Game Thread Mead, ciders and obeverages

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Further

Further

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visiting Ann Harbor MI today, went to Blom, a meadery/cidery and had an excellent time. They had a gin herbal mead, a hops mead and a bourbon barrel aged mead that were all pretty fantastic. And I’m not usually a mead lover.

While contemplate guillotining your foes, what do you drink?
 
10 barell apocolypse ipa.

When i was visiting some friends in san fran many moons ago, they took me to an irish pub that had hot mead in a vat. I have no idea what type for sure, but assume it was a cider.
Tasted like cinnamon apple cider and i drank four cups in half an hour.

I dont remember much of the rest of the night.
Something about puking on a strangers shoe at some other club....

But i remember that mead being soooo good!!!!
 
Further said:
visiting Ann Harbor MI today, went to Blom, a meadery/cidery and had an excellent time. They had a gin herbal mead, a hops mead and a bourbon barrel aged mead that were all pretty fantastic. And I’m not usually a mead lover.

While contemplate guillotining your foes, what do you drink?
Click to expand...
Whiskey, neat. The cheaper the better. I then wake up on the floor and go to bed with visions of headless corpses dancing in my head.
 
I’d love to have the space for a bee colony or 5.

To answer the question, I keep my bar stocked with just about everything. But my go-to cocktail (when I’m making it) has shifted from a bourbon old-fashioned to a negroni. Though every once in a while I’ll make a Vesper Lynd (my style*) for fun.

*3 parts St Augustine barrel-finished gin
1 part St Augustine vodka (sugarcane based)
1 part Lillet (NOT Blanc)
Lemon peel scraped to the oil
 
Further said:
More info please? What honey? What yeasts? And additions?

I have 10,000 bees ordered and in April start my first bee hive. I imagine if successful I’ll be brewing some of my own mead too.
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Ah good! It should be in prime ready when I get to the bay area in early fall.
 
Further said:
More info please? What honey? What yeasts? And additions?

I have 10,000 bees ordered and in April start my first bee hive. I imagine if successful I’ll be brewing some of my own mead too.
Click to expand...

Ah dude that’s awesome! I have wanted bees for a long time, I plan on having at least a small hive someday when I have the room. The gal who cuts my hair keeps bees and said she was able to “capture” her first swarm from a willing neighbor. Evidently you can put an empty hive near an existing one and sometimes a group will break off and take hold in the new hive. I would love to know how everything goes as you move forward, it will no doubt be a fulfilling experience. Bee keeping is good for the natural order, more people should do it.

My brewing; I make wines and meads, and recently acquired a setup for beer, although I haven’t employed it yet. I generally make fruit meads. Raw local (WY) honey always. I like to use local fruits and berries that I can harvest myself sometimes, but not always. Part of the fun is trying different or exotic fruit combinations. I always go pretty heavy on the honey. To taste the sweetness of the honey you really need to have more than 10 lbs. per 5 gallon batch. I generally use 13-15 lbs. As far as yeast goes, it is just something to toy with to see what you like, or how long you want your fermentation to last. Generally speaking, more sugar (honey) lends to a longer fermentation. More sugar=more time, stronger yeasts (champagne yeast, for example) can cut that time down. A good, middle of the road yeast will almost never do you wrong, though. I generally use Red Star brand yeasts, but have heard good things about Lavlin as well. I use 5 gallon glass carboys to ferment, and rack my product into used wine bottles with fresh corks. Age your mead for at least six months in bottles before enjoying. Also, always use distilled water and a good brewing sanitizer (Star San is a good brand).
My most recent mead was a cranberry-pear-ginger “Christmas” mead that turned out yummy. The last year or so I’ve just been making wine. I just stowed away my last bottle of chokecherry wine that I would have to say was the best drink I’ve ever produced. Simple and delicious. This summer I plan on making a wild mountain berry “medley” which will most likely be a chokecherry-thimbleberry-gooseberry combo.
 
jonnyboy said:
Ah dude that’s awesome! I have wanted bees for a long time, I plan on having at least a small hive someday when I have the room. The gal who cuts my hair keeps bees and said she was able to “capture” her first swarm from a willing neighbor. Evidently you can put an empty hive near an existing one and sometimes a group will break off and take hold in the new hive. I would love to know how everything goes as you move forward, it will no doubt be a fulfilling experience. Bee keeping is good for the natural order, more people should do it.

My brewing; I make wines and meads, and recently acquired a setup for beer, although I haven’t employed it yet. I generally make fruit meads. Raw local (WY) honey always. I like to use local fruits and berries that I can harvest myself sometimes, but not always. Part of the fun is trying different or exotic fruit combinations. I always go pretty heavy on the honey. To taste the sweetness of the honey you really need to have more than 10 lbs. per 5 gallon batch. I generally use 13-15 lbs. As far as yeast goes, it is just something to toy with to see what you like, or how long you want your fermentation to last. Generally speaking, more sugar (honey) lends to a longer fermentation. More sugar=more time, stronger yeasts (champagne yeast, for example) can cut that time down. A good, middle of the road yeast will almost never do you wrong, though. I generally use Red Star brand yeasts, but have heard good things about Lavlin as well. I use 5 gallon glass carboys to ferment, and rack my product into used wine bottles with fresh corks. Age your mead for at least six months in bottles before enjoying. Also, always use distilled water and a good brewing sanitizer (Star San is a good brand).
My most recent mead was a cranberry-pear-ginger “Christmas” mead that turned out yummy. The last year or so I’ve just been making wine. I just stowed away my last bottle of chokecherry wine that I would have to say was the best drink I’ve ever produced. Simple and delicious. This summer I plan on making a wild mountain berry “medley” which will most likely be a chokecherry-thimbleberry-gooseberry combo.
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Sounds fantastic!

I may put the bees in my small back yard but most likely we will put the hive on someone else property who wants bees. There is a local bee keeping shop "Bee Kind" in Sebastopol and they have a long list of people who want bee keepers to put hives on their property. What Ms. Further and I would prefer is to find a biodynamic vineyard who wants bees and partner with them since we are both fascinated with biodynamic farming. But that may be difficult because most biodynamic vineyards around here produce $100+ bottles and they might not want to risk their business on a hive they can't monitor and know pest free.

I love making wine but I'd like to try mead at some point. I'd like to do a forced carbonation sparkler with a decent bit of sweet and perhaps a floral component like jasmine. I would also love to make a botanical mead but I want to use wormwood as one of the ingredients which would obviously be illegal to sell but nobody would care for our own small private batch. I don't think wormwood grows around me in CA but I know there is plenty in Oregon and Washington if you know where to look.

I was surprised how much I enjoyed the hops mead today. That could be an interesting direction to go too. But as much as i want to make mead, I have too much on my plate at the moment so it will likely wait a year and we will make our first batch with our own honey if the hive is rich enough. But I don't know if I'm willing to be the guinea pig on a wormwood batch.
 
Last edited:
Further said:
visiting Ann Harbor MI today, went to Blom, a meadery/cidery and had an excellent time. They had a gin herbal mead, a hops mead and a bourbon barrel aged mead that were all pretty fantastic. And I’m not usually a mead lover.

While contemplate guillotining your foes, what do you drink?
Click to expand...

The King's Mead, baby!

The King's Cyser is another good one. It is made with apples and honey.
 
jonnyboy said:
Ah dude that’s awesome! I have wanted bees for a long time, I plan on having at least a small hive someday when I have the room. The gal who cuts my hair keeps bees and said she was able to “capture” her first swarm from a willing neighbor. Evidently you can put an empty hive near an existing one and sometimes a group will break off and take hold in the new hive. I would love to know how everything goes as you move forward, it will no doubt be a fulfilling experience. Bee keeping is good for the natural order, more people should do it.

My brewing; I make wines and meads, and recently acquired a setup for beer, although I haven’t employed it yet. I generally make fruit meads. Raw local (WY) honey always. I like to use local fruits and berries that I can harvest myself sometimes, but not always. Part of the fun is trying different or exotic fruit combinations. I always go pretty heavy on the honey. To taste the sweetness of the honey you really need to have more than 10 lbs. per 5 gallon batch. I generally use 13-15 lbs. As far as yeast goes, it is just something to toy with to see what you like, or how long you want your fermentation to last. Generally speaking, more sugar (honey) lends to a longer fermentation. More sugar=more time, stronger yeasts (champagne yeast, for example) can cut that time down. A good, middle of the road yeast will almost never do you wrong, though. I generally use Red Star brand yeasts, but have heard good things about Lavlin as well. I use 5 gallon glass carboys to ferment, and rack my product into used wine bottles with fresh corks. Age your mead for at least six months in bottles before enjoying. Also, always use distilled water and a good brewing sanitizer (Star San is a good brand).
My most recent mead was a cranberry-pear-ginger “Christmas” mead that turned out yummy. The last year or so I’ve just been making wine. I just stowed away my last bottle of chokecherry wine that I would have to say was the best drink I’ve ever produced. Simple and delicious. This summer I plan on making a wild mountain berry “medley” which will most likely be a chokecherry-thimbleberry-gooseberry combo.
Click to expand...
When I was a teenager, about 14, my cousin made a wine out of plums. Man, that was good. I never took more than a sip and it lasted me a long time. That was so long ago that I don't really know how long it lasted but it must have been for more than a couple months. I'd give anything to have another bottle of that great wine.
A friend of a close friend of mine once brewed some dark beer. We all sat around and drank a bottle each. The best dark beer I've ever had including Guinness Stout.
 
Further said:
That might be something to drink while watching a game, but you need something more substantial when mulling over plans to vanquish your enemies.
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On the contrary, if I drink anything stronger that Coors Light, I end up forgiving my enemies and telling them I love them. Thoughts of vanquishing anything but a Taco Bell drive-thru go out the window.
 
BlazerWookee said:
On the contrary, if I drink anything stronger that Coors Light, I end up forgiving my enemies and telling them I love them. Thoughts of vanquishing anything but a Taco Bell drive-thru go out the window.
Click to expand...
You reasoning is sharp, may your sword be equally so.
 
Negronis or Gin and Tonics in the summer
Macallan, Jack or Makers any other time.

I'll also do an extra dry martini with a twist if I want to kick off my night the right way, usually Bombay Sapphire.
 
BlazerWookee said:
On the contrary, if I drink anything stronger that Coors Light, I end up forgiving my enemies and telling them I love them. Thoughts of vanquishing anything but a Taco Bell drive-thru go out the window.
Click to expand...
It's like I have a twin.
 
EL PRESIDENTE said:
Negronis or Gin and Tonics in the summer
Macallan, Jack or Makers any other time.

I'll also do an extra dry martini with a twist if I want to kick off my night the right way, usually Bombay Sapphire.
Click to expand...
Do you know why the gin and tonic was invented?

Answer - When the British took over building the Panama Canal from the French, they needed a way to get their workers to take their malaria medication, quinine. They figured if they could mix it with some sort of alcohol the British workers would consume it. The wedge of lime came from local lime trees and a drink was born.

Of course, even the British couldn't finish the job and Teddy Roosevelt volunteered the Americans who were finally able to complete the task.
 
Lanny said:
Do you know why the gin and tonic was invented?

Answer - When the British took over building the Panama Canal from the French, they needed a way to get their workers to take their malaria medication, quinine. They figured if they could mix it with some sort of alcohol the British workers would consume it. The wedge of lime came from local lime trees and a drink was born.

Of course, even the British couldn't finish the job and Teddy Roosevelt volunteered the Americans who were finally able to complete the task.
Click to expand...

I used to hate Gin, chalk it up to Freshman year in college when Gin and Juice was all the rage and we just overdid it.
 
EL PRESIDENTE said:
I used to hate Gin, chalk it up to Freshman year in college when Gin and Juice was all the rage and we just overdid it.
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When I entered college we drank vodka. Why? No idea. Oh, of course, beer flooded the place.
 
Lanny said:
When I entered college we drank vodka. Why? No idea. Oh, of course, beer flooded the place.
Click to expand...

We drank everything with a ghetto lean towards everything.

Alize, Hynotiq, Jose Cuervo Mistical, Mickeys, Boones, Mad Dog 20/20.
 
EL PRESIDENTE said:
We drank everything with a ghetto lean towards everything.

Alize, Hynotiq, Jose Cuervo Mistical, Mickeys, Boones, Mad Dog 20/20.
Click to expand...
I'm kind of an amateur wine connoisseur. At one time I had nearly 100 bottles of fine wine. I'm now down to less than 50. Chalk that up to old age.

So, one time I had this fabulous bottle of German Riesling I was going to serve at our Thanksgiving dinner. My brother-in-law, his wife, my mother-in-law and my wife and I were going to have dinner together. My brother-in-law wanted to invite a friend to dinner at our house. He brought his own bottle of MD2020 in a brown paper bag. I'd never heard of it before so I put away our pricey bottle of Riesling and served his. OMG, I nearly choked. That's the last time I'll ever let a stranger select a wine to pair with our dinner. I was so angry with my brother-in-law that my wife had to restrain me.
 
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