Strawberry addition to mead

[merhlyn]

Hi Everyone,

I am currently making up a 5 gallon batch of mead (sweet). My wife is now asking if we can add Strawberries to this. I started the mix on 10/17/2014 with the following:

20 lbs. White Clover Honey
water to 5.5 gallons (Did a .5 gallon starter for the yeasties)
Staggered yeast nutrients (fermid-k)

My mix is in a 5 gallons fermenter and looks like the fermentation activity is slowing down a lot. Getting may 1 - 2 bubbles a minute through the airlock. I would like to ask for some advice on adding the strawberries. I can move to a larger bucket then add the strawberries and re add the yeast via a small starter to start the fermenting again, or just move to secondary over the strawberries or a combination.

Would like to here your all thoughts on this matter as well as the number of strawberries. Planning on getting the organic ones at Costco.

Thanks all.

 

[estricklin]

Your primary isn't big enough to add the strawberries? That's the problem??

 

[merhlyn]

Your primary isn't big enough to add the strawberries? That's the problem??

That I know. Was planning on moving to a wine pail as needed. Thought was do it now while still fermenting or what until I normally would move to a secondary. Or move know then add more/new at secondary.
Would still like to here comments on that as well as amounts.

Michael

 

[bernardsmith]

This may not be very helpful. I have really no experience with strawberries (I am currently making a very small batch of strawberry wine) but I think that strawberries in small quantities provide very little flavor. Strawberry is not a fruit that raises its voice. That said, you may need about 10 lbs of strawberries to produce 1 gallon of juice. If you were making a cyser I would suggest that for every gallon of apple juice you used 2 lbs of honey... I suspect that the same formula works for strawberries..