I Could Ferment That!

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Comment by Kali on October 8, 2012 at 11:22am

I have my second batch of mead going right now... it's in its secondary fermentation stage.  I funneled it into some wine bottles and after a lot of debate... stuck some of those suction one-way type wine cork replacers in the top.  I couldn't find anything online suggesting that they had worked for others, but also couldn't think of a reason that they wouldn't!?  They don't allow air in, but do allow for outflow, and additionally the ones I had have indents in the top that can be filled with water to keep fruit flies away.  Has anyone else used these as airlocks??  Or know of an important reason why one shouldn't???

Thanks!

Comment by Rick Nichols on October 4, 2012 at 9:19am

The wife and I have made several different Meads and melomels over the years, plus wine , beer, ale, lager, brewables of one kind or another.  "A Wittch's Brew" by Patricia Telesco (1995, Llewellyn Publications, St. Paul, Minnesota 55164-0383) is a great recipe book for both alcoholic and non-alcoholic brews. Web sites I like are www.easy-wine.net  and www.gotmead.com as well as the online store Monster Brew, who have Great supplies and recipe kits. Currently we have an Octoberfest brew just ready to rack, an attempt at a Chamy-like Belgum dark that kicks like a mule, several bottles of honey rasin meade,  and a Blackberry primative. If you use a bucket, use a firm sealing lid or you will get some natural yeasts from dust and won't get a brew, you get a mess. I have lost a couple of batches that weren't sealled, dump them on the compost bin and start new.

Comment by Pat Johnson on July 4, 2011 at 8:47am

You don't need a lot in the way of supplies. A food grade bucket or a glass jug will be sufficient to ferment the honey. A secondary fermenter is used to rack (syphon) the mead from the primary in an effort to get it off the sediment and make it clear. Racking it every month or so will yield a better product than if you simply let it sit in the origianl fermenter. You will need some yeast nutrient & yeast energizer as well as some Champaine yeast (you can get these online or at a homebrew/wine making shop). Other than that Honey is all you need to make basic mead. Look on the web and find a basic recipe and go for it. I'd suggest making 1 gallon batches of a couple recipes so you can see which you like best. Mead needs to be aged at least 6 months and a year is better. Consequently multiple batches will speeed up the search for the best recipe by a lot!

Comment by Diane Hoffmaster on July 3, 2011 at 5:03pm

My husband and I are considering trying to make mead.  Does anyone have any suggestions, websites, or suppliers?

Comment by Cornelia on January 27, 2011 at 5:11pm

How to make a fermentation chamber out of an old wine fridge from Instructables and Holy Scrap Hot Springs' Mikey.

Comment by Sunshyne on January 12, 2011 at 4:09pm

A really easy wild cider is made by purchasing  gallon of unpasteurized apple juice/cider (we have Barsotti's here  from Apple Hill in Camino, Ca. which can be found for about $7 at Raley's). Transfer it from the plastic jug to a glass gallon jug. Throw a handful of organic raisins into it and a splash of another fermented bev or kombucha (or just use the raisins) and stick an  airlock on top or just use a balloon fitted over the top so the gasses can expand and the air stays out. After a week or two, depending on the temperature, it should be bubbly and starting to become dry/sour as the yeasts eat the sugars in the cider. The yeasts come from the raisins and/or fermented bev you throw in. Siphon into champagne bottles and place in fridge. Enjoy! Tastes just like store purchased hard cider. Leave for a few months in the gallon jug with the airlock/balloon and a small peice of kombucha scoby or vinegar mother from the bottle of an apple cider vin. bottle and you'll have a gallon of homemade apple cider  vinegar to share. Cheers!

Comment by Torry on October 13, 2010 at 10:52am

Jason, you can re-use 1 gallon glass jars, like cider jugs, just make sure to clean them thoroughly and remove all the labels. The book "Alaskan's Bootlegger's Bible" has a lot of how-to's on home-made brew equipment. Brewing is definitely NOT rocket surgery.

Comment by Pat Johnson on September 25, 2010 at 8:55am

If you know what you're looking for Craig's List is the best but otherwise you just have to go to one of the homebrew sites on the net of a homebrew supply store (niether of those will be cheap. If you go it alone look for food grade plastic if you use plastic. Also be careful to make sure you get safe gasket material and fittings, hoses.... Basically you need at least one fermenting container and a top that seals plus some sort of pee-trap like device to allow CO2 to escape but not allow air to enter. That will be enough equipment to do a crude fermentation. You will need a syphon hose to get it out of the fermentor and into a bottle. Better results require more equipment but it's not needed for the most basic stuff.

Comment by jason chambers on September 24, 2010 at 9:24pm

Any serious shoppers know the cheapest place to get basic wine making equipment for a novice?

Comment by Pat Johnson on July 31, 2010 at 2:54pm

Pretty much all wild apples are sour (and small). Until recent times the apple was generally used for cider and little else. I think if you press the apples for the liquid and then run it though a blender to break the cells in the apples, the juice can be fermented in the manner I have described. I would urge you to see if your local area has a wine/beer making shop that sells the stuff I listed. They would also be a great help in telling you what to do to make the cider. Otherwise you'll have to get in online.

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