Better brewing through science.
Note: This is a hybrid recipe for those who cannot obtain the nutrients needed for a true Bray’s One Month Mead (BOMM) or just want a faster JAOM.
Joe's Ancient Orange Mead (JAOM) is the mead most mazers start out with. Ingredients are at the grocery stock and it's fix and forget. The only downside is that it really needs 6+ months to be drinkable, but man is it good. In my typical fashion, I decided to make it in one month!
JOA BOMM: 5 Liter Batch
1. Allow Wyeast 1388 yeast packet to come to room temperature before popping the inner packet.
2. Start with 5 liters mineral water and remove 470 ml water; draw a line at this water level.
3. Remove another 1454 ml of water.
4. Add honey back to previous line (2.1 kg).
-Any honey is fine except for the Rowse honey (it’s fake honey). Local is always nice!
5. Add zest and fruit segments of one large organic Valencia orange (or 2 small), no pith. If you like pith bitterness, add 1/4 of the orange pith.
6. Add the following:
-40 grams of raisins
-80 grams of dried currants
-1 small clove
-2/3 cinnamon stick
-1/6 whole nutmeg and 2 dried allspice berries
-1 1/3 vanilla bean
7. Mix well until honey is dissolved.
8. Add a smack pack of Wyeast 1388 activated for 15 minutes.
9. Add the highly technical pin pricked balloon airlock for JAOM authenticity!
10. Ferment for 2-4 weeks. After it is finished, I put it in the refrigerator and drink straight out of the jug! If you wish, you can sanitize bottles and bottle it for storage.
Optional Addition: If you find the mead to be a bit sweet, you can add 40 grams of dried lingonberries for 2 week. The sour lingonberries balances the sweetness and is a nice addition to the perfumed aroma.
This mead may or may not be clear in a month, but is perfectly drinkable in a month. Age doesn't hurt it though!
Specs
SG: 1.140
FG: 1.020
15.7% ABV