Vto Sweet Little 16 Randy Goals After The Game
Aureliana Amys
Racking mead is carried out much the same way as racking beer, especially if you are brewing in buckets. As always, everything should be absolutely clean and sanitized. This includes a carboy (I prefer glass for mead because of low DO permeability, and use a padded and bag lined crate as a safely measure), a racking cane or auto-siphon, and any hoses. A spray bottle of StarSan or SaniClean is handy for this process.
It is also important to remember that the outside of your fermenter (or at least mine) gathers some dust and possibly some drops of must or honey along the way. Remove the lid carefully. I use a plastic lid opener which makes short work of a tight fit. I immediately move the lid away to clean and sanitize, along with my hands. If I need to walk away for any extended period of time, I will put the lid loosely over the mead.
Let the mead settle in the fermenter after any bumps or movement. The goal is to leave behind as much of the lees as possible. I like to move my fermenter into place the evening before, remove the lid, and replace it after cleaning.
Your mead should be finished or at the sweetness level that you prefer. Racking can be used as a strategy to stop fermentation early, and is particularly effective when used with sulfites and sorbates. I prefer to let the mead finish completely, usually off-dry, and back sweeten with a sweet mead. Raw honey can be used, but lends a raw flavor that many mead judges find to be a flaw.
As the fermenter empties, gently tip the fermenter to ensure the end of the siphon remains covered. When you start to see cloudy transfers, stop the flow. With silicon hose, I can easily pinch off the flow, release the siphon and minimize any lees/cloudy mead coming through.
Only you can determine when your mead is ready to package. There are rare circumstances when cloudy or turbid meads are acceptable, so clarity is the first clue. The second is taste. Hot alcohols, yeasty flavors, or lack of integrated flavors (especially with fruit or spiced meads) need additional age and mellowing. The lack of sedimentation over a period of time is also an indication.
Big meads, with OG over 1.100, will generally take a lot longer. I have begun experimenting using ale yeasts, which seem to finish and mature a bit faster than most wine yeasts, but seem less predictable (no experience here yet).
Consider bulk aging your mead. Like wine, most meads benefit from a long cool aging period. The issue is using a vessel that prevents oxidation. I know people that leave their mead in glass or PET carboys for years. I prefer stainless, and a corny keg is a great vessel.
Mead is often adjusted or blended like wine before packaging. This process is, in my opinion, where the skill of the mead maker shines. The proper utilization of acids, tannins, or blending stock can turn a good mead into a stellar drink. Since honey varieties are the shining star of traditional meads, your strategy should be to make that honey character pleasing, with a good mouthfeel, and a long finish. Your vectors to manage are sweetness (honey character), acidity (brightens and extends finish), and tannins (affect mouthfeel and finish). Of course, spices or fruit additions, or blending stock can also be leveraged to emphasize desired characteristics.
Back sweetening can be used to increase sweetness or honey character, however, as mentioned, use raw honey carefully. You can also use table sugar (simple syrup) or even corn syrups, but always make sure your mead is stable or risk fermentation restarting. Keep in mind that some syrups will also affect mouthfeel and viscosity. Please do not sweeten your mead to a cloying, tooth ache level.
Honey character is immensely important, and often overlooked in fruit or spice meads. As a mead judge, we expect a quality honey character (not necessarily sweetness) that emphasizes the varietal. With wildflower, this can vary immensely, so pick a characteristic and try to bring it out in a pleasing way. I make a ton of mead with honey from Northern Central Kansas that is nearly 100% alfalfa. The raw honey has an intense cinnamon aroma and flavor, but fermented out, the flavors and aromas become somewhat musty and a touch sour.
The addition of tannins helps to add some body, as well as a slight cleaning astringency. The addition of tartaric acid elevates the aromatics, lengthens the palate and lingering acidity. Because traditionals have so much in common with white wines, esters of pear, apple, peach, or even grape, can be welcome if complimentary. The choice of 71B-1122 in this recipe helps to bring some of those esters to the table, where a Champagne yeast might bring a cleaner finish and fewer esters. How you finish your mead is entirely up to you!
After filtering, back flush the filter and housing with clean water and finish with StarSan. If the filter is really messy, you can boil it with a little StarSan to remove the built up detritus and yeast. I will gently brush with a clean toothbrush, then vacuum seal the sanitized filter and store it cold. I can get 12-15 uses out of a PES cartridge.
Jennifer Symoun
My name is Jennifer Symoun and I will moderate today's seminar. Today's topic is Best Practices for Moving Freight Through Urban Areas. Please be advised that today's seminar is being recorded.
Randy Butler joined Federal Highway Administration in November of 2003 as a Transportation Specialist on the Operation and Technology Team. Prior to joining FHWA, Randy completed a thirty-five year career in the private sector in managing freight transportation operations, engineering, customer service, business process reengineering, information systems and project management. Randy's education includes a Bachelor of Science in Engineering Technology from University of Memphis, Masters of Business Administration and Masters of Science Management Information Systems from Bellevue University , and a Masters of Arts in Transportation Policy, Operations, and Logistics from George Mason University. Randy also holds a Project Management Professional Certification from the Project Management Institute.
Ron Schaefer is a Senior Transportation Analyst in the Logistics and Engineering Business Unit at Science Applications International Corporation (SAIC). He is the Program Manager for the FHWA Cross-Town Improvement Project (C-TIP). Mr. Schaefer was the chief architect of the Freight Information Highway Architecture based on a Service-Oriented Architecture (SOA) using Web Services and has since been the lead engineer of all FHWA technology projects that involved using the FIH architecture including the current Cross-Town Improvement Project (C-TIP). Prior to joining SAIC last year Ron worked twenty-seven years at Union Pacific Corporation. Ron has worked with various public and private stakeholders working groups such as IFTWG, IANA, NITL, and other government agencies including FHWA, FRA, TSA, DHS, Department of Justice [DOJ], Maritime Administration [MARAD], Coast Guard, Customs and Border Protection (CBP), port authorities, and various local and State governments.
Paul Belella has 24 years of professional experience in project management, business process reengineering, systems development, special studies, and technical and operational testing and evaluation. His experience spans the areas of intermodal and truck-borne freight transportation, to include specific expertise with vehicle and administrative technology systems, freight efficiency and operations analysis, freight security technology, freight planning, decision support systems, and web-based communications and transaction media. Mr. Belella currently manages Delcan's Freight, Trade, and International Borders Practice, and is providing project management, and technical support in three major program areas: the development and application of advanced vehicle and back-office technology to enhance commercial freight security and efficiency, freight transportation planning and analysis, and the assessment and reengineering of operations to leverage advancements in information technology.
I'd now like to go over a few logistical details prior to starting the seminar. Today's seminar will last 90 minutes, with 60 minutes allocated for the speakers, and the final 30 minutes for audience Question and Answer. If during the presentations you think of a question, you can type it into the chat area. Please make sure you send your question to "Everyone" and indicate which presenter your question is for. Presenters will be unable to answer your questions during their presentations, but I will start off the question and answer session with the questions typed into the chat box. Once we get through all of the questions that have been typed in, the Operator will give you instructions on how to ask a question over the phone. If you think of a question after the seminar, you can send it to the presenters directly, or I encourage you to use the Freight Planning LISTSERV. If you have not already joined the LISTSERV, the web address at which you can register is provided on the slide on your screen.
Finally, I would like to remind you that this session is being recorded. A file containing the audio and the visual portion of this seminar will be posted to the Talking Freight Web site within the next week. We encourage you to direct others in your office that may have not been able to attend this seminar to access the recorded seminar.
The PowerPoint presentations used during the seminar are available for download from the file download box in the lower right corner of your screen. The presentations will also be available online within the next week. I will notify all attendees of the availability of the PowerPoints, the recording, and a transcript of this seminar.
One final note: Talking Freight seminars are now eligible for 1.5 certification maintenance credits for AICP members. In order to obtain credit for today's seminar, you must have logged in with your first and last name or if you are attending with a group of people you must type your first and last name into the chat box. To obtain your credits, visit the AICP Certification Maintenance web site after the seminar, login using your ID# and password, select My CM log, and select add credits. I have included more detailed instructions in the file share box on how to obtain your credits after the seminar. Please also download the evaluation form from the file share box and submit this form to me after you have filled it out.
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