What's Happening in Brewland - Part Two

This is the second update of posts I have forgotten to post. There will be one more once I get the Hard Apple Cider recipe from Brian.


These are my notes from racking on 2/20/2013

5 Gallon JAO: has a spicier taste than previous brews, fruity, sweet, and bitey. Gravilty 1.33@75.3F

JAO2: Tastes like alcoholic water, may need to be back sweetened in the future. G 1.1@75.9F

JAO3: (Double Spice) Spicy alcoholic water, needs to be back sweetened. G 1.07@75.2

Ginger Capsimel: Woohoo! Sweet & Spicy, slightly less spicy than the first taste. We bottled this one and I look forward to sharing this winner with anyone brave enough to breathe sweet fire with me...okay its not that hot, but still yummy!

Bottling

We bottled our JAO the other day it was nice and sweet, no aging needed. We got three and a half-ish bottles out of it. The partial bottle is already gone, since we passed it around to our friends for a taste!

Now, be amazed at my gorgeous pictures! Thank you new camera!

The original hydrometer reading was 1.129, final was 1.048, and came out to 10.75% ABV.

Next we racked the other two batches of JAO and Ginger Capsimel. 

JAO from 9-15-12, was very orangy because of the giant orange we used in it. The hydrometer read 1.009, currently at 13.4% ABV, it makes your head swim! We think it will finish out a bit dry.

JAO 9-17-12 with double spice was spicy, surprise surprise, we liked it though. It's hydrometer reading was 1.005, 13.6% ABV, not nearly as bitey as the 9-15 batch though.

Then the final batch of Ginger Capsimel was an awesome surprise. It was spicy, peppery, and sweet. There was a little heat right before you swallow but not so much that you couldn't share with the average person. The hydrometer said 1.025, 10.72% ABV. I think this baby will be our favorite brew ever!

Notes: Next time we sanitize fill one jug with water and sanitizer, shake and transfer the mix from bottle to bottle to help sanitize the racking cane and tubing thoroughly.

Tasting Loki

I tasted my Loki today, it is much more mellow at 2 months that the first one we made, it should be great in another couple months.

Racking, and 2nd batch of JAO

Today we made a second batch of JAO. A few notes for next time, we tried weighing our spices, but my scale wouldn't register the small amount of weight, so I guess we need the type of scale you get from High Times. We also learned that 4 cups of honey is 3.5 pounds. Brian wants to weigh the orange in the future so we get the most consistent flavor every time. The specific gravity was 1.110.

Next we racked our first JAO from July/12', which means we siphoned the mead from the bottle and left all the fermented fruit and junk. Then we checked the gravity, which came out to 1.049, the original gravity was 1.129, I used an app to figure out the alcohol by volume, and we are currently 10.62 % ABV. Then we had a little taste, it's a little bitey with alcohol, the cinnamon, orange, and honey are the most noticeable flavors. I can't wait for it to mellow out, but it is already delicious.