How to Make Session Mead: Blackberry and Boysenberry hydromels you can brew at home

[@Strider1313]

Yesssss they are great. I went to Ohio to go to a water park and seen their warehouse and got excited

[@jauld360]

15:02 Revised recipe. 2 teaspoons pectic enzyme. 6:02 2.5 teaspoons K Sorbate + 5 campden tablets. 10:47 5 campden tablets + sparkolloid (amount not stated).

[@conradwheeler68]

Good video, I like the way that you are focusing on process rather than recipe... Why and how you did what you did, rather than just what you did. I am curating a document of good resources for beginners to learn from, and many of your videos are referenced as good instruction. In virtually all cases, your videos are the best resources I've come across, which is a pleasure and relief from the common and unfortunately popular ones. All that aside, I'm in process of clearing my second hydromel, using the process as you describe. The first was a clone or your crisp OB, and the second one is a Meadowfoam trad based off the same procedure

[@DointheMost]

I love meadow foam honey. Will be very curious if you have to amend the acid profile on that one! Let me know.

[@conradwheeler68]

@@DointheMost I did. I ran it to 6.5% ABV, racked, stabilized, sweetened with meadowfoam to 1.014, 3g of malic acid then hit it with KC finings today. Once it drops clear, I'll probably run it through my Buon Vino Mini and into a keg for my kegerator

[@DointheMost]

Conrad Wheeler nice! Excited to hear how it tastes!

[@DointheMost]

Conrad Wheeler Let me know how it tastes when done!

[@conradwheeler68]

@@DointheMost Sorry, forgot to reply back. It came out wonderfully. So much so, that I'm almost finished with it. I think Pineapple is next ;)

[@maj21093]

How do you not have more views?? Your videos are informative and easy to listen to.

[@DointheMost]

Thank you!

[@ryanstephen8052]

you can dip the majority of the tube into the mead (so it fills) you can plug the other hand with your hand and then pull it out and release the block when the tube is over the mead. This reduces the mess, and you also don't need to suck the liquid into the tubing.

[@architectphoto]

Just made a strawberry version with 4 pounds of frozen strawberries I juiced and added. Turned out amazing.

[@jameskeal8957]

Love something new, brews . Especially when it is light in color and taste even better.

[@DointheMost]

These taste as good as they look!

[@jaycee7736]

When you rack on top of the juice, are you doing this to prevent oxidation?

[@SSmith-en5wq]

I’d love to see a Crispy Berry Hydromel 3.0.... Maybe with fresh fruit made purée and with different flavors. I’m working on a new recipe now. With winter around the corner I wonder what flavors would pop? Cheers and as always.. Thx for the great content 💯😎 #drinkmeadsavethebees

[@bobbyvogelgesang9467]

To help siphon technique stop when fluid is at bottom of loop then pinch the tube on the way to carboy.like a finger at the end of a straw

[@qwosters]

This is a great video. The only thing I struggle with following generally is to get a sense for the time it takes for the mead to be drinkable. In this case it feels like it’s about 1.5 months?

[@andrewburchill5212]

Could you make a video on balancing? I'm at the stage in my brewing where I need to learn how to do this, but I'm clueless about things like "roundness" etc. Is there a way I can practice without ruining my mead? Like a "play along at home" video, using common ingredients to demonstrate these concepts? I know that lemon = acid, over-steeped tea = astringent tannins?, and honey = sweet, but that's literally all I understand.

[@DointheMost]

In making notes on the content calendar, I actually added this to my list for upcoming videos today. I realized after uploading that a how to taste/balance video may be helpful content.

[@wtfpwnz0red]

I also pick up my glass from them. Recently picked up my first wine rack too, and thinking about getting some kegging equipment

[@damianmoon963]

wait...so I've watched a bunch of videos on KZbin of different people making hydromels and all i got to asks is am i seriously the only person to hand squeeze berries and fruit to make juice so i don't have to deal with the pulp when racking?

[@pjmullen6787]

Very cool. They both look great. I have two batches of your hydromel recipe going right now. The first is almost at three weeks and in secondary. This was my first ever attempt at mead making, so I was nervous/stupid and didn't try to adjust the must when it only hit 1.031 starting. With the first it fermented out to 1.000 after a week. So, I added the two potassiums and the malic acid and let it sit a second week. Then I back sweetened with honey and added a Campden tablet and the sparkolloid. Do you think I'm going to have any issues bottling it in swing top bottles? I didn't realize/missed the point that I shouldn't use honey to back sweeten if bottling. Or, because I used the stabilizers I should be ok? My second has only been in primary for three days, so I can correct any backsweetening mistakes and I made sure to hit 1.040 starting gravity the second time around. Thank you in advance.

[@DointheMost]

If carbonating in the bottle, you'd need to sweeten with a sugar alcohol like erythritol (which is nonfermentable) and prime with a priming sugar like dextrose or table sugar to carbonate. This is a complex process and I should really do a full video on how to do it safely and simply. If you stabilized effectively and then added honey, you'd be ok to bottle it but it will be still and not sparkling. Hope this is helpful!

[@pjmullen6787]

@@DointheMost Perfect. I'm ok with a still mead for the first batch, it's got decent flavor from the tannins and malic acid that were added from the sample I had after back sweetening. It's just very low ABV due to my mistakes. I will grab the other two items I need and carbonate the second batch which will hopefully be over 5%. Thanks so much for your reply. It is greatly appreciated.

[@DointheMost]

Glad to hear that the flavor seems balanced. That's a great start!

[@dalimwanza406]

If you're using a bottle carb method would you still stabilize in secondary?

[@Brometheus420]

The issue with the tannin was probably from front loading, as yeasts can metabolize acids. They used it for food, you should probably add the tannin after stabilizing

[@andrewgoldin6036]

awesome stuff on my must-make list. side note where do you get your silicon stoppers?

[@DointheMost]

I use these and love them: amzn.to/2ZOrrn1

[@pammorawski562]

I get confused with some of the names of mead. Pyment=grape. Cyser=apple. Metheglin=spices. Melomel=fruit so why did you call this a hydromel? Maybe you can do a "WTF are all these names?" video for us new to the mead scene.

[@theastronomer5800]

Hydromel is a low-abv mead, and he started with low SG so it will be very low abv. You're right, there are so many names! I think Man Made Mead made a video about the different types.

[@charlesdancel1031]

Where did you pick up those silicone bowls to measure out powders on your scale?

[@DointheMost]

Fairly certain they came from Amazon. It’s been a long time though.

[@pkelly754]

Can you add Pectic Enzyme after secondary?

[@theastronomer5800]

I believe it's much much more effective when added right at the beginning. The fermentation process helps it do its work.

[@skjoldet3189]

😍 looks mad tasty

[@wtfpwnz0red]

I've also had trouble with blackberry (crushed fresh berries in my case) getting the deep, sweet berry flavor I expected. In my case the brew also came out startlingly pink and a bit sharp like less-than-ripe berries. And I mean like neon pink. Bright pink.

[@jamesj8965]

Did you go from "brew day" to drinking day in 2 weeks? I have my first hydromel going now. Ive made fruit wines and beers before. I was going to give my hydromel 2 months like every beer i make.

[@DointheMost]

All told it was exactly 30 days from pitch to pour. Not bad IMO.

[@TinyPirate]

Did the pasteurized flavor of the fruit pulp come through? I've tasted that in home made wine before and found it off-putting

[@DointheMost]

I didn’t detect any off-flavors of the sort. I am very impressed with the homebrewing fruit purees I’ve tried so far.

[@TinyPirate]

@@DointheMost another question. I am new to using tanin frequently in mead. It has been a while since I brewed - is this a you thing or new best practice and do you go into why you do this in any videos in particular? I'm curious how you've found it changes the flavor profile.

[@DointheMost]

@@TinyPirate We have a video on balancing (linked here) - tannins have been used in mead and winemaking to improve mouthfeel and add body/astringency depending on how much/which type is used. Even a little bit of tannin can remarkably change a mead’s character! kzbin.info/www/bejne/naq0e3yDbrmEn9k

[@TinyPirate]

@@DointheMost you're awesome. Cheers. I find without additives mead can be a little boring mouthful wise (I like to make session strength, carbonated meads). Tanins and acid could do the trick.

[@billysummers7683]

Love homebrewohio i got a $140 5 gal kit with everything with an extra couple of things for 45 bucks i thought it was a glitch so i saif f it and bought it for 45 bucks freeshipping got charged 45 bucks and after i bought the price went back to 140 so i got a 100 dollar discount best hook up ive hsd from a brew supplier ive had

[@rova4652]

How much higher was the abv after the fruit purée?

[@DointheMost]

The purée didn’t ferment, so they actually drop the ABV a tad. But not much at all.

[@rova4652]

Doin the Most I guess I meant SG not abv sorry

[@DointheMost]

Rob Van Kuiken I’d guess not much at all but I don’t think I measured it. There wasn’t much liquid content.

[@johno7617]

I use saison yeast, let it finish fermenting and bottle condition without stabilizing, clarifying etc. Comes out pretty good. Why not just use lower alcohol tolerance yeast and skip all the chemicals?

[@theastronomer5800]

I normally use 14% yeast (71B) and never add anything to my meads. If you give them 2-3 months they will de-gas and clear 9/10 times. If you get one that doesn't clear you could then use something like bentonite, however, for many it's not important to clear it (you can't see if it's cloudy drinking from a horn or wooden mug!). Cheers!

[@CristopherCast]

Damn I love blackberries last time I made a mead i used 20 pounds of blackberries... damn thing still taste like yeast though any ideas how to fix that

[@DointheMost]

Has it cleared? Wondering if there is still yeast in suspension. What yeast did you use?

[@CristopherCast]

@@DointheMost I had some trouble clearing added Sparkaloid and waited about a weak still not as clear as I would want it, do you think thats the issue? I used d47.

[@DointheMost]

That's most likely the issue if it tastes "yeasty." Give it more time, I'd say. Maybe add more pectic enzyme if it continues to be stubborn - if there's suspended pectin haze it may be propping up dead yeast into suspension as well.

[@cabandit1]

What was the final ABV%?

[@DointheMost]

Roughly 4.5% after diluting with the purée.

[@cheekysaver]

They would look better in my glass!

[@AlnQrz]

Make a video using bottle conditioning for those who don't have kegs

[@DointheMost]

I did include some base instructions at the end - but I already have plans to film a bottle conditioned version of our Crispy Hydromel recipe. :)

[@AlnQrz]

@@DointheMost that would be nice. I'm also waiting for the pineapple mead :).

[@DointheMost]

Alan Quiroz It’s sitting on oak right now - probably headed to bottles in the next week or so. Video will come out long before the tasting because it landed at about 18%ABV and needs some time to rest, even after a proper TOSNA schedule. 😓

[@AlnQrz]

@@DointheMost I've made a few small batches of pineapple mead and I always use Dole's pineapple juice and SafAle US-05. Came out fantastic, with a bright and fresh pineapple flavor. It took a while to the yeast start fermenting and the layer of lees it's a nightmare, but that mead is really good.

[@Blandat250]

Haha so that you're gonna do😂😂

[@nork24]

DNA CARTOON FROM JURASSIC PARK