5 gallon
10 lbs Orange Blossom honey (California OB if possible)
6 lbs Clover Blossom or Star Thistle honey
12.5g Go-Ferm
250ml water
10g Lalvin BA11
18g Fermaid-O
1.120 SG / 28.08 Brix
Top off your honey with enough water to reach the starting gravity listed above.
Follow the Yeast Handlingprocess on MMR.
Add all of your Fermaid-O at 24-hours after yeast pitch.
Once the mead reaches 1.070, rack 4.5 gallons of your mead into a pail and add 1.5 gallons of Portuguese aguardente, or neutral spirit of 40% abv.
Here is what will change after the blend:
Volume: 4.5 gallons mead + 1.5 gallons brandy = 6 gallons
Alcohol Strength: 15.2% abv combined
Residual Sweetness: 1.052 combined
In secondary, add the following:
- 3oz of American medium-toast oak cubes
- 4oz of Hungarian heavy-toast oak cubes
Allow to age for at least 6 months. A full year or more of aging will be more than worth your time for this one.
Tip on aging for extended periods of time: Use a dry airlock to eliminate any risk of a regular airlock drying out.
Comments