Blueberry Jam Mead

[FlourPower]

3x 384ml Hartley's Best Blueberry Jam
3x 384ml Tesco Value Honey - Cheap stuff, as wont taste in melomel.
1tsp Yeast Nutrients
2tsp Pectinase
1 tsp Vitamin C
1 tsp Youngs all purpose yeast

Made up to 1 gallon

Made this up in Feb. A vigourous fermentation even in the cold.

My main problem was the bulk of the jam. I couldn't get a hydrometer reading from it. Even when it came to syphoning off the lees it thick at the bottom as if maybe some more pectinase or more time with the pectinase could be used. This got many kicks to move the sludge from the bottom and the yeast was happy for a month. Good Times!

Tried it on Friday. It was sweet and fruity with a strong alcohol background. Lovely!

Will degas and bottle in a fortnight. Then age for 6 months. Mmm!

Might try Gooseberry and Damson next if anyone has any suggestions for dealing with the jammy bottom. (sounds rude!)

[CyberPaddy66]

Boil it in all of the water to make a syrup out of the jam when you add the honey, you need to add water to the mead anyway so it's not a problem if you let it cool down before you add it to the demijohn

[FlourPower]

Curious! I did heat the jam through in the first place but will give it a try.

[robharper]

That sounds like a nice brew -- looking forward to hearing how it is after some maturing.

Getting an OG from something like that (where you want to ferment on the fruit) seems to be a tricky one to deal with, though I can't help but think someone must have come up with some sort of solution. I have a melomel at the moment with a heap of mushed up apricots floating in it, which I didn't bother putting the hydrometer in.

I guess in the case of a jam, CyberPaddy's idea of making a syrup (most of the flavour has probably already come out of the fruit, so you could sieve them out without too much loss) sounds fair to me.

[Laripu]

Might try Gooseberry and Damson next if anyone has any suggestions for dealing with the jammy bottom. (sounds rude!)

I made a plum wine a couple or three years ago. The yeasty/fruity sludge was used by SWMBO, who added sugar & pectin, boiled and put up in jars. It was a very nice preserve. like a plum jam, but with yeast. (The yeast added a nice taste too, but I can't describe it. I guess it was jam with B vitamins.)

I would do that again. In fact I sort of did: I save the caraway seed from my caraway metheglin into a jar in the fridge, and SWMBO will add some to a bread she'll bake soon. She recently got a live yeast culture from a friend, and made a yeast cake, so I know more goodies are coming.

[FlourPower]

That sounds like a nice brew -- looking forward to hearing how it is after some maturing.

Getting an OG from something like that (where you want to ferment on the fruit) seems to be a tricky one to deal with, though I can't help but think someone must have come up with some sort of solution. I have a melomel at the moment with a heap of mushed up apricots floating in it, which I didn't bother putting the hydrometer in.

I guess in the case of a jam, CyberPaddy's idea of making a syrup (most of the flavour has probably already come out of the fruit, so you could sieve them out without too much loss) sounds fair to me.

British Jam should be labelled with how much sugar was added and how much sugar total in 100g. i.e. 55g of Sugar added per 100g. 65g sugar per 100g total. I don't know if that's something that should be used.

Hmm does anyone know the sugar content of Honey. I guess about 85%. So taking (3x65g) + (3x85g) fermentables dissolved in 1 uk gallon does anyone know the effect this has on gravity and therefore on percentage?



---

Yeasty Jam seemed a little wrong. I did think of it though.