Oooo I never thought of adding pectase in secondary! Great tips, thank you!

@@FaewoodMead you need to do way more pectase (after fermentation) than what is called for (pre-fermentation). That is because the alcohol denatures the enzyme. Usually a tablespoon will clear the brew in a week or two.

@@KenJohnsonUSA Oh beautiful, thanks for the tip!

Thank you!

That sounds amazing!!!

Haha, thanks Tim!

Haha, awesome!

Haha, thank you!

That Mexican chocolate mead is now on my list.

Oooo that sounds amazing!!!! What a fabulous idea for a mead!!!

Omg so glad I’m not alone when it comes to orange tasting really odd in the beginning! Some things just take a while to age out I suppose!!! Omg chocolate cherry would be delish 🥰

Oooo yes that could be the missing secret!

It works really well! My friend Christina recently tried this and said it's pretty amazing - it does take some aging time though!

@@FaewoodMead So I heard in case of most Meads. Only time chocolate doesn't mix well with brewing was either cider or wine. I find out it tastes gross.

I want to know how this turns out, sounds delightful!!!

That sounds delicious!!!

Hey Edda. This video gave me an idea to try and mimic the flavor of a chocolate covered cherry. What do you think? I'm thinking chocolate up front and the cherry in back.

@@littlebones88 - Oh wow! That sounds utterly delicious! I’d advise tart cherries, loads of them. If you’re using sweet cherries, opt for a combination of sweet cherries and tart ones, with at leadt 2/3rds tart ones. A vanilla pod in secondary, too, to up the chocolate AND the cherry flavours. Yum…

@@eddavanleemputten9232 Do you think the vanilla will help meld the chocolate and cherry? How would you make sure that the chocolate was dominant, but not overpowering? Tart cherry juice in primary? I'm just looking for input as I've never worked with these ingredients. Thanks!

@@littlebones88 - I’d ferment honey, tart cherries (frozen, thawed and roughly chopped) and either cherry juice or apple-cherry juice or straight apple juice together. OR a grape juice or grape-cherry juice. Remove fruit after a week. Then I’d add more tart cherries in secondary, remove after another week. Fruit in a brewing bag for easy removal and I’d perhaps add pectic enzyme to make sure I don’t get pectic haze although this isn’t as much of a problem with cherries as with berries, so it isn’t really necessary. If fermentation isn’t done, I’d wait ‘till fermentation is done. Then I’d toast cacao nibs (in a brew bag), add those and drop a split vanilla pod straight into the fermenter. Funnily enough, the cheapo really dry pods seem to work better in brews than the expensive ones. If pods are too expensive, I’d use vanilla extract/paste. Taste every now and again to see how the chocolate aroma develops. Then I’d taste and see if the brew needs tannin. If it does, in goes a handful of medium toast French oak chips. Again, taste, taste, taste. Depending on the size of the chips and how much you add, extraction goes fast or slow. Usually 1-2 weeks does the trick. Back sweeten, bottle, allow to age. As an alternative to French oak, medium toast cherry wood is also an option. You could also add tannins upfront, either powder or in the form of strong black tea. That would be my MO. Multi-step brew for the patient at heart, but it’s worth it IMHO. And yes, vanilla tends to up the chocolate and rounds out the cherry, which can be a bit… sharp? Best way to describe it for me, as English isn’t my native language, is that it kind of brings the full flavour of Summer into the fruit. Does that make sense?

@@eddavanleemputten9232 Makes perfect sense and thank you for your input. I think I'll keep this one in the 14% - 16% range. I am about to go into full blown production mode in the next few weeks and I'd really like to add this one in too! What do you think about cherry juice and cacao nibs in primary, with additions/adjustments of cherries, vanilla, nibs, and medium toast cherry as needed after ferment and tasting?

lol! Good luck!!! Did you add the oranges in primary or secondary? Cacao nibs add a nice layer of complexity, vanilla would be good too!

@@FaewoodMead Thanks! 😊 In primary. 🙂 I got the tip from a mead producer here in Sweden to let the orange one stay in secondary for at least 6 months. She had learnt the hard way and kegged to early after 4 months. 19 out of 32 kegs blew up. ☹️Yeah I'll have to try that. Ooh! Chocolate and a small piece of vanilla... 😋

You can definitely use sugar - the drink would be called a country wine instead of mead, but the methods are basically the same! You can ferment until dry, let the wine sit for a while and then bottle it, or you can pasteurize your wine. There are several methods, email me and I can send you some videos and give tips. Faewoodmead@gmail.com

Ummm yes. Definitely do that!

Hi Heather! Usually there are instructions on the package, but just in case, I soak them for about an hour in sanitized water. Aka a Starsan solution!

Weggies is the best!

@@FaewoodMead Indeed. Just went there yesterday and might stop there today.

Welcome!

P.S. Nice Beret , with Visor .

Thank you so much!

Are you german?🤔

@@balazskardos7167 English & American Indian .