/diy/ - Do It Yourself

>>273476
It depends on your tastes really. If it tasted good before putting it in you can drink it. It'll only get better and the sharpness of any flavors will mellow over time. While the aging process will be faster in a smaller container the consistency between bottles will be somewhat different. Aging in a larger container takes longer, but you'll have a more consistent beverage.

I would age the mead for at least 1 year. 6 months is the absolute least amount of time and 2 years is normally ideal.

Aging times have a lot to do with the ingredients and early outcome of the beverage.

>>273480
The batch was 2.5 liters, and was made to be a very lite Cyser. Though you don't get much of an apple tasted to it. I used 2 lbs of honey. The bottle it the photo is about half a liter, I have a one liter bottle, three 354 mL bottles, and to flask sized bottles for Right Now.

>>273486
There's a chance that the fruity flavor you're looking for will come out stronger as it ages. Any harsher flavors will mellow and also allow more delicate flavors to appear. The amount of honey and apple juice should give you a very high %ABV and finish sweet. Did it taste strong and sweet?

>>273487
YES. I love it, none of my family does. It also has has a very strong smell.

>>273490
Then, let it age. It will only get better. The secret to waiting for it to age a year or two is to make more. In fact, you can make other type of wines that will finish and age faster. Then you can enjoy drinking batches that are aged well enough while waiting for the stuff that requires longer aging. This is my general rule of thumb for aging,

Tepache: Immediately to 1 week (very light alcohol, but the yeast needs to be removed to be best.)
Kilju: Immediately to 1 week (I don't recommended it unaged for 6 months though)
White wines: 6 months to 1 year
Red wines: 1-2 years
Dark red wines 2+ years
Dark berry wines 3-5 years
Pure Black Elderberry wine: 20 years

>>273497
>Kilju
I've heard talk of some guys south of me that make and sell this stuff. They make it so it's as strong as everclear.
Also what's the best way to remove yeast? The best I could do was use a coffee filter.

>>273508
>kilju
>They make it so it's as strong as everclear.

Kilju is a fermented beverge made from water, yeast, and sugar. Everclear is a distilled spirit. Kilju can not begin reach the %ABV of Everclear. However, many people do use what is essentially kilju as a base for distilling a spirit. That is more likely what they are doing. The unaged version of this is popularly known as moonshine.

>Also what's the best way to remove yeast? The best I could do was use a coffee filter.

Time and racking. With very short fermentation beverages like tepache you will more than likely need to stop the fermentation yourself. You can do this by refrigerating the brew. The yeast should flocculate on the bottom. Then you can rack the clear fluid off. A coffee filter will work with very limited success and should really only be used as a large sediment filter.

>>273517
It's my first time doing this, so mistakes will be made. How exactly do i go about racking?

>>273521
Racking is a siphoning process. At its most simple, you use a plastic tube to siphon the liquid from one container to another. There are many ways to do this. Wine thiefs are great for starting the suction for the siphoning (but a pain to clean and sanitize every time). However, there are other ways. I don't recommend you use your mouth. I use boiled water method. I fill the tube with boiled and cooled water and crimp both ends. I then stick one end into the brew and one into a spill container near the container the brew will be going into. I let the crimps out so the water will flow down into the spill container. I watch the color and stop the flow on the bottom end of the tube with the brew reaches that end and there's no more water in the tube. I then let the brew flow into the final container.

Keep the tip in the upper container where you can see it and keep it from sucking up things (a bit of boiled coffee filter tied to the end works well to keep stuff from getting sucked in, but it can clog). In the lower container the brew is going into, keep the tip of the tube at the bottom so to prevent excess oxygen from getting into the brew.

>>273476
I have those same shitty ass computer speakers.

>>273529
alright. I'll keep this in mind for my next batch.

>>273531
This is not about the speakers.

>>273539
Oh, OK. Go fuck yourself and have a nice day!

>>273476

UNTIL IT EXPLODES! GOOD GOD ANON MOVE THAT GLASS GRENADE OUTSIDE!

Seriously I hope you vented that properly before you bottled it.

Just started my first batch of raspberry wine with plans on making banana wine in september, fingers crossed. I started a batch of mead in early June with plans on bottleling it in a week or so, but I must ask, if it keeps bubbling by then, should I wait for a higher alcohol concentration or cash in anyway

>>273561
Yes it was vented.
>>273563
The more alcohol the better. That's what I say.

>>273570
Couldn't agree more

>>273571
But I'm also the guys that downed aprox 2 gallons of alcoholic beverages with varying percentages in two hours.

>>273575
redacted: about a gallon and a half.

Does anyone have a guide on making mead?

>>273580
>http://www.instructables.com/id/How-to-make-Mead-Honey-Wine/?ALLSTEPS

there you go.

>>273583
Thanks.

>>273585
No prob

Anyway this can just become kind of a homebrewers general thread?

As an upstart homebrewer i have a lot of questions:

I recently started a few 1 gallon mead brews and a wine brew myself and I'm curious about the best method of racking?

It is very easy to disturb the lees while putting the siphon in and keep everything flowing. Are there containers with faucets at different levels so you can just open up the carboy at a certain height and let it drain off the lees?

Are sulphites nessesary for a good brew? Or is being extremely clean good enough?

Are there any books you guys could recommend for someone interested in the scientific side of it. I picked up a few homebrew books at a local book store and none of them got too in detail about exact numbers, or the actual chemicals that cause off flavors and how to prevent their creation during fermentation.

Also, can someone explain why diacetyl is considered an off flavor? It seems to me that a buttery flavor, or a butterscotch flavor would be desirable in most wines and brews.

>>273608
>Anyway this can just become kind of a homebrewers general thread?

Yes.

I found someone selling some 5 gal carboys on CL for $20 a piece, is this a good deal? Any idea where I could pick up some for cheap?

I refuse to spend more than $50 on my first batch as it will likely fail hard.

>>273608

I'll help you out old mate.. Been brewing for 15 years+.

best method of racking?

Just any racking cane bro. They are cheap and easy. Nothing to it, especially when doing small batches.

It is very easy to disturb / drain off the lees?

Meh, just place a small rolled up towel or something under the fermenter a couple days before you siphon. It will settle better and you will get a cleaner draw by avoiding the trub. Also, dont try to get it all... not worth it.

Are sulphites nessesary for a good brew? Or is being extremely clean good enough?

I dont interchage those terms, but in terms of sanitation, brewwashes of all kinds are fine. I use iodophore, which is real cheap and works good. No off flavors at all in any beer I have made. Someone out there did a good study and purposefully "contaminated" a few bottles of brew just to see if it ruined anything. He put like 10x the amount in the bottle, brewed it, and there were no off flavors and no problems fermenting.

books you guys could recommend for someone interested in the scientific side of it.

Check out palmer's books and guides. He is the godfather of tech brewing. If you hwant past palmer, just go to the ka-jillian web forums out there for homebrew.

Also, can someone explain why diacetyl is considered an off flavor? It seems to me that a buttery flavor, or a butterscotch flavor would be desirable in most wines and brews.

Some diacetyl is good in certain styles or expressions. German wheat beers, for example. Its like putting Louisiana hotsauce all over your Irish Shepherds pie, yeah, its probably not going to hurt it, some may actually like it on there, but it isn't true to style, and most probably would avoid it.

>>273613

Just a protip, if you are fermenting for less than say 45 days, just use cheap plastic food grade containers. get them for free, etc. You can buy airlocks for $1.50 and little rubber grommets 10/$1.00... Thats a lot of fermenters.

>>273746
what I mean by the towel thing is that you are propping it up on one side, so the whole bottom is tipped, creating a deeper and easier to avoid layer of trub. You could use a door stop, for example.

>>273750
When tipping to rack, allow a few hours for anything that may have been stirred up by the tipping to settle down.

To the people who helped me in the thread a few weeks back, I got some delicious, real, 'liquid' amber honey for about 9$/1kg, and went out berry picking, ended up with some blueberrys, raspberries, and LOTS of currents.
Unfortunately it's been too hot lately to do anything, so brewing has been put off.
Anyway, will a 'forest berry blend' taste good?

I use all sorts of berries,fruits, all sorts (elder berry being the best in my opinion), use as much fruit as poss, add sugar to bring it up to 1080ish, if you hav'nt got a hydrometer get one.If you want to make port, blackberry's good for that, take it up to 1100ish and use a port yeast.

>>273937
Yes, it will taste good. Let it age though; at least 1 year, 2 is better.

can anyone go into what the pros and cons of using different forms of containers for storing the fermenting brew and how the flavors of the plastic or metal transfer to the taste of the end product? also what does it taste like when fermenting in glass any different from metal or plastic?

GTFO

"1. This is not a place to discuss drugs or drug paraphernalia. Global rule #1 is in effect."

>>274013

You're a fag and should feel bad.

Fag.

Still pretty cloudy...how long did you have it in secondary?

>>274073
>in secondary

I don't think he was doing a secondary fermentation with that recipe.

>>274076
It would be wise to put any and ALL meads into secondary, since they are often judged by their clarity.

It takes time for particulate to settle out.

>>274079
Terminology fail.

Secondary fermentation is not the same as a secondary container. You need to specify which term you are referring to. I assume you are meaning a secondary container for a brew that is still in primary fermentation.

>>274076
>>274079
If you backsweeten your mead then this will be done in a secondary container; if you are adding more honey or yeast nutrient then it should be done in the first container before racking to a second. And yes all meads should be racked into a secondary container at least once for clarity, aging, and removing yeast and/or other particles such as fruit.

Hey man I just finished my mead last week and now I'm aging it. I know some people say that it should always be aged at least 1 year but honestly 3 months is fine for most simple meads. I know that prickly pear mead needs to be aged for at least a year though.
Anyway, My mead is a three gallon batch with about 9 pounds of honey and blueberries added to it. Next I'm going to look into making a cider!

>>274105

I've had a mead kit that specifically asked for the nutrient to be added during secondary. Any reason why you prefer for it to be done in primary?

>>274008
http://www.homebrewtalk.com/f39/vs-pro-con-analysis-109318/

op bottled his mead without letting it clear first?

>>274008
You are essentially limited to two types of fermenters, unless you are at the enthusiasts level, then three. The most common and cheap are the plastic containers. After a couple of months, some with a keen sense of taste can spot plastic. Plastic containers are best if used in ales b/c of the opportunity for a quick ferment, depending on style of course. Glass carbouys of course impart no flavor at all, and are the obvious choice for long ferments like mead and barley wines, and many lagers.

A steel fermenter will probably not impart any off flavors b/c nobody would buy a steel conical for $400 and then just put a mead into it for 5 years. That would be crazy and a huge waste of money and your resource. I doubt if anyone goes beyond a year or so in a steel conical and I have never heard anyone state off flavors. Hope this helps.

>>274389
You will regret aging in plastic or metal...
Glass is mostly inert but also has no taste to it.
Plastic and metal will inevitably change the flavors of your product regardess of pH.

>>274400

You will regret aging in plastic or metal...
Glass is mostly inert but also has no taste to it.
Plastic and metal will inevitably change the flavors of your product regardess of pH.

If you are brewing a fast fermented ale, there is no problem at all with plastic.

Metal conicals are the coup de grace of lager homebrewers, so I am not sure where you are getting your info from. In theory, you may be on to something, but in practice, plastic is just fine, and steel moreso. Just go onto any homebrew supply site and brewing forum.

In fact, I hesitate to go on further here, because I don't think that this site is really a reasonable source of info into homebrewing.. there are too many better resources out there.

>>274382
It is more likely a haze that needs a clarifying agent to clear it properly. It would only affect its aesthetics and not flavor or mouth feel.

>>274175
>>274105
>>274088
>>274079
>>274076
>>274073
Look up these terms:

Primary
Primary fermentation vessel
Primary fermentation

Secondary
Secondary fermentation vessel
Secondary fermentation

Malolactic fermentation

http://winemaking.jackkeller.net/glossary.asp

>It is NOT correct to refer to the alcohol fermentation in a secondary fermentation vessel (e.g. a carboy) as a secondary fermentation although novices to the hobby often do.

Get your terms correct because you are causing confusion with those that know the correct terms when you are incorrectly using the terms.

>>274410
Plastic and stainless steel is used for the primary fermentation and not used for secondary fermentation. Glass is used for secondary fermentation. The reason very large batches are done in stainless steel at large wine making places is because it is far cheaper than glass of comparable size and more stable and easier to clean, more cost effective, and sanitize/sterilize than traditional wood.

The small homebrewer does not have such large volumes and the high costs associated with them. So, we can use glass for the secondary fermentation vessel and not be spending much money at all. We also don't need to risk leeching of any kind because of this.

>>274426
What would you propose calling the second vessel then?

Secondary saves time and people know what you mean.

>>274175
You could add yeast nutrient in the secondary if you suspect there is still viable yeast in there. The reason why I prefer to do it in the primary is because I want most of the fermentation to be done or nearing completion before racking it into secondary. This way, there will be less fermentation in the secondary and thus less sediment at the bottom. In addition to that, I backsweeten it in the secondary and for that I don't want any more fermentation to occur. If you do add yeast nutrient in the secondary then you will just have to rack it again is all.
But it's all just preference really.

>>274843
I'd call the "Secondary fermentation vessel", as I do already and as my friends that brew also do. Shortening it to "secondary" can mean 3 different things and can and does cause confusion.

How can I make mead fairly easily. I'm lazy and I don't feel like buying special mead-yeasts. How did the vikings do it? Let's say I'd make a couple of litres. How much honey would I need for example?

>>275204
http://www.homebrewtalk.com/f80/joes-ancient-orange-mead-49106/

>>275204
You can use different types of yeast however it will affect the time it takes to ferment and sometimes even how it tastes. I just used a champagne yeast for my mead and it was done fermenting within 2 1/2 weeks and has a dry wine taste. I will need to age it for several months before even considering to drink it. If you use an ale yeast then it can literally take MONTHS to finish fermenting.
Wine yeasts seem to be the fastest fermenting if you aren't using actual mead yeasts while ale and beer yeasts will take much longer.
As for the question on what the vikings used who the hell knows? They probably used whatever strains of yeast were growing naturally in their area (think sourdough yeast in the SF Bay area). And mead was also made in China, Africa, the Middle-East, and other parts of Europe so they would have all had different strains of yeast in their meads.

>>275204
>>275380
The amount of honey used can vary depending upon your personal tastes. A 5 gallon batch might need anywhere from 7-15 pounds of honey. I did a 3 gallon batch with 9 pounds total. Honey is also the most expensive part of you mead after buying the initial start-up equipment; expect to pay close to if not over $100 dollars for your: carboy, airlock, yeast, yeast nutrient, stabilizing chems (not also needed), secondary and/or storage vessel, and honey. But the equipment is a one time expenditure so it will be cheaper after that.

My brother did this, but something fucked up and it was so carbonated, the bottles were exploding everywhere.
Shit was cray.

>>276032
Put them in the fridge.

The yeast was not done fermenting and the bottles were not strong enough to hold the pressure. Champagne/sparkling wine bottles are thicker and can hold the pressure. They also have corks and wires to prevent the cork from popping out.

Prior to bottling, you can use potassium sorbate to prevent the yeast for starting fermentation again.

I figure I'll ask this here since it appears to be a mead general.

What does mead taste like?

>>276047
It depends completely on what kind it is.

It tastes like alcohol. It can be dry, sweet, spiced, spicy hot, sparkling, like a beer, like a mixed drink, like a wine cooler, etc. One thing all have in common is the lingering flavors the honeys used give to them.

>>274013
Unless you are growing or making the drugs yourself. This is a DIY board. Also you are implying that alcohol is not a drug.