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Author Topic: Acebird?s mead.  (Read 9469 times)

Offline BeeMaster2

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Acebird?s mead.
« on: March 27, 2019, 08:38:05 pm »
Brian brought a bottle of mead to BeeFest 2019. If you didn?t get to try it you missed out on the best mead I have ever tasted. I have tried several and I didn?t like most of them. A friend of mine made some from my honey and it was pretty good but nothing like Brian?s mead. Judy and I finished up the bottle this evening. It competes and exceeds some of the best tasting wines that we have had.
Next year we should have a mead tasting contest.
Thanks Brian.
Jim Altmiller
Democracy is 2 wolves and a lamb voting on what to have for lunch. Liberty is a well armed lamb contesting the vote.
Ben Franklin

Offline Acebird

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Re: Acebird?s mead.
« Reply #1 on: March 28, 2019, 08:58:20 am »
Thanks Jim, but next year I won't have any to share.  Did you taste the honey?  I won't have any of that next year either.
Brian Cardinal
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Offline jtcmedic

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Re: Acebird?s mead.
« Reply #2 on: March 28, 2019, 09:06:06 am »
Any chance for a Recipe. Asking for a friend :happy:

Offline blackforest beekeeper

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Re: Acebird?s mead.
« Reply #3 on: March 28, 2019, 09:54:10 am »
good mead is rare. congratulations! what kind of honey did you use, at what mixture water/honey and what is the alcohol-content?

Offline BeeMaster2

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Re: Acebird?s mead.
« Reply #4 on: March 28, 2019, 10:42:30 am »
Ace,
How much honey would you need, according to your recipe, you need 5 quarts. I provide the honey, could I get half of it back at the next BeeFest? 😄
Can you pick up the honey on your next trip north. I could meet you at either I-95 or I-75 if you want.
Jim
Democracy is 2 wolves and a lamb voting on what to have for lunch. Liberty is a well armed lamb contesting the vote.
Ben Franklin

Offline BeeMaster2

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Re: Acebird?s mead.
« Reply #5 on: March 28, 2019, 10:48:40 am »
By the way, I was not comparing Brian?s mead to store bought honey. I am comparing it to the wine you get in the tasting rooms of the Sabastian winery in Florida and the Sabastiani winery in Napa Valley, California. It is that good.
Jim Altmiller
Democracy is 2 wolves and a lamb voting on what to have for lunch. Liberty is a well armed lamb contesting the vote.
Ben Franklin

Offline blackforest beekeeper

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Re: Acebird?s mead.
« Reply #6 on: March 28, 2019, 01:48:18 pm »
yes, good mead tastes quite a bit like wine. that`s the difference.

Offline Acebird

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Re: Acebird?s mead.
« Reply #7 on: March 28, 2019, 02:31:45 pm »
Ace,
How much honey would you need, according to your recipe, you need 5 quarts. I provide the honey, could I get half of it back at the next BeeFest? 😄
Can you pick up the honey on your next trip north. I could meet you at either I-95 or I-75 if you want.
Jim

The problem is I need the carboys, pots and hydrometer.  Also my hoist for lifting the full carboys.  My planned trip is not until July returning in August.  That doesn't give the mead enough time to mellow.  I could bottle it early which will leave a lot of sediment.  Actually the mead you tasted was bottled early.  I have a syringe and tube rig that siphons out the mead from a bottle without getting the sediment.  That is what I did to what I brought to the beefest.
Hopefully we will close today on the last piece of property we have in NYS.  I might take an early run to retrieve my tools and stuff.  If I do I will stop in and pick up the mead and whip up a batch.  I will keep you posted.
Brian Cardinal
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Offline BeeMaster2

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Re: Acebird?s mead.
« Reply #8 on: March 28, 2019, 02:47:00 pm »
Any chance for a Recipe. Asking for a friend :happy:
Brian,
If it is ok with you I will post the recipe.
Jim Altmiller
Democracy is 2 wolves and a lamb voting on what to have for lunch. Liberty is a well armed lamb contesting the vote.
Ben Franklin

Offline BeeMaster2

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Re: Acebird?s mead.
« Reply #9 on: March 28, 2019, 02:50:13 pm »
Judy is going to the wine store today to buy the yeast. We have decided to try making it. Is the sterizer chemical that you can buy at the wine store ok to use?
Jim Altmiller
Democracy is 2 wolves and a lamb voting on what to have for lunch. Liberty is a well armed lamb contesting the vote.
Ben Franklin

Offline Acebird

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Re: Acebird?s mead.
« Reply #10 on: March 28, 2019, 03:04:29 pm »
Judy is going to the wine store today to buy the yeast. We have decided to try making it. Is the sterizer chemical that you can buy at the wine store ok to use?
Jim Altmiller
It should be.  Even bleach.  There are two kinds, one you have to rinse after you sanitize and one you don't.  There is a difference between sterilizing and sanitizing.  Sterilizing you kill all the bugs, sanitizing will burn up carbon and may kill a few bugs, not all.  If you have any nicks and cuts you probably will want to wear gloves.  The hardest part is handling the glass carboys.  The sanitizer will make everything very slick so be careful.  I highly recommend handles on the carboys.
Brian Cardinal
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Offline beemantn

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Re: Acebird?s mead.
« Reply #11 on: April 01, 2019, 04:17:00 pm »
Any chance for a Recipe. Asking for a friend :happy:
Brian,
If it is ok with you I will post the recipe.
Jim Altmiller

Any updates on posting the recipe?  Thanks

Offline Acebird

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Re: Acebird?s mead.
« Reply #12 on: April 02, 2019, 08:43:42 am »
If you PM your email address I can send you the word files.  Tables and formatting are not handled well by the forum.
I missed the question Jim.  Sure you can post it.
Brian Cardinal
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Offline BeeMaster2

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Re: Acebird?s mead.
« Reply #13 on: April 02, 2019, 11:11:01 am »
Thanks Ace,
Here are screen shots of it. I took 4 of the first page and 3 shots of the second page.









Continued
Jim Altmiller
Democracy is 2 wolves and a lamb voting on what to have for lunch. Liberty is a well armed lamb contesting the vote.
Ben Franklin

Offline BeeMaster2

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Re: Acebird?s mead.
« Reply #14 on: April 02, 2019, 11:13:16 am »
Continued from previous post.







Jim Altmiller
Democracy is 2 wolves and a lamb voting on what to have for lunch. Liberty is a well armed lamb contesting the vote.
Ben Franklin

Offline beemantn

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Re: Acebird?s mead.
« Reply #15 on: April 03, 2019, 05:05:43 pm »
 :tongue:
Thanks

Offline Acebird

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Re: Acebird?s mead.
« Reply #16 on: April 04, 2019, 09:43:02 am »
One comment on the recipe above.  I list 2 packets of yeast but I only use one.  The second one is if the fermentation didn't start usually because of a goof.
Brian Cardinal
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Offline JurassicApiary

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Re: Acebird?s mead.
« Reply #17 on: January 17, 2021, 09:58:17 pm »
Going to give this a shot this year.  Jim, how did your batch turn out last year?

Offline BeeMaster2

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Re: Acebird?s mead.
« Reply #18 on: January 18, 2021, 05:58:38 am »
We did not make any mead this year. Part of the reason was time. The other reason is my body does not handle alcohol very well. One glass of wine messes up my stomach, more than that and I get a headache.
Brian?s mead is the best mead I have ever tasted, It competes with some of the best wines that I have tried.
Jim Altmiller
Democracy is 2 wolves and a lamb voting on what to have for lunch. Liberty is a well armed lamb contesting the vote.
Ben Franklin

Offline JurassicApiary

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Re: Acebird?s mead.
« Reply #19 on: January 18, 2021, 12:47:48 pm »
We did not make any mead this year. Part of the reason was time. The other reason is my body does not handle alcohol very well. One glass of wine messes up my stomach, more than that and I get a headache.
Brian?s mead is the best mead I have ever tasted, It competes with some of the best wines that I have tried.
Jim Altmiller

Thanks for the quick follow-up.  Any suggestions as to the honey variety?  I plan to use one of my own, but they vary from white down to amber.  Do the character and complexities of the darker honey carry through into the Meade and add to it (or hinder it) at all? O,r is it best to stick with a more traditional white honey that's perhaps extra floral?