10-8-19 We're talking tonight with Adam Crockett, owner of Haymaker Meadery. Before starting Haymaker in 2015, Adam worked in the barrel industry for 4 years selling barrels to breweries, wineries, and meaderies all over the US and Canada.

He has worked with large breweries like Allagash and Jolly Pumpkin and small local breweries in every corner. He has worked directly with distilleries and wineries to provide the best barrels available. He has helped many breweries build up their barrel program and has helped a number of breweries win GABF medals because of his barrel knowledge.
He hopes to share his knowledge that he has collected and help meaderies and meadmakers take the step into barrel aging meads. Haymaker does a number of barrel aged meads.

In this talk we will cover barrel aging mead, he will talk about barrels, oak alternatives, preparing barrels for homebrewers and what to expect from certain barrels.

Adam has also been working with 'Pét Nat' meadmaking. 'Pét Nat' is short for Pétillant Naturel. Pét-Nat is produced in the méthode ancestral, otherwise known as “rurale,” “artisanale,” or “gaillacoise.” Long story short, the wine is bottled prior to fully completing its first fermentation, allowing carbon dioxide to be produced by the natural sugars found in the grapes. The méthode ancestrale was originally used in Limoux in the south of France in the early 16th century by winemaking monks. This production method is contrary to the méthode champenoise, the way in which Champagne is produced, where the base wine is fully fermented, then undergoes a secondary fermentation in bottle with the addition of yeast and sugar (otherwise known as liqueur de tirage.) Unlike Champagne, Pét-Nat is not disgorged, and may or may not be filtered on  completion of fermentation.

Adam will be telling us about his efforts with Pét Nat, and how it's working for mead.


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If you want to ask your mead making questions, you can call us at 803-443-MEAD (6323) or send us a question via email, or via Twitter @GotmeadNow and we'll tackle it online! 9PM EDT/6PM PDT Join us on live chat during the show Bring your questions and your mead, and let's talk mead! You can call us at 803-443-MEAD (6323), or Skype us at meadwench (please friend me first and say you're a listener, I get tons of Skype spam), or tweet to @gotmeadnow.



Show links and notes

Scott Labs 2019 Yeast Book
Scott Labs searchable yeast selection
Sure lie and Bâtonnage (lees contact and stirring)
Sur Lie additive
SO2 Management
SO2 Management Protocols
Acuvin Quick SO2 test
Evoak - Oak Solutions
Black Swan Barrels (exotic woods)
Ethiopian Spice Market (for gesho)
Let There Be Melomels by Rob Ratliff
The Big Book of Mead Recipes by Rob Ratliff
Are You Afraid of the Rum: And Other Cocktails for 90's Kids by Sam Slaughter

Upcoming Events

Oct 11 - Rushford Meadery and Winery - Card Making Technique Class
Oct 12-13 - Stonekeep Meadery - Artisan Wine and Cheese pairing weekends
Oct 12 - Black Heath Meadery - National Farmers Day - DJ, guest beer taps and mead!
Oct 12 - Etowah Meadery - Etowah Turns 2!
Oct 12 - Honey Pot Meadery - Batch 2 of Bruiseberry releases
Oct 16 - Threadbare Cider and Mead - Fall Owl Cafe to benefit Human Animal Rescue
Oct 16 - Superstition Meadery - 5 Course Mead dinner at Lovecraft - New Mexican feast
Oct 18 - Woodstone Creek Winery and Distillery - Friday Night Flight - Wine, Mead and Spirits
Oct 18 - Toledo Cider Fest - Crafted Artisan Meadery and Four Fires Meadery will be there
Oct 19-20 Bearded Bee Meadery - releasing their first mead at t...