I've found my thrill...

Remember that batch of mead I started last month? Well, a month has passed and the initial fermentation has run its course. It's been almost a week since the last bubble popped up through the water lock, which means it's time for racking. Racking, for the uninitiated, involves draining/siphoning the mead from the primary fermentation vessel into other containers. This leaves behind old yeast, impurities and other solid matter which can cloud the mead and give it an off flavor if allowed to remain.

Racking time also presents the perfect opportunity to add things to the basic mead in order to give it flavor. I decided to add (a decision made well before I set this batch to fermenting, I must admit) nearly two quarts of blueberries and, separately, a pint of maypop/passion fruit pulp.



Yum! Don't those blueberries look delicious? They are. All picked fresh, although they've been chilling in my deep freeze since Christmas. I drained the six gallons of mead from my primary fermentation vessel into several smaller ones for temporary holding. I cleaned out the big one, then added the blueberries along with enough of the mead to bring the total fermenting there up to five gallons. I also added a dash of honey to help start the fermentation process back up.



You can't really see it in the photo, but the mead has a most wonderful blue/purple hue to it, and the smell is most excellent. The remaining mead I added to my smaller 1.5 gallon fermenter, along with a dash of honey and the pint of maypop pulp. The scent is strong on this one, but as the pulp of the fruit is pale yellow (dotted with the black of a few seeds I missed) the color isn't nearly as dramatic. I'm curious as to how these two batches will turn out--I deliberately started out with less honey this time out, so the finished product would be less sweet, with less honey flavor to overwhelm the fruit flavors (not to mention a bit less alcohol). I expect I'll let them do their things, unmolested, for another month before racking again and starting the whole clarifying/aging process. But I like to think I'm getting a little more sophisticated with my brewing techniques and may be close to producing drinks I won't be ashamed to give out as gifts, as opposed to drinking myself.

In other good news, I've potentially found a supplier of locally produced bee vomit. Will find out the ultimate quality of said product this coming Thursday. Will keep everyone posted.

Now Playing: Dr. Demento Show June 5-6, 1999