Chop & Brew | Mead Masters: Steve Fletty (Part 2)

[@ChopAndBrew]

There is a Smoked Mead Everyday episode coming in late summer 2018. Fuh real.

[@km-bo3zx]

I think Steve needs to write a book! Looked like he had a lot to say about making good (and bad) mead, but needed more time to organize his thoughts. I'd buy it! Freezing fruit does not sanitize it. You either need to sulfite it (Campden tablets) or you can add the fruit after the fermentation is "chugging" and the good yeast are strong enough to overcome the bad yeast.

[@donosborn]

My take away from this is Fletty's basement is a rabbit hole. :) His comments on always sulfiting fruit before adding the yeast are interesting. I'm planning on making a fruit mead soon and may not have done or thought about that. I guess I'll consider it seeing how all the fruit is from my garden and could have "stuff" in it. Plus, honey is expensive and I'd hate to screw it up.

[@jaje69]

For smoked honey, try using a chocolate fountain and placing that in a smoker. And use a cold smoke method.

[@ChopAndBrew]

Jordan E You crazy beast.

[@briansglaser]

Smoking water is awesome. A local distillery smokes water and freezes them for their whiskeys. Adds a lot to the nose, not much to taste. Been meaning to use the same process for mead, smoke the water, then ferment.

[@ChopAndBrew]

Brian Glaser What distillery is that?

[@jonny_apocalypseii1051]

dude found this super educational. iv never tasted mead apart from the one batch i made last year and im only now realizing that i fucked it up. its very sweet and almost syrupy so i added more water which just watered it down :( im going to pitch some more yeast into it and add more raisins to kick off the fermentation again. PLEASE DO MORE MEAD EPISODES THIS WAS REALLY HELPFUL!

[@curtissikyta3254]

Fletty is a fucking National treasure. Honest, blunt, funny. Great episode

[@metalricanrock1]

great episode!

[@wckvn]

At the party at Thomas' house a day before NHC I served a bottle of smoked mead. If you were there you had a chance to try it. I had mediocre mead (honey source was not so good) that I tried to rescue by splitting into 1 gallon jugs and flavoring with different things. For smoked mead (or I called it rauch mead) I used 2oz of smoked black tea for a week.

[@ChopAndBrew]

That smoked tea method is an intriguing option. Maybe we'll have to do one of each and see how they compare. Thanks!

[@infinitefretboard]

I've always used nutrients in my meads, but it has come to my attention recently that apparently DAP is toxic to yeast in the early phase of fermentation or reproduction. That might explain why my 1st few meads were harsh. I've been using Fermaid O recently and have had good results. My last one fermented to 13.5% at 60F, in less than 2 weeks.

[@blizark1]

an easy way to introduce a smoke flavor would be to smoke smoke any spices you put in. Something like a smoked mulled mead.

[@ItsAlleged]

Alton Brown "smoked water" on Good Eats. You should treat the honey like liquid smoke, and make it that way

[@lewishughes7236]

The food network show you were possibly thinking about "smoking water" was Good Eats. I don't rember what the whole episode was about but Mr. Brown was demonstrating how to make liquid smoke which is apparently a natural product but is very easy to overdo when cooking with it.

[@Abrahamspeicher]

i have had smoked honey before. i purchased a small jar of cherry wood smoked honey from the honey sweetened ice cream booth that the Pennsylvania State Beekeeper's Association runs at the Pennsylvania Farm Show. I've looked into doing it myself, and from what i can tell you can just pour the honey into some kind of disposable casserole dish and put it into the smoker.

[@Abrahamspeicher]

you could maybe increase smoke absorption by poking a few small holes in the honey pan and then somehow mounting that above a bottom collection pan so that you get a few small streams of honey and thereby increase surface area.

[@Abrahamspeicher]

please do an episode on smoked mead! I've been floating around the idea of making a smoked mead ever since i first tried smoked honey, but i don't have a smoker to try making it myself. i also haven't found anything on the homebrew forums as far as anyone else trying it.

[@brada002]

Sheldon Speicher Chip, Steve, and I will get on this before three snow flies. Maybe after the cold air could help us get the smoke temp down.

[@Vader1984]

Could use a hose or something connected to a fitting on a smoker and bubble the smoke through the mix

[@Pulpogrande]

Chip, Superstition Meadery from AZ makes a really good peanut butter mead called Peanut Butter and Jelly Crime. If you can get your hands on a bottle definitely try it.

[@oldschoolman1444]

Ever think about soaking the fruit in star san then give it a quick rinse then freeze? Just a thought.

[@manatoa1]

You could smoke honey in the comb. I don't know if you can just chuck semi melted comb into the mix. If you had an obliging beekeeper buddy you could smoke the comb prior to extraction.

[@MrEvanfriend]

If I was gonna make a smoked mead, I'd just mash some smoked malt and go with a braggot...which might be a good idea that I need to try.

[@themeatnpotatoes]

What volume of carbonation do you shoot for in mead? Sounds like something I might try.

[@TheDuner68]

Nice Pt2 Chip! Do you have link to "Curts video" that you reference?

[@ChopAndBrew]

George Schroeder Google: Brewing TV Curt Stock Mead

[@jaybous8857]

I had a mead that had a smoked flavor. They burnt some honey by mistake. To save it, a portion was added to the regular honey. They called it "Creme brûlée"

[@ChopAndBrew]

Jay Bous Intriguing!

[@jaybous8857]

ChopAndBrew Crave Mead, Blackstone, MA

[@wtglb]

Is Crave Mead still open? I've sent them a couple of emails in the last few months and never got a response. I'd like to take a tour of the place.

[@ynots38]

Id say age it in charred barrel or charred whiskey or bourbon barrel... then u would get smoked proper

[@abefrohman1759]

Bong water mead.

[@renzotaboada4929]

Don't you use smoke to take the bee's out of the beehive? Maybe to "smoke" flavor the honey... you could use this as a step

[@abitofthisabitofthatwithda5379]

how do you think they make liquid smoke? you run a smoker and put a bunt pan(i think) and collect the condensation= liquid smoke. theres your smoke flavor! GOOD LUCK WITH THIS!!

[@ChopAndBrew]

We figured out a way and there's an episode coming soon. It turned out freaking amazing! Smoked 6 lbs of mesquite honey in a pan inside smoker with mesquite wood chips. Blended it with 3 lbs of non-smoked mesquite honey. It is absolute mania!

[@abitofthisabitofthatwithda5379]

ChopAndBrew you end up doing the honey, nice! Been out of the brewing loop for a spell. Something is telling me to brew again so I was surfing to refresh the gray matter bucket. Think I may lurk around your channel for a spell.

[@ChopAndBrew]

Danny Panetta Lurk on, DP! Let me know what you're interesting in seeing/learning more of.

[@abitofthisabitofthatwithda5379]

i have been involved with medieval reenactment for years. i would fall into an old school mead and cider brewer who is very much still into virgin meads. but im thinking 18th and 19th century as of late maybe something from that time period. others may not be interested. thats if you dont have one already.

[@roslindhansen1767]

Hey cuz

[@304MTodd63]

Bro, if your better half has had the allergy symptoms you've described you should at the very least have her carry an epinephrine pen in case she has a severe reaction. Consult your doctor of course but do not take a chance, especially since she has had a reaction in the past. An anaphylactic reaction has the potential for brain injury or death. I don't mean to be negative. Great video btw!

[@abefrohman1759]

Meadsanto LMFAO