# Peeled garlic drowned in honey



## Vance G

Has anyone done this? My pint of cloves covered with honey is apparently fermenting! Never saw that coming! My honey is very low moisture and myst have drawn a lot of water out of the garlic. Anyone familiar with producing this? Thaanks.


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## beesohappy

Sorry I can't help ya but we often take honey and garlic frech to help wort off sickness.

Was that your plan?


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## jbraun

I was on a site last year that was about fermenting foods for storage( I make sauerkraut). One of the things I saw people talking about was honey and garlic. I didn't try it but I would guess it does ferment. That doesn't mean it's bad only fermented. After all isn't that how bees store pollen?


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## Tenbears

The honey provided the sugar, the garlic provided other nutrients for the yeast, Nitrogen and uric acid ect, wild yeast which is almost everywhere was able to develop. hence the fermentation, refrigeration would have aided as would adding 1/4 tsp Potassium Metabisulphite. Now, place it is a jug add 3.5 quarts of water, affix an airlock and you have garlic mead.


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## Vance G

I could make comments about warm beer, wet toilet paper and --- ----- and the lack of need for any on them! Never tried garlic mead and not on the schedule. Forty gallons of other kinds all ready on hand.


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## WBVC

Garlic mead?


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## Vance G

People make garlic mead yes indeed. a methaglin probably which is a spice mead would be what category it would fall in. My favorite mead I make is a bochetomel which is a fruit mead made with burned honey. A great way to use my melter honey.


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## Vance G

If I added 3.5 quarts of water it would be very thin garlic beer! I imagine garlic would be a bittering agent.


Tenbears said:


> The honey provided the sugar, the garlic provided other nutrients for the yeast, Nitrogen and uric acid ect, wild yeast which is almost everywhere was able to develop. hence the fermentation, refrigeration would have aided as would adding 1/4 tsp Potassium Metabisulphite. Now, place it is a jug add 3.5 quarts of water, affix an airlock and you have garlic mead.


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## Tenbears

Mead Is Mead regardless of the starting specific gravity. Maybe not good mead, but mead none the less. 
I too believe it would be considered a methaglin, however not all do. Just as many call melomels and pyments meads. Terms to differentiate styles are not internationally universal in fact I am not even sure they are regionally universal within a given country. as many simply call them meads, It use to bother me when someone said I made a blackberry mead, Because I was thinking they use blackberry Varietal honey, when in reality they had made blackberry melomel. I much favor varrietiel meads over melomels. Ever try Meadowfoam Mead? 
Believe it or not garlic does not transcend in a mead like cinnamon does, It comes out more a familiarity than a discernable flavor, and really does not bitter the mead. But this too could be subjective. Often people refer to the sourness of acidity as bitter. And you and I both know that is not accurate. 
I have found the few garlic meads I have tried to be interesting with good nose and body, however all had thin ropey legs though. 

Next to Bees Making Meads, (in the general term) is my most favoritest thing in life!:applause:


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## Vance G

Next to beekeeping, my next favorite thing is remembering where I put the tool I was just working with.


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## WBVC

For those of you who make mead are there any sites you would recommend to someone who is interested in trying but has never brewed anything?


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## Vance G

gotmead.com is excellent. Morewine.com is also good.


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## Tenbears

WBVC said:


> For those of you who make mead are there any sites you would recommend to someone who is interested in trying but has never brewed anything?


Actually right here at Bee Source In the Bounty of the hive category under Home Brewing (A highly underused category) Ben Brewcat as well as Vance and others can give you information, recipe's, and technical data to help you get started...


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## Peter McDowell

WARNING!!! Do not store garlic in oil (this also probably applies to honey)at room temperature. You could end up with botulism. 
See http://nchfp.uga.edu/publications/uc_davis/uc_davis_garlic.pdf
Peter M.


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## crofter

Vance G said:


> Has anyone done this? My pint of cloves covered with honey is apparently fermenting! Never saw that coming! My honey is very low moisture and myst have drawn a lot of water out of the garlic. Anyone familiar with producing this? Thaanks.


Probably a lactic acid fermentation like what happens with sauerkraut, not a yeast. Yes I have heard of the risk of botulism with oil curing garlic. I think the trick may be to salt the garlic first to set the conditions for the chosen fermentation organism to start and exclude the bad guys!

I have some not so fond memories of some weird kraut and head cheeze as well as some homemade wine dad called kickapoo juice: I do a decent job with bread but the others are not on my bucket list of things to do before I die!


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## Michael Bush

I'd guess it's yeast. The honey pulled moisture out of the garlic and that upped the moisture content enough that the sugar tolerant yeast could get going. Salt is usually the thing that stacks the deck for lactose bacillus.


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