You’re My Boy Blue (B2) Berry Mead

Add blueberries to a 7- to 10-gallon fermenter and let partially thaw over 24 hours. Add honey and let it continue to thaw for another 24 hours. Mix fruit and honey together, adding all day 1 additions to must while mixing. Create yeast starter with GoFerm and warm spring water, add yeast and stir, let sit for 20 minutes. Add some honey and juice to the starter and let sit another 20 to 40 minutes until you see solid fermentation activity.

Pitch starter into must and stir well. Maintain 70°F (21°C) for 24 hours, then check for fermentation activity. Punch down fruit cap and lower temperature to 60–70°F (16–21°C). Each day, punch down fruit cap. Once fermentation slows, set up a clean, sanitized bucket with a colander and scoop fruit pulp into it, draining must through. Press solids to release more must and return liquid to the bucket. Rack everything to a glass carboy and add oak spiral and clearing agent. Top carboy off with CO2 to minimize oxidation.

Add metabisulfate and sorbate when gravity no longer changes. After 24 to 48 hours, adjust flavor with additional honey and fruit juices/concentrates as necessary to meet your flavor target. Rack mead to new carboy once clearing agent and oak tannins do their magic. Remember to always add sulfites and/or top off carboy with CO2 whenever you rack the mead.

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