# 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.