Dresden Blues

Today I’m giving you one of my recipes. Not just any recipe, but one of my (our) favorites. In 2008 this recipe took the Judges Award at the Common Ground Fair in Unity. In any given year we tend to buy anywhere from 100-150 lbs. of Maine blueberries from Wilkinson’s Blueberry farm here in Dresden. Makes it very convenient for mead making; they live on top of Blinn Hill and we are over on Gryffon Ridge. Most of these blue jewels go into making mead and beer but a few are saved for the occasional pie and pancake breakfast.

Dresden Blues Blueberry Mead

27 lbs. Maine Blueberries

22 lbs. Maine Honey

Pectic Enzyme (Optional) 1/10 Tsp. per lb. of Fruit

1 oz. Fresh Ginger ~ Peeled and Sliced

1/2 oz. Cassia Cinnamon Stick

Water to make 6 Gallons

2 Packages Cotes de Blanc Yeast

6 Gallon Carboy - With airlock

Freeze your berries; preferably a few days in advance. Then thaw the berries, and run them through a food mill, or juicer. Place your crushed berries and juice into your carboy. If you’re using glass…good luck. If you have one, place them in a nylon mesh brewing bag. (This will make it much easier to remove the seeds at racking time.)

I’ve never used camphor tablets to kill the inherent yeast that can be found on almost all fruit. The way I see it, it’s there for a reason and the yeast that I add is in such a large quantity by comparison that it will probably dominate. (Or maybe create some Uber-Yeast.)

In a large pot heat approximately 1/2 gallon of water to a temperature sufficient to dissolve honey. I never boil my water or honey. Add honey to the pot and stir to dissolve. Repeat as necessary until all the honey is dissolved. Pour the honey water into the carboy with blueberries. Add cold water to reach 6 gallons total. Add your pectic enzyme if you are using it. When your mixture is about 70 degrees F. rehydrate your yeast in 1/2 cup of lukewarm water. Take a hydrometer reading of your must and record it, adjusting for temperature. Add the ginger slices and the cinnamon.  Add the yeast to the carboy, stir vigorously, seal, and add an airlock. Place in a shaded area that will remain between 65 – 75 degrees F. Fermentation should begin within 24 hours.

Every other day open the carboy and “punch” down the fruit cap that will form. Failure to do this may result in a blocked airlock which may then lead to a Blueberry Krakatoa wherever you have placed your carboy. (I speak from experience with making Strawberry Beer.) Fermentation may last for several weeks. Once fermentation has ceased you must “rack” the liquid goodness off the blueberry and yeast corpses and into a clean carboy (preferably glass at this point) using a siphon. Try not to disturb the sediment at the bottom of the carboy. Take another hydrometer reading. Follow the formula for determining ABV in last month's post. Sample your mead.

Cap and add airlock, and place in a safe cool place away from light. Cellars are good choices. Forget about it. Every couple of months check the airlock and top off if necessary. As you approach the one year mark, sample your mead. Most meads only improve with age.

Notes: I use a Staggered Nutrient Addition with many of my Meads. This means that I use a Blend of 66% Yeast Nutrient to 33% Yeast Energizer at various times throughout the fermentation process. General guidelines for a 6 gallon batch are:

3/4 tsp of the Blend just before pitching yeast

3/4 tsp of the Blend 24 hours after fermentation started

3/4 tsp of the Blend 48 hours after fermentation started

3/4 tsp of the Blend after about 30% of the total expected sugars have been consumed by the yeast (Use your ABV formula).

You can find endless discussions regarding Nutrient Additions on the internets.  Feel free to contact me with any questions.

Rick