Summer Peach Melomel
Ripe peaches and orange blossom honey. Soft, round, and best brewed at the height of peach season.
Summer Peach Melomel is a semi-sweet melomel made with orange blossom honey and Lalvin 71B yeast, fermented from an original gravity of 1.095 to 1.012 for about 10.9% ABV. It is drinkable in 4–8 months.
- Original gravity
- 1.095
- Final gravity
- 1.012
- ABV
- 10.9%
- Drinkable in
- 4–8 months
Ingredients
Amounts are for a 1-gallon batch.
| 2.5 lb | Orange blossom honey |
| 3 lb | Ripe peachesPitted and chopped, skins on. Frozen and thawed. |
| to volume | WaterTo 1 gallon total, not counting fruit. |
| 2.5 g | Lalvin 71B yeast |
| 3 g | Fermaid-OStaggered over four additions. |
| 1 tsp | Pectic enzymePeaches are very high in pectin. |
Method
Prepare the fruitThaw the chopped peaches into a mesh bag and add the pectic enzyme.
Mix and measureAdd the dissolved honey, top up, and read gravity after an hour.
Pitch and feedPitch at 64–68 °F. Add nutrients at 24, 48, and 72 hours and at the 1/3 sugar break, degassing gently each time.
Pull the fruitRemove the bag after 5–7 days.
AgeRack, clear, and add a second pound of peaches in secondary if the flavor has faded.
Brewer's note. Peach flavor is delicate and fades in primary. A secondary fruit addition makes the biggest difference.
Recipe by White Shed Meadery, Chehalis, Washington. ABV is estimated from gravity: (OG − FG) × 131.25. Scale every ingredient in proportion for larger batches.