Blending Mead with Beer in Secondary

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Brewfoo
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Location: Walnut, CA

Blending Mead with Beer in Secondary

Post by Brewfoo »

Some months ago, I made a 5 gallon batch of mead for the first time with a group of people using about 20 lbs of honey and R/O water. Apparently, that mead is now crystal clear and stuck at 1.070. It tastes way too sweet and under attenuated of course and I've gotten several advices on how to fix it.

If I keg this mead right now, it might make for a pleasant soda pop-like beverage by itself. Maybe a creme soda with a significant alcohol kick. However, I have some beer finishing up in primary which was made of 6 lbs of amber DME, 2 lbs of brown sugar (OG 1.084) which I may combine in the secondary with some of this sweet mead.

The Safale 05 dry yeast I used in the beer should detect the under attenuated mead and help ferment it along some more. I've made some accidental braggots in the past with just adding 5 lbs of honey in the secondary to my beer. This time, it will be actual mead which I plan to blend with the beer in secondary. What do you think will happen here?

It's a Frankenbrew for sure, but that is my specialty.
Beer....it's the new "water."
dhempy
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Location: Santa Rosa Valley, CA

Re: Blending Mead with Beer in Secondary

Post by dhempy »

The _BEST_ Person for MEAD advice on this board would be Oskar (Pete B.) I guess that make you the FrankenBrew expert. Good luck with whatever path you choose.

Dan
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Brewfoo
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Location: Walnut, CA

Re: Blending Mead with Beer in Secondary

Post by Brewfoo »

I know. I first met him at the AHP anniversary party where he was demoing his mead. I presented a couple of my accidental braggots to him, one of which was called "Flight of the Bumblebee."

To some, it was too strange, too sweet, and some asked why I would dry hop a braggot with Falconer's Flight. Osskar said he liked it. I have a lot to learn and many people warned me those bottle conditioned bombs were going to blow. It never did and now it's just a memory.

I found that adding 5 lbs of honey to secondary to any recipe beer will make for an interesting high gravity beverage. Safale 05 or 04, WL super high gravity yeasts have worked the best and required no additional repitching.
Beer....it's the new "water."
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nico soze
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Re: Blending Mead with Beer in Secondary

Post by nico soze »

i was at that mead day, and have the exact same issue, and got the exact same idea. what i did was take a 1 gallon growler and fill it half way with the underattenuated mead, and another half gallon (a little less for headspace) with a stout i was transferring to secondary that day. i'll leave it in there a couple months and then bottle. wondering if i should pitch yeast at bottling...
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