Honey

[e-brewer]

Hi All
I am about to start a vina trad stout kit .I was looking in the cupboard and noticed a kilo of honey been sat there for more than a couple of years can i use this in with this stout? will it be dreadful..or should i stick with the spraymalt plan?
thanks all

[e-brewer]

Hi All

The vina stout kit is now in the fv with 1kg of honey and approx 3/4 kg of brown castor sugar (contents of the baking cupboard) i will keep the spraymalt for the other identical stout kit.

any comments

e-brewer
fife

[PMH0810]

I have no idea where the honey will take your brew but I'd be really interested in hearing the result.

I love honey and would like to add some to future rews myself (have already had real success with honey based turbo cider)

[e-brewer]

Hi All

I dont know if its the honey but the yeast seems to be very slow with this one usually the fv has a lovely foammy head on it by the following day .It is definately fermenting but more like a wine kit if you know what i mean. The bucket lid has that gas buldge on it and you can see the gas activity on the surface but no head just the odd bit of pitiful foam on the surface.

should i be worried.

e-brewer

[Curious Brew]

Honey is an antiseptic and germicide so it might be inhibiting the yeast a little.

[Stoutman]

I've seen a couple of recipes using honey in books and online, and they tend to suggest to put the honey in after fermentation has begun; less being the primary fermentable sugar, and more being a flavour additive.

I'm really interested to find out how this one comes out though!

[maxashton]

I wouldn't suggest using a kilo of honey as your additional fermentables. Use it for bottling, happily, or as an adjunct, but not as bulk fermentables.

Curious: the antiseptic effect is only true when it's at the sort of concentrations you get with actual honey. As soon as you dilute it it's gone. I make (bad) mead too.

[e-brewer]

Hi All
Honey update....

Well the honey is definately fermenting but as per the previous post more like a wine kit with almost no froth on top.I started this kit at 3.30pm sunday and its never went wild .
I purchased several kits at the same time and on monday i decided to put another one on to ferment at the same time using the same method but without the honey.This Porter kit has a healthy head on it.

the lack of head/frothy stuff on top may well be the honey?

cheers

e-brewer

fife

[maxashton]

You should still get a kreusen, but it may well be the honey i suppose.

You're not making beer, with that sort of volume of honey, you're making Braggot.

[e-brewer]

Hi All

Update for those who may be interested..the stout with honey has fermented out took a bit longer than usual..I transferred it last night to my beersphere with 100g of sugar but before doing so i filled half a glass with a quality sample..

The result was unusual you can definately taste the honey in the beer the stout seems to be overpowered with no stout like taste left but not unpleasant judging by this sample it seems like a beer for the odd pint rather than having a wee session with but time will tell..This may have been a good one to bottle and store longish term.

cheers

e-brewer

[maxashton]

Braggot, like other meads, take a long time to reach their best. Leave it in the keg for a month or two and see how it tastes then. You might be pleasantly surprised.

[BlackBag]

I just love tootling around here I really do. Braggot?!? Soon as I read that I did a little search and found this
http://www.celtnet.org.uk/recipes/brewi ... d=ale-mead
Cheers maxashton, something else I've learned. Braggot. Definitely my word of the day!