Initial apple honey butter mead plan

2026-08-09 09:23:38 -04:00
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+# Apple Honey Butter Mead — 3 Gallon Batch Plan
+
+A Git-backed project plan for a future **3 gallon apple honey butter mead** fermented in a **6.5 gallon bucket**.
+
+> **Core idea:** build an apple-cyser style base with preservative-free apple cider/juice + honey, then create the dessert “apple honey butter” profile after fermentation with honey backsweetening, vanilla, cinnamon/warm spice, and tiny butter/butterscotch extract additions by bench trial.
+
+## Status
+
+```text
+Planning only — no reminder schedule has been created yet.
+```
+
+Start reminders only after Jason confirms the actual brew day/pitch time and measured original gravity.
+
+## Quick recipe summary
+
+| Field | Target |
+|---|---|
+| Batch size | 3 US gallons, fermented in 6.5 gal bucket |
+| Style | Sweet/semi-sweet apple dessert mead / cyser |
+| Base flavor | Apple cider/juice + honey |
+| Finish flavor | Honey butter, vanilla, warm apple spice, optional butterscotch/butter note |
+| Yeast | Lalvin 71B-1122 recommended |
+| Target OG | ~1.095–1.105 |
+| Expected ABV if fermented dry | ~12.5–13.5% |
+| Flavor timing | After fermentation, stabilization, and bench trials |
+
+## Start here
+
+1. Read [`shopping-list.md`](shopping-list.md).
+2. Read [`recipe.md`](recipe.md).
+3. Brew using [`process.md`](process.md) and [`day-1-brew-day.md`](day-1-brew-day.md).
+4. Track readings in [`logs/fermentation-log.md`](logs/fermentation-log.md).
+5. Use [`schedule-template.md`](schedule-template.md) only after brew day is known.
+6. Use [`bench-trial.md`](bench-trial.md) before any full-batch post-fermentation flavoring.
+
+## Critical rules
+
+- Use apple juice/cider with **no potassium sorbate, sodium benzoate, or other fermentation preservatives**.
+- Ascorbic acid / vitamin C is usually fine.
+- Use pectic enzyme because apple products can cause haze.
+- Do not add butter, dairy, cream, or oily ingredients.
+- Do not add extracts/spices during active fermentation unless intentionally changing the plan.
+- Stabilize before backsweetening/flavoring.
+- Bench trial before full-batch flavoring.
+- No bottling until gravity is stable after backsweetening/flavoring.