3rd - In the Brew!

Hello All!

The holiday season is upon us here in the States and with that I need to be prepared. The wife and I have decided to do a "home made" X-mas this year. That means mead for my loved ones! So I started my Christmas Cyser.

A Cyser as the name might imply is a mead made primarily with honey and apples. Below is my recipe. I was going for a sweet apple pie flavor for the finished product. This is hopefully going to be a sweet one, we shall see.

3 Gallons Apple Cider
3 lbs Clover Honey
2 lbs Dark Grade "A" Maple Syrup
1 cup lemon juice
9 cinnamon tea bags
1 lbs cortland apples
1.5 tsp pectic enzyme ** Please see note on the diversion from my normal "natural/historic" stance.
1.5 tsp bread yeast

Process:

Dice up apples and put in carboy with lemon juice.

Put 1 gallon cider with tea bags and enzyme into pot. Heat to 145F and then pour in syrup. Heat until just about boiling. Cool in ice bath, remove tea bags, and pour into carboy.


Put 1 gallon cider with tea bags and enzyme into pot. Heat to 145F and then pour in honey. Heat until just about boiling. Cool in ice bath, remove tea bags, and pour into carboy.

Put 1 gallon cider with tea bags and enzyme into pot. Heat until just about boiling. Cool in ice bath, remove tea bags, and pour into carboy.

Aerate using a long handle that has been sterilized. Pitch the yeast at 70F.

OG: 1.080 - I am wondering why. I have asked the forums.

That's it so far.

** - NOTE the addition of a chemical. I have added this to help clear the mead faster. Most fruits have a chemical within them called pectin. This is the chemical that gives most "raw" juices their "cloudy" look. I need this mead to be done in about 2 1/2 months. I don't have the time to wait for the mead to clear on its own. So I have broken my tradition to get this ready for the holidays.

I'll keep you posted!