Strawberry-Peach Mead Update: Fruit Removal

Today we removed the fruit from the brew (currently referred to as a “must” until fermentation completes), and the racked it into a 1 gallon (US) glass carboy fermenter. Now we are just waiting for the end of fermentation to re-rack into a new container.

We did take another specific gravity reading to see how well the yeast is converting sugar into alcohol.

If you remember our starting gravity was between 1.084-1.090, and now we have a second in-progress reading which came out at 1.040.

There is a mathematical formula that can be done to determine the ABV of the brew, which is:

Original gravity - Final gravity = A

A x 131.25 = ~ABV%

So we will take the first reading of 1.090 and subtract the new reading of 1.040 to get A which is 0.050, then multiply that by 131.25.

0.050 x 131.25

Which comes out to 6.5625, which means the ABV of our brew at the time of reading is 6.56%

I do fully expect this to go dry (all sugar gets fermented) which happens at specific gravity 1.000, which means we have an estimated ABV of 11.81% at the end. This actual result will be a bit higher because we are going to add more honey and fruit after primary fermentation completes, and expect it to end around 13% ABV.

We did a taste test while racking the must, and it definitely has nice peach and strawberry flavors and a strong honey flavor which will diminish a bit as fermentation continues. All in all this is shaping up to come out as a crisp and refreshing fruity mead, perfect to drink during the hot summer evenings that are just around the corner. We also got a couple pictures for your viewing pleasure on what the brew looks like in the fermenting container and in a glass (the colors in the glass were not coming through on the camera, but it definitely has a much more pronounced peach hue to it). The mead will clarify once fermentation is completed and it sits for a few weeks, and we are hoping it will be as clear as any commercially available wine or mead.

Anywho, that is our update on the Strawberry-Peach mead, and the next one will probably be within the next week or two depending on how quickly fermentation ends.

Stay safe and remember to love one another!

~ The Forge Meadery