Alright, let me tell you about this little experiment I ran not too long ago. Got it in my head that maybe swapping out the usual priming sugar or even some of the fermentables for honey in a beer recipe would be interesting. You know, make something different.
Getting Started
So, first thing, I went out and grabbed my usual basic homebrew kit ingredients. Nothing fancy, just some light malt extract, some mild hops – Cascade, I think. And yeast, of course. The main change this time was the honey. Didn’t go for the cheap supermarket stuff. Found a local place selling this darker, richer honey, buckwheat maybe? Cost a bit more, but I figured, go big or go home, right?
The Brew Day Mess
Brew day came around. Standard procedure mostly. Got the water heated, stirred in that sticky malt extract. Let it come to a boil. Threw in the hops at the usual times. The tricky part was the honey. Decided to add it late in the boil. Man, that stuff is thick. Took ages to pour it all out and get it dissolved properly. The whole kitchen smelled intensely of honey, overpowering the usual beer brewing smells. It was… weird. Cooled the wort down, transferred it to my fermenter bucket, pitched the yeast. Slapped the lid and airlock on and hoped for the best.
Waiting and Wondering
Fermentation kicked off pretty strong. The airlock was bubbling away like mad for the first few days. Smelled different coming out of the airlock too, less beery, more… honey-ish? Sweet, almost. Then it slowed down, like usual. Let it sit for about two weeks, maybe a bit longer. I kept checking on it, wondering what was happening in that bucket.
Bottling Stickiness
Bottling was next. Decided to prime with a bit more honey, dissolved in water. Big mistake. Everything got so sticky. Siphoning was okay, but filling the bottles and handling the honey priming solution? Absolute mess. Hands, bottles, counter top – sticky everywhere. Got them capped eventually, then tucked them away in a dark corner to carbonate for another couple of weeks.
The Moment of Truth
Finally, tasting day. Chilled a bottle down real good. Popped the cap… decent hiss, so it carbonated alright. Poured it into a glass. Looked okay, maybe a bit darker than I expected, nice head on it. Then I took a sniff. Huh. Still that strong honey smell, overriding almost everything else. Almost like a mead, but thinner. Took a sip.
Well, it wasn’t awful. But it wasn’t great either. It tasted… confused. Like it didn’t know if it wanted to be beer or mead. The honey flavor was really strong, almost cloying, covering up the malt and hops I’d used. It wasn’t balanced at all. Had a weird aftertaste too.
Final Thoughts
Drank that first bottle. Shared a couple with friends who were brave enough. Most agreed it was… interesting. Not something you’d want a lot of. The rest of the batch? It sat around for a while. Ended up pouring most of it down the drain, honestly.
Learned my lesson, I guess. Honey is powerful stuff in brewing. Need to use a much lighter touch, maybe a different type of honey, or just stick to using it for priming in small amounts if at all. Using that much, especially that dark buckwheat honey, just dominated everything. Won’t be rushing to try that exact recipe again, that’s for sure. It was an experience, just not the tasty one I’d hoped for.
