no intentional alcohol which usually only takes a day). I think I'll start with the fermented meade and add a bit of sugar for the fizz near the end of fermentation.
I’ve only done 2 fruit wine batches so far, but there was so much yeast smell (6 gal batches each time) that the whole house smelled like bread. I got asked a few times if I was starting a bakery 😂
I've been brewing beer for about 5 yrs and really enjoy your video's and your explanation of the process you are using. I have about 3 gallons of honey that I have been sitting on for a couple months just waiting for me to get off my ass and make some mead. Thank you the push to get it done. Keep up the great video's.
I am brewing mead for the first time and a week deep I am getting that dreaded rotten egg smell. Just praying it releases, apparently I did not aerate enough. My neighbors definitely do not smell it tho I gotta put my nose up into it to smell it. Thank you guys for everything you do 😊
I used a blackberry raspberry mead- 2.5lbs to start. Back sweated with .5 lbs of honey and raised from 14.5 to 16% using huckleberry vodka. Worked out well.
Nice, I love a few sips of something complex, highly alcoholic and a little sweet as a digestif - I usually have B&B, high quality port or sometimes brandy, but this sounds like it'll hit the spot extremely well - gonna buy some honey tomorrow to get it started!
I make mead year round in a closet dedicated to fermentation 9x 3 gallon carboys going pretty much constantly for about 5 years. There is no bad smell. No one ever notices. Even when one summer the power went out and they blew their tops and made a huge mess, it just swelled like waffles with honey
Talk about timely vid! I just had a mead come out to about 25% ABV! Had to have messed up somewhere in my calculations. Started out at 1.20, finished at 1.00 calculated at 135 multiple times. It DOES have a kick and needs aging. started on 4/29/23. Guess it'd help if I said what kind of yeast I used. Lavalin EC-118.
@@TigerPat_9180 1.20 . i used fermaid o at the start and added some more at 2 weeks to prevent a stall. But still 25% is WAY beyond what i was expecting. However, judging by the taste test (done today) I think it's believable. Just what came out of the hygrometer was enough for both dad and i to get a bit of a buzz... No detectable sweetness left either.
@@CitySteadingBrews 50 bags mint tea,handful golden raisins, 2 tablespoons fermaid o, all added to 3 gallons water with a little over 7 pounds wildflower honey. it is pretty stout. the amount I took out to take a hydrometer reading let me take a really nice nap earlier today.....
I wont lie when I first started watching your videos I hated how long they were. But Now I just put them on in the background while I am working and its nice. You guys seem to have a good relationship. Me and my wife life here in FL to. Thanks your the videos. PS. I have a batch going on blueberries and cherries hopefully it turns out good!
Just got to the part in the video where you mentioned you like Rum and Coconut Rum's. Since you are in St. Pete I have a Rum I would like to recommend. I lived in North Port FL. when Siesta Key Rum distillery started up. I have since moved away. It's a nice small batch distillery. They make a pretty good clear and spiced rum. Yet the product of theirs that is absolutely amazing (to me) is their Toasted Coconut rum. I miss it very much! I don't have the refined palate that you two do, yet I find it amazing. I hope you have an opportunity to enjoy it.
the pitcher is large enough you can put the glass jug into it far enough that even if you do splosh a bit it still all goes in, then pour from the pitcher into the big mouth!
Just started my first bee colony this year. If i get any honey at all i will be sure to send you guys some. Would love to see it turn into one of your awesome recipes! :)
Great video on Mead fortification! I’ve always wonder whether or not mead at this ABV would still taste good so I’m happy it turned out well! In the Harry Potter books Professor Slughorn accidentally poisons Ron with a mead he had set aside as a gift for Dumbledore. The book describes the mead as: BungBarrel Mead - 34% ABV with hints of cherry and licorice aged in vintage oak barrels. This has been something I’ve been considering trying to replicate. Your video has given me a little more confidence it could turn out drinkable (maybe with smaller pours 😅)
This time last year I made my first mead with honey and apple juice (I had to split the mixture and double the amount I made since the yeast wouldn't start... I've now made maybe 90 litres (60 with friends and the rest myself), thanks for the pro beginner tips
Just found your channel and am loving it. I've watched three in a row and I've ordered my Australian equivalent equipment. I'm not really a whiskey drinker but I love brandy (drink responsibly - [sorry it's a govt ad that's on every bottle and mention of drinking alcohol everywhere - adding it is like a tic now!]). I'm assuming that will work just as well but thought I would check in first. Thanks so much. You two are absolute naturals at providing a great deal of info in an easily digestible and fun format.
I don't think we used whiskey in this... but yup, brandy would work. Will alter the flavor of course and the higher to go, the less of a mead it is. We did this as a meme mostly. I would go to 20% abv or so normally.
Wow, I'm so glad I watched to the end. I don't have space in my condo for pasteurization equipment, but this opens up a world of possibilities for when I start brewing again in a few months. Like Derica, I enjoy gin. What sort of flavors might make a tasty mead that would pair well with gin fortification?
Comparing that to a classic Bee's Knees cocktail, definitely lemon peel. The gin itself adds its own aromas. EDIT: Also, whatever botanicals are in the gin will probably also be good as additives in the base mead.
I have a really nice 57% rum called Leatherback Barrel Strength Special Reserve from North of 7 a local micro distillery here in Ottawa that I would love to try this with. Might do some small tests in a glass with some of my traditional mead first.
Brian, Dodge has made a Challenger, that runs best on 85 percent ethanol. They call it the 170. meaning 170 proof, which is what 85% fuel is. Only brought that up, because you're talking about the proof of your additives. My favourite rum, comes from Costco. Kirkland Spiced rum, here it is $13, for a 1.5 L bottle, and is 92 proof. steve
I’ve done this with a blackberry bochetomel and a basic mead that I triple distilled to make a vodka. Blended the two and the resulting spirit is just like a very well barrel aged port. Yummy! 😋
I never brew in my life i just watch because you guys are fun and entertaining. Nonetheless i have a question: why have you let the east going the all way? i am asking because i lived in Portugal before and they do port wine this way (highly summarised) 1-they do a wine, 2-do a brandy at 77% ABV out of it, 3- with a new batch start a fermentation and when this last one reaches 2 to 2.5% ABV they insert a volume of that brandy into 3 volumes of the fermentation in progress. So they have a 20 to 24% ABV with a lot of sugars in it. Best of both worlds right? 😁
I think you guys need to do a new favorites video. I feel like you guys have made so many new things that you guys have loved since you made the one video. I want an updated version!
I just leave the funnel in when I add nutrient and such because the additional water will rinse it down the funnel anyway. Keeps it from sticking to the sides of the glass neck. Same with my yeast. Every yeast fulfills their destiny. No harm in thwacking the packet just before you use the last of the water instead of waiting until the end where the chance of them sticking is way higher.
There is no need to fortify by addition. You can freeze the mead and sluice out ice as it forms. Boil down saved ice, add it back to main stock. I make 24% abv mead and winter ale this way. I also will add spice pack to ice reduction for making festival ales and meads. Give it a try.
Starting Mead question (sorry, long): I put together a simple Cyser using a gallon of apple juice and 1.5 lbs of honey. Blanc yeast (same in video). After a couple days, I saw no activity. I made a cold brew coffee Mead and put some of the yeast (same yeast) into the cyser, thinking the original yeast may have been dead (it was an old packet). A couple more days go by, the cold brew is running well, but the Cyser looks still. I decided to add the rest of the pack of yeast since I didn't put much the second time. Some of the yeast got on the side, so I put the cap back on and tilt/swirled to get the yeast from the neck. Then the bottle sprayed out of the cap lock hole like a shakened carbonated drink. I cleaned it all up with Star San and put a new cap on it. Does this mean it had active yeast the whole time? Do I need to be concerned about it? There's quite a bit of head space now, should I add anything to it (liquid or solid)? Sorry, a lot of questions. I've been brewing on and off for three years (and watching your videos) and never had anything like this before. Thanks. Side note, I think I'm going to fortify my Cold Brew Mead with rum and whiskey (I'll split into two) to 30%. Thanks again.
It's been a little bit since I have watched your videos, I'm really enjoying the new video editing and little additions you have made like the chalkboard.
I do my calculations differently and came up with 30.35% abv. 120 oz @ 14.04% (120 x .1404) = 16.848 oz ethanol 39 oz @ 75.5% (39 x .755)= 29.445 oz ethanol 6 oz @ 63% (6 x .63)= 3.78 oz ethanol Total ethanol = 50.073 Divide that by total volume of 165 oz 50.073/165 = .3035 Multiply by 100 to get 30.35%
@@CitySteadingBrews yes, give or take .01 %. I was just posting my method because i got lost in yours. I also posted just before you said your result, so i didnt know what you had yet. Im not saying youre wrong, just showing a different way.
Our methods are actually similar. Mine is in "parts", which for this was ounces, but it could be anything that the smaller amount is divisible into. For instance, 1 gallon of 10% ABV and 1/2 gallon of 100 ABV. That's 3 half gallons, so, we add 2 parts of 10 for 20, and one part of 100 for a total of 120. Divide by the three parts and it's 40% ABV.
In most of my wines and meads I have been having a problem with Headspace, mostly because I am trying to do 2 gallon batches. After asking several nearby wineries and other sources. it was suggested adding a similar wine to top off the headspace. I am going to be doing that with my next racking. Not quite fortifying but still a good reason to mention it here.
I just picked up a 2 gallon "drink dispenser" from Walmart with a wooden lid with silicone gasket. 14 bucks. It is 2 gallons with VERY little headroom (I tested it last night). Better homes and garden brand, I think. Would make a perfect secondary for 2 gal batches.
Woo-hoo! Very cool stuff, guys. Have you tried playing with a Pearson Square to calculate mixture for fortification? It probably wouldn't have worked here with having to add so many different ABVs to get where you wanted, but if there are only 2 (low ABV and high ABV) it is accurate and arguably simpler. Also, maybe showing a blowoff tube in a video might be helpful (if you haven't already done that).
I first thought you must be using whitelabs 25% yeast and it couldn't read. Then I watched you pour the Rum in and all I could think was Yummy! This will be my next batch!
Halfway through my second brew! I'm reading a lot to learn more about the science and practices behind different meads. You two have taught me a lot! Thank you!
On a trip to Playa Del Carmen I discovered a drink based on an ancient Mayan drink called Xtabentun (Esh-tab-en-tune - long e in the front, short e in the middle). They ferment a special type of honey with green anise; then add a signature rum aged in Jack Daniels barrels. Depending upon where one resides in the U.S., it can be difficult if not impossible to purcchase (you have to order it). The drink is fairly sweet with slight black licorice flavor with a rather thick but not cloying, consistency, don't know how they accomplish that. ABV is 35. I've been wanting to create something that approximates Xtabentun this gives me hope. Maybe you can recreate this experiment using a sac mead and fortify it. Might be fun.
ive been brewing for about 20 years and just put on my first mead tonight. i went a little balls to the wall. lol 7.5 kg honey up to 25 liters 150g raisons 250g pomegranate seeds 350g mixed berries and some black tea tannins I have tested the OG of 1.10 (might of went a little honey happy) with a floating digital hygrometer and a eyepiece version as well. fermenting will kveik voss at 35c @ 10psi time will tell.
There has been some question if this really was 30% due to some dilution from backsweetening.... well, we tested it in a video: ruclips.net/video/H_qQWHnIvy4/видео.html
I enjoy adding peach or kiwifruit to my mead. Not flavoring fresh squeezed.
New subscriber btw.
13th warrior was written in 922 AD by the way.. by Ibn himself.. anyway, sat here sipping of my own mead I made last year.. All praise be to Grog., and Hail Odin of course.
Plz tell which yeast is best for honey wine
There is no one best. I suggest watching some of our recipe videos to learn what we used and why for each brew.
@@CitySteadingBrews ok
My wife fully blames you two for me new hobby... Haven't even finished my first mead yet, and I've already made 10.5% grape juice wine and another mead is fermenting along with the first. You guys are awesome.
Well? That's all I have..... 😂😂😂 Good luck with that....😂😂😂.....❤❤❤
Same here 😂
Your crazy😅😅. After watching these channels for over a year. I strongly believes that now am a certified brewer.
@TimBiden you can make a high abv sugar wash(sugar wine, first step in rum) then use that to make your favorite lemonade/ limeade recipe and you got easy homemade hard lemonade.
If your wife complains so much, get her to drink it along with you 😉😎😎😎
Just started watching y'all on my second mead brewing venture; excellent stuff and y'all make it so much less stressful. Bonus points for Critical Role reference!
The first mead I made was for my D&D campaign. When my players went into a tavern that was "famous for it's mead", ordered some in character and then got actual mead the reactions were priceless.
Nice!
I enjoy fortified wine. I usually set aside a 16oz bottle for fortifying and enjoy creating fortifying liquor (dried cherry and toasted French oak in amaretto for a cherry wine, candy orange peel and figs in grand marnier for a fig orange mead) so I enjoy when yall do it
I did this once. It was a kind of experiment of continuously restarting fermentation and adding more flavors and sugars in. And brewing it in a fridge. I can’t say exactly what I did entirely but damn was it strong. Jalapeño raspberry is about what it finished at with the flavor. We used our own honey we raised, which was 100% raw. And it was a bread yeast I used surprisingly. The yeast fairies def were with me on that venture.
I've almost exclusively used bread yeast you find in supermarkets here in Italy, to make my meads xD
@@talscorner3696 seriamente? funziona?
We show it in videos: ruclips.net/video/f7a8oKvGJOk/видео.htmlsi=lafXQgq9uMXiy__r
@@alverygrissom2544 yep! Ovviamente, non è il top, per quello so che ci sono un sacco di lieviti specializzati apposta per idromele, ma per cose con poche pretese funziona anche già quello ^^
In genere, uso il lievito di birra, evitando quello per dolci (col quale non ho avuto gran fortuna), ma forse anche col lievito madre esce fuori qualcosa di potabile.
I like the hydrometer graphic , nice addition.
I’ve learned more from y’all’s channel then anyone else’s on here. So Thank you both for all of your videos and educating me and everyone who follows y’all. 1:53
Aww thank you. Glad to have helped!
You convinced me. Started brewing my first batch of mead yesterday (EC1118 + 3.8lbs honey + .5gal water) and I'm making a variant of this.
Thanks for the inspiration. Wish me luck!
Love your channel!
Oh yeah! Thanks for this. My dandelion mead is basically done and it's 18.5% again...second time already! Started it at 1.127, went down to 0.990 with Mangrove Jack's M-05 mead yeast!
I know what I'm doing next with it! 👍👍
My son and I made a 5 gal batch of blueberry melomel recently. We split it into 1 gal jugs after fermentation was complete and fortified one of them with Kailua. The initial sample tasted like a cherry cordial. It has been conditioning for a week. Can’t wait to taste the final product. Your channel has inspired us to make many different meads. Thank you!
Your reference to "Alcohol is a Flavor" reminded me of a sign I saw at a renaissance festival which read "Technically, alcohol IS a solution". It was obviously talking about an alcohol and water mixture being a solution, but it was still funny.
😂
What an EXCELLENT Recipe! I used Brazilian Pepper Honey (3+ pounds), 1/2 tsp Fermaid-O, 1/2 tsp wine tannin, & EC-1118. O.G. 1.124. F.G. was 1.010. 110 ounces of mead, added 51 ounces of 151 rum. 34+% ABV. Added about 1/2 pound BP honey to taste (hydrometer won't read, maybe 0.982 SG). Delicious sipping mead! Thanks again! God, I love this channel!
Call it the Elden Mead!
So happy to find your channel,, learning soooo much. Recently made 2 buckets of tomato paste wine for a neutral spirt run that had only cheese cloth over the stopper without the bubbler in a small room with a heater going . Even that mess only smelled like poured out wine when standing in the room checking on things...
im making my first batch rn about a week away from bottling and im so excited. ive been having a great time so i just typed "mead" into the search and yall came up. i love the video and the energy, yall just have me excited to start my next batch
Awesome, happy to help!
Thanks for this video! Up to now I’ve always struggled with calculating ABV when fortifying.
So… let me check if I’m getting this right:
Volume unfortified liquid x ABV unfortified liquid = A
Volume fortifying agent x ABV fortifying liquid = B
Total volume unfortified liquid + fortifying liquid = C
(A + B) : C = new ABV of fortified mead
Correct?
Yes.
@@CitySteadingBrews - Yay! The math-challenged one actually understands! 🤩
This makes me so happy. Especially since this formula is completely independent of which units are being used: metric or imperial. It doesn’t matter. As long as I stay within the same system/units, I’m good.
Off to my brewing log/notebook/binder thingy to update my section on formulas and calculations. I might even whip out my pen with glittery ink, just to get a rise out of my maths-whiz daughter. 🤪
You guys are hysterical. I love you you can watch the buzz increase every minute the video carries on.
I’ve just turned 21 in April and I stumbled on your channel last month and I’ve been watching your videos almost every day! I’ve been interested in making meads n stuff for around a year bc golden hive mead came down my tl. You two have truly expanded my knowledge on what home brewing is. I didn’t even know you can make beer at home before I found you guys. Keep doing what you’re doing. Much love from Florida 🫶🏾
Digging the new music and the cut-ins with instructions, sound effects, and whatnot. Video feels fresh. Thanks guys ! ❤
Thank you!
This video is perfect timing for me. I made an orange ginger mead that went very dry. Now I know what to do with it! Thank you!!!
I have three batches in one gallon fermenters brewing in my bedroom in five gallon buckets right next to the door. I have not been able to smell anything sweet or anything remotely fermenting or have been able to hear any bubbling from the airlock outside of my door if my bedroom closed. So far neither of my roommates have complained about any weird smells or ask wtf! Is bubbling in your room. Not sure how anybody neighbors are complaining about fermentation smells? Depending how much room you have in your freezer there is always the fractional crystallization method to get a beverage 25-40% the same process when making applejack. Also goes without saying to anyone reading this comment check your local/ state laws before doing this process getting a higher abv brew, because I am pretty sure using this method of distilling is probably illegal in most states.
Fractional freezing is A) considered distilling in the US and therefore illegal, and B) concentrates the methyl alcohols and other nasty stuff. That's why we don't do it.
Love this channel, just found it recently and I get so many "Good Eats" vibes from when i was a kid watching food network. Keep up the great work
Alyon Brown is why I know how to cook 😂
I like that you have Shao Hsing wine in the background. Win.
Who doesn’t?
I made 30% mead. I made two 15% meads and mixed them and it worked out great.
It's still only 15%...
Brian, I know you two normally disregard the diluting impact of back sweetening - but I think it's a VERY important thing to consider if one is attempting to use fortification to achieve stabilization... There's a high risk of bottle bombs otherwise.
Obviously your "not actually 30%" is still well in the safe zone, but someone thinking that 20% is safe, then adds enough sugar to add 20-40 points should probably do the math.
It changed it by 1%. No way this will ferment. We normally overshoot by a few percent to be safe though.
Good info to know, but you didn't sweeten much and you started high abv. I have no doubt your brew is safe, I just feel that when mixing back sweetening and stabilizing via fortification the topic of how much back sweetening drops the abv is relevant to the safety discussion.
_P.s. I updated my post, adding the second paragraph, at the same time Brian responded... He was fast fast!_
Nice to see the thumb saver again! I have a couple of black plastic screw on caps i use for the same purpose. My local brewer supply has them for like 50 cents each.
After watching many of your videos I have convinced the wife we need to start brewing at home. You should have gotten a partnership with trbos. You probably trippled their sales.
Lol, probably!
Been making non honey wines for a while, but this video along with backward blueberry meade opened a whole new world with endless fortified and nonfortified meade combinations, along with simple abv math...keep it up!
Happy to help!
Yes, a whiskymead! Looking forward that one.
Thanks for the great content
I have a fortified 25% ABV raspberry hibiscus mead at home aging that didn’t taste great but now that is 6 months old it’s better.
this one looked interesting, I'll have to check it out. Just bottled my first gallon of mead a couple days ago, ready to brew some more.
I love the way you two make mead making accessible. I finished the last bottle of my first batch and have two ageing now with two more planned shortly.
Awesome!
I agree, i would totally love this. Getting the row boat ready, be there in a few weeks hahaha.
See you then!
Love this! I made a mead/rum back in 1998, that I lost my notes to that turned out an 11-13 rating as well. So glad to see you do this! Mead blends so well with a good rum ;) The oak cask from rum with smokie florals blended so well with the honey really was a great mouth feel, that wasn't a tongue slap and only got better after 6month, it didn't survive to 1 year as it was all consumed when new years 2000 rolled around :D
I also made a jack daniels, blueberry mead at the same time, but the rum was my favourite.
Hamilton 151 is such a famously good Rum, i was shocked to see you pull it out. You have great taste!
I recently got the idea in my head to try making mead, most of the men in my family brewed some sort of alcohol in their lives, so now it's my turn.
I found your channel on a side bar recommendation and clicked over. I now HAVE to learn to make mead so that I can try this.
But when I told my family about it they all started mentioning different things. My son also suggested a Fireball Mead, as we both love fireball.
I am going to price up the starting gear for me in the UK this month, and hope to have something to try by new years or just after.
Thanks for the advice and inspiration.
Welcome and enjoy!
Holy cow, you guys are in florida? you ever go to any events? id love to shake some hands with you two!
We usually make it to Ren Fairs.
Absolutely nothing wrong with the super-high octane 190 proof Everclear. I use it as a base when making liqueurs. Having to use less and being easier to proof down are two bonuses of using it over the 151.
My best home-brewed meads were around 18% ABV.
I just finished my first batch if country rubarb wine and found this video some how. I had to watch half this video with one of my eyes closed. You guys are awesome. Were friends now and you don't have a choice in rhe matter. Thanks for the video.
Lol
Sorry, I usually don't comment because I watch on my TV app, but that looks AMAZEBALLS!!! 😂😂😂
I currently have two batches of mead going, and I over sweetened one (because my scale is for smaller things 😂) and I may have to go get a bottle of 151 for that!
Love the new format and the shorts!
Thanks for teaching me this amazing hobby that has improved the quality of my life and gives me something to do and look forward to ❤❤❤
Happy to help, and thank you for the kind words!
@@CitySteadingBrews you guys are awesome, and I love how you (Brian) would give me tips from day one, how Derica gets my sense of humor, your love of fine spirits and roleplaying games...
I just wish you lived closer!
No way I'm going to Florida! I'd melt! 😂
Same. This os why we have AC.
I'm going to divide my meade and make the fortified and make a couple fizzy bottles been making ginger beer (unfermented no intentional alcohol which usually only takes a day). I think I'll start with the fermented meade and add a bit of sugar for the fizz near the end of fermentation.
I’ve only done 2 fruit wine batches so far, but there was so much yeast smell (6 gal batches each time) that the whole house smelled like bread. I got asked a few times if I was starting a bakery 😂
We have never had that happen…
1 yeast packet is enough for 2-3 gallons, you probably used 1 per gallon
I've been brewing beer for about 5 yrs and really enjoy your video's and your explanation of the process you are using. I have about 3 gallons of honey that I have been sitting on for a couple months just waiting for me to get off my ass and make some mead. Thank you the push to get it done. Keep up the great video's.
I am brewing mead for the first time and a week deep I am getting that dreaded rotten egg smell. Just praying it releases, apparently I did not aerate enough. My neighbors definitely do not smell it tho I gotta put my nose up into it to smell it. Thank you guys for everything you do 😊
It does age out 👍
I used a blackberry raspberry mead- 2.5lbs to start. Back sweated with .5 lbs of honey and raised from 14.5 to 16% using huckleberry vodka. Worked out well.
Nice, I love a few sips of something complex, highly alcoholic and a little sweet as a digestif - I usually have B&B, high quality port or sometimes brandy, but this sounds like it'll hit the spot extremely well - gonna buy some honey tomorrow to get it started!
The rum had a nice sound
I make mead year round in a closet dedicated to fermentation 9x 3 gallon carboys going pretty much constantly for about 5 years. There is no bad smell. No one ever notices. Even when one summer the power went out and they blew their tops and made a huge mess, it just swelled like waffles with honey
Talk about timely vid! I just had a mead come out to about 25% ABV! Had to have messed up somewhere in my calculations. Started out at 1.20, finished at 1.00 calculated at 135 multiple times. It DOES have a kick and needs aging. started on 4/29/23. Guess it'd help if I said what kind of yeast I used. Lavalin EC-118.
@@TigerPat_9180 1.20 . i used fermaid o at the start and added some more at 2 weeks to prevent a stall. But still 25% is WAY beyond what i was expecting. However, judging by the taste test (done today) I think it's believable. Just what came out of the hygrometer was enough for both dad and i to get a bit of a buzz... No detectable sweetness left either.
Hydrometers don’t usually read that high. Mine only goes to 1.160. What was the recipe?
@@CitySteadingBrews 50 bags mint tea,handful golden raisins, 2 tablespoons fermaid o, all added to 3 gallons water with a little over 7 pounds wildflower honey. it is pretty stout. the amount I took out to take a hydrometer reading let me take a really nice nap earlier today.....
That’s more like 1.081 og. Nowhere near enough sugars to make that much alcohol.
And far too much fermaid O! Wow! You probably have about 10-11% alcohol.
To shake up the fermenter and contents, I use the lid from when it was still an apple juice bottle. That way I can loosen it without it blowing off.
I already loved your channel, but the Grog reference and picture made me extra happy.
These people are definitely-incredibly amazing! keep it up guys!❤
Aww thanks!
I wont lie when I first started watching your videos I hated how long they were. But Now I just put them on in the background while I am working and its nice. You guys seem to have a good relationship. Me and my wife life here in FL to. Thanks your the videos. PS. I have a batch going on blueberries and cherries hopefully it turns out good!
I did have a smell come from our cabinet we used for fermenting, but to us it just smells like proofing bread and it was very pleasant :)
Just got to the part in the video where you mentioned you like Rum and Coconut Rum's. Since you are in St. Pete I have a Rum I would like to recommend. I lived in North Port FL. when Siesta Key Rum distillery started up. I have since moved away. It's a nice small batch distillery. They make a pretty good clear and spiced rum. Yet the product of theirs that is absolutely amazing (to me) is their Toasted Coconut rum. I miss it very much! I don't have the refined palate that you two do, yet I find it amazing. I hope you have an opportunity to enjoy it.
the pitcher is large enough you can put the glass jug into it far enough that even if you do splosh a bit it still all goes in, then pour from the pitcher into the big mouth!
Just started my first bee colony this year. If i get any honey at all i will be sure to send you guys some. Would love to see it turn into one of your awesome recipes! :)
That would be awesome!! Thank you so much!
You should try freeze concentrating it as well! Honey jack is DELICIOUS!
Technically illegal so... we won't be showing that. :)
We just re-racked our mead last weekend and it's 17% ABV! Yes, sometimes the yeast goes pretty far. Probably bottling very soon.
Great video on Mead fortification!
I’ve always wonder whether or not mead at this ABV would still taste good so I’m happy it turned out well!
In the Harry Potter books Professor Slughorn accidentally poisons Ron with a mead he had set aside as a gift for Dumbledore. The book describes the mead as: BungBarrel Mead - 34% ABV with hints of cherry and licorice aged in vintage oak barrels.
This has been something I’ve been considering trying to replicate. Your video has given me a little more confidence it could turn out drinkable (maybe with smaller pours 😅)
Yep, sounds like it's possible to recreate sort of!
Love your channel, been a subscriber for a long time but just started my first batch of traditional mead a few days ago. Keep being awesome!
This time last year I made my first mead with honey and apple juice (I had to split the mixture and double the amount I made since the yeast wouldn't start...
I've now made maybe 90 litres (60 with friends and the rest myself), thanks for the pro beginner tips
Just found your channel and am loving it. I've watched three in a row and I've ordered my Australian equivalent equipment. I'm not really a whiskey drinker but I love brandy (drink responsibly - [sorry it's a govt ad that's on every bottle and mention of drinking alcohol everywhere - adding it is like a tic now!]). I'm assuming that will work just as well but thought I would check in first. Thanks so much. You two are absolute naturals at providing a great deal of info in an easily digestible and fun format.
I don't think we used whiskey in this... but yup, brandy would work. Will alter the flavor of course and the higher to go, the less of a mead it is. We did this as a meme mostly. I would go to 20% abv or so normally.
If you want a good overproof rum, I strongly suggest Lemon Hart 151.
Wow, I'm so glad I watched to the end. I don't have space in my condo for pasteurization equipment, but this opens up a world of possibilities for when I start brewing again in a few months. Like Derica, I enjoy gin. What sort of flavors might make a tasty mead that would pair well with gin fortification?
Umm..... no idea... I am not a gin fan, lol. But florals, and such work well with it?
Comparing that to a classic Bee's Knees cocktail, definitely lemon peel. The gin itself adds its own aromas.
EDIT: Also, whatever botanicals are in the gin will probably also be good as additives in the base mead.
I have a really nice 57% rum called Leatherback Barrel Strength Special Reserve from North of 7 a local micro distillery here in Ottawa that I would love to try this with. Might do some small tests in a glass with some of my traditional mead first.
Wow, you have to watch to the end! Great idea guys. Thanks!
I experienced my first foamy airlock this week. It was a wild party in that demijohn and it sat in the sink for 24 hrs. 😂❤
Brian, Dodge has made a Challenger, that runs best on
85 percent ethanol. They call it the 170. meaning 170
proof, which is what 85% fuel is. Only brought that up,
because you're talking about the proof of your additives.
My favourite rum, comes from Costco. Kirkland Spiced
rum, here it is $13, for a 1.5 L bottle, and is 92 proof.
steve
I like you two the way you are😃. I was all ready to make the habanero pineapple mead but now, this looks like a winner.
I’ve done this with a blackberry bochetomel and a basic mead that I triple distilled to make a vodka. Blended the two and the resulting spirit is just like a very well barrel aged port. Yummy! 😋
I never brew in my life i just watch because you guys are fun and entertaining. Nonetheless i have a question: why have you let the east going the all way? i am asking because i lived in Portugal before and they do port wine this way (highly summarised) 1-they do a wine, 2-do a brandy at 77% ABV out of it, 3- with a new batch start a fermentation and when this last one reaches 2 to 2.5% ABV they insert a volume of that brandy into 3 volumes of the fermentation in progress. So they have a 20 to 24% ABV with a lot of sugars in it.
Best of both worlds right? 😁
This way I can sweeten to my preference afterward.
I think you guys need to do a new favorites video. I feel like you guys have made so many new things that you guys have loved since you made the one video. I want an updated version!
Possibly!
I just leave the funnel in when I add nutrient and such because the additional water will rinse it down the funnel anyway. Keeps it from sticking to the sides of the glass neck. Same with my yeast. Every yeast fulfills their destiny. No harm in thwacking the packet just before you use the last of the water instead of waiting until the end where the chance of them sticking is way higher.
Wow, you have to watch to the end! Love you guys!!
WOW, You have to watch to the end! I am going tp try Bacardi rum
:)
There is no need to fortify by addition.
You can freeze the mead and sluice out ice as it forms.
Boil down saved ice, add it back to main stock.
I make 24% abv mead and winter ale this way.
I also will add spice pack to ice reduction for making festival ales and meads.
Give it a try.
That’s illegal according to US law.
Solid choice with the Hamilton Overproof. It's like getting punched in the sinuses and then being given candy. It'd play nicely with a mead.
Also, we only get the watered-down Everclear in Cali, too. That's why I stopped using my Supercat stoves.
Starting Mead question (sorry, long): I put together a simple Cyser using a gallon of apple juice and 1.5 lbs of honey. Blanc yeast (same in video). After a couple days, I saw no activity. I made a cold brew coffee Mead and put some of the yeast (same yeast) into the cyser, thinking the original yeast may have been dead (it was an old packet).
A couple more days go by, the cold brew is running well, but the Cyser looks still. I decided to add the rest of the pack of yeast since I didn't put much the second time.
Some of the yeast got on the side, so I put the cap back on and tilt/swirled to get the yeast from the neck. Then the bottle sprayed out of the cap lock hole like a shakened carbonated drink. I cleaned it all up with Star San and put a new cap on it.
Does this mean it had active yeast the whole time? Do I need to be concerned about it? There's quite a bit of head space now, should I add anything to it (liquid or solid)?
Sorry, a lot of questions. I've been brewing on and off for three years (and watching your videos) and never had anything like this before.
Thanks.
Side note, I think I'm going to fortify my Cold Brew Mead with rum and whiskey (I'll split into two) to 30%.
Thanks again.
Sounds like there was a leak, so it looked like no activity. Try taking hydrometer readings to be sure.
I haven't yet made any attempt to make my own wine/mead/whatever, but I love watching you do it. I think I kinda have a crush on y'all.
Absolutely loved this video!
Glad you enjoyed it!
It's been a little bit since I have watched your videos, I'm really enjoying the new video editing and little additions you have made like the chalkboard.
ThNk you!
I do my calculations differently and came up with 30.35% abv.
120 oz @ 14.04% (120 x .1404) = 16.848 oz ethanol
39 oz @ 75.5% (39 x .755)= 29.445 oz ethanol
6 oz @ 63% (6 x .63)= 3.78 oz ethanol
Total ethanol = 50.073
Divide that by total volume of 165 oz
50.073/165 = .3035
Multiply by 100 to get 30.35%
Isn't that the same as we got?
@@CitySteadingBrews yes, give or take .01 %. I was just posting my method because i got lost in yours. I also posted just before you said your result, so i didnt know what you had yet. Im not saying youre wrong, just showing a different way.
Our methods are actually similar. Mine is in "parts", which for this was ounces, but it could be anything that the smaller amount is divisible into. For instance, 1 gallon of 10% ABV and 1/2 gallon of 100 ABV. That's 3 half gallons, so, we add 2 parts of 10 for 20, and one part of 100 for a total of 120. Divide by the three parts and it's 40% ABV.
@@CitySteadingBrews you know, i read that like 4 times, and it still confused me lol to each their own!
In most of my wines and meads I have been having a problem with Headspace, mostly because I am trying to do 2 gallon batches. After asking several nearby wineries and other sources. it was suggested adding a similar wine to top off the headspace. I am going to be doing that with my next racking. Not quite fortifying but still a good reason to mention it here.
Not a bad way to go.
I just picked up a 2 gallon "drink dispenser" from Walmart with a wooden lid with silicone gasket. 14 bucks. It is 2 gallons with VERY little headroom (I tested it last night). Better homes and garden brand, I think. Would make a perfect secondary for 2 gal batches.
@@oneandy2 I have a plastic 1gln and a 2.5 gln lemonade, square fits in fridge, dispenser I use for bottling.
Many Thanks for the work and content.Always a pleasure to watch 🥰
Thanks, glad you enjoyed it!
you could freeze the mead and use the "Eisbock-Verfahren" and you could nearly double the abv without adding other stuff ;)
That would be illegal, so we don't do it on our show.
😂@@CitySteadingBrews
Would love to see y'all make a honey wheat ale/mead
A braggot!
Woo-hoo! Very cool stuff, guys. Have you tried playing with a Pearson Square to calculate mixture for fortification? It probably wouldn't have worked here with having to add so many different ABVs to get where you wanted, but if there are only 2 (low ABV and high ABV) it is accurate and arguably simpler. Also, maybe showing a blowoff tube in a video might be helpful (if you haven't already done that).
We have a video on blowoff tubes :) Also, no never messed with the Pearson Square. I find this method pretty easy and foolproof.
amazing video, this is the first time I have seen you guys work and I am hooked. home-made mead here we come.
Welcome!
I first thought you must be using whitelabs 25% yeast and it couldn't read. Then I watched you pour the Rum in and all I could think was Yummy! This will be my next batch!
Rum/vodka/mead cocktail, I’m glad it tastes good!
My newest mead (2kg of honey) is at 20% abv and still going. The plan was to try and keep some sweetness 🤷♂️
Also you guys are a beautiful couple!! You make my heart feel warm.
“Words are hard”…lmao! I didn’t think anyone else said that!!! 😂😂
Halfway through my second brew! I'm reading a lot to learn more about the science and practices behind different meads. You two have taught me a lot! Thank you!
Happy to help!
You’ve got me wondering what mead back sweetened with Drambuie would be like. Guess I’ll be finding out this weekend when my next batch comes up.
You do really have to watch until the end, I bet that idea will turn out great too.
WOW you have to watch to the end!! And... I have to try brewing this.
Yes you do :)
On a trip to Playa Del Carmen I discovered a drink based on an ancient Mayan drink called Xtabentun (Esh-tab-en-tune - long e in the front, short e in the middle). They ferment a special type of honey with green anise; then add a signature rum aged in Jack Daniels barrels.
Depending upon where one resides in the U.S., it can be difficult if not impossible to purcchase (you have to order it).
The drink is fairly sweet with slight black licorice flavor with a rather thick but not cloying, consistency, don't know how they accomplish that. ABV is 35.
I've been wanting to create something that approximates Xtabentun this gives me hope.
Maybe you can recreate this experiment using a sac mead and fortify it. Might be fun.
ive been brewing for about 20 years and just put on my first mead tonight.
i went a little balls to the wall. lol
7.5 kg honey up to 25 liters
150g raisons
250g pomegranate seeds
350g mixed berries
and some black tea tannins
I have tested the OG of 1.10 (might of went a little honey happy) with a floating digital hygrometer and a eyepiece version as well.
fermenting will kveik voss at 35c @ 10psi
time will tell.
1.100 is our typical target og.
@@CitySteadingBrews Awesome to know, i thought i might have went a little high.
i cant wait to see how it turns out