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The Bees' Meads
United States
Приєднався 11 тра 2022
New to bee keeping. New to making mead. What could go wrong?
So Excited, Building a Chicken Coop from Scratch and Getting Chickens
We built a chicken coop from scratch and got chickens a rewarding and sustainable hobby to compliment our bees. We've had challenges in the past with predator protection, and decided to make a full enclosure for our cute little feathered friends.
#chickencoop #raisingchickens #backyardchickens
#chickencoop #raisingchickens #backyardchickens
Переглядів: 201
Відео
7 YEASTS vs MEAD | Meadery Showdown! Part 3
Переглядів 3421 день тому
Time for a meadery showdown with friends. 😆🍻 In today’s video we are revisiting our 7 yeast strains experiment for making mead and invited our friends to taste test with us. These meads have been brewing for about 3 months. Last time when we tasted everything and gave our first impressions, we were surprised at how each yeast strain interacted differently with the fruit sugars producing dramati...
7 YEASTS vs MEAD | First Impressions | Part 2
Переглядів 35Місяць тому
We are having our first tasting of the seven different yeasts we used in our melomel mead. This is a month after. Each yeast strain interacts differently with the fruit sugars, so we should experience unique characteristics for each batch. Some of our first impressions were exactly as expected; others, however, were a complete surprise. After racking we added 350 ml of juice to each to improve ...
7 YEASTS vs MEAD | Testing Different Yeasts to Make Mead | Part 1
Переглядів 22Місяць тому
In this video we endeavor to understand the role of yeast in mead making. We are experimenting with 7 different yeast strains. Each yeast strain is supposed to bring its unique characteristics to the fermentation process, influencing flavor, aroma, and overall quality. For the past couple years we used whatever yeast we had on hand, not varying a lot. This is a different approach to our previou...
Our 1st Spice Mead | Delicious Start | Part 3
Переглядів 1052 місяці тому
Quick video bottling our mead. It was a super late night for us but this mead is showing promise. Not as sweet as we would have liked. We will let it mature and see what happens in the future. For the recipe please refer to Part 1: ua-cam.com/video/COwZYmA3E9Q/v-deo.html #homebrew #honey #meadery #chamomile #vanilla
Our 1st Spice Mead | Surprising Results | Part 2
Переглядів 952 місяці тому
This is our first taste of our spice mead made with dried chamomile flower and a whole vanilla bean and we were delightfully surprised by the initial results. Well one of us was, the other was too sick to enjoy the flavors. :( For the recipe please refer to Part 1: ua-cam.com/video/COwZYmA3E9Q/v-deo.html #homebrew #honey #meadery #chamomile #vanilla
Our 1st Spice Mead | Vanilla Bean and Chamomile | Part 1
Переглядів 852 місяці тому
Today we are trying something different from a spice mead recipe we found online. The main ingredients are dried chamomile flowers and a whole vanilla bean. It's also our first time working with a champagne yeast. Lot's of new "firsts" for us. We are super excited to see how it all works out. Recipe reference: (www.pixiespocket.com/2015/03/vanilla-bean-chamomile-mead.html) Ingredients: 3 lbs (1...
Veikous Greenhouse Kit Review after 1st Winter
Переглядів 7683 місяці тому
We built a polycarbonate greenhouse kit that we bought from Home Depot. At that time we didn’t find many videos on our particular Veikous 6x10 model. We did find many videos on the Harbor Freight’s greenhouse kit which is very similar to ours. This is a first impressions review after our first winter with our new greenhouse. Initial build video link: studio.ua-cam.com/users/videoQZixQ1UNwng/edi...
What We Look for with Our First Spring Inspection
Переглядів 973 місяці тому
What We Look for with Our First Spring Inspection
Dealing with false spring, equipment not matching, getting stung and so much more "fun"
Переглядів 1 тис.4 місяці тому
Dealing with false spring, equipment not matching, getting stung and so much more "fun"
Building a Veikous Greenhouse (for our bee garden)
Переглядів 2,3 тис.8 місяців тому
Building a Veikous Greenhouse (for our bee garden)
Honey Harvest: Learning the hard way
Переглядів 4,8 тис.9 місяців тому
Honey Harvest: Learning the hard way
Crafting Traditional Mead From Harvested Honey
Переглядів 849 місяців тому
Crafting Traditional Mead From Harvested Honey
Caution: Formic Pro killed our queen
Переглядів 12610 місяців тому
Caution: Formic Pro killed our queen
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Good luck ❤❤❤
Freeze honey frames for long-term storage
If you're not going to extract right away you should freeze your frames. It will kill any bugs that may be on your frames.
Also, when freezing the frames, I put mine in kitchen trash bags, you can easily fit a couple frames in a bag.
Nice job on the coop....good carpentry.. pc
Thanks 👍
Im so sorry you experienced the curse of the dratted moth. Great little extractor though👍I'm not sure if you are aware of this, but if you want to delay your extraction, shove your honey frames into a freezer for 48 hrs. This will kill any greater or lesser wax moth eggs and then you can seal them in a airtight container and extract when you want. Many commercial beekeepers do this because they have a large amount of frames to work through and often you have to store honey frames up while you're pulling supers (honey boxes)from areas. Its an easy mistake don't beat yourself up about it, seriously when you're new to beekeeping you never think about blasted moths😅Ive helped a hobbyist who completly lost an entire stored deep frame box because it had pollen in the comb as well and wax moth loves pollen way more than honey and they actually completely stripped everything off the frames down to the wax wires😬. A rat chewed an entrance at a corner and the wax moth took out the lot. If you're going to pull food frames (frames with honey and pollen) to feed a nuc or a split i absolutely recommend freezing. Lesson learned and this year will be a greater harvest because of it. 👍 Great video 👋 from central Otago southern New Zealand 👋🥝😄
How interesting. Thanks for sharing. So cool to see a Kiwi following us!!!
Thank you for sharing. I just invested in a 9” electric knife like one used for slicing bread, as I watched a video on it and it seemed really easy to use for uncapping the comb. It was very convenient and worth the 25 bucks.
We will have to look into it
I put a good bug zapper in my yard no moths
What stops the bees from getting zapped ???
Nice video, really good to see people having a go, even if you get little or no honey, bee keeping is very rewarding and you will do better with time,good luck for next season guys.
I always pull honey and extract same day and I have 30 hives.
Wow. 30!
Hmm... I've been using Lalvin D47 for all my meads... maybe I should broaden my horizon a bit...? It's interesting, that's for sure ...Thanks...see ya soon pc
We learned a lot from taking on this experiment, and if you have the time and resources, we highly recommend giving it a go.
Hey guys, great experiment. I would have liked to see the order of the yeasts the first taste taste compared to this taste taste. Like you had everyone's scoring show up, but maybe the first scoring compared to your current scoring. I hope that made sense, lol
Great suggestion!
Great experiment!
I liked this test....is the ABV the same for all ?.... did you sanitize the Siphon ( the jacker lol !) before before each racking ? Thanks pc
Yes. The ABV was around 12% for each. And yes we sanitize the siphon before and in between each brew.
Looking forward to seeing the results.
Annie this looks delicious ❤ well done , excited to see more x
Thanks so much! 😊
To stabilize the mead you can pasteurize it so you can back sweeten without blowing up bottles. 140 degrees for 15 min and you will be good to go.
Yes. We’ve tried that in the past.
Flavor combo sounds delicious. Look forward to more videos.
Yesterday I started a new mead that is similar to this one. I used fresh lilac, orange peel, and vanilla bean! I'll have to let you know how it turns out!
Looks like this batch has great potential.... can you wait ? I probably would have it drank by the 6 month mark ! Good job pc
We tend to put our bottles out in our studio barn and usually forget about them. That helps them survive longer. We might crack at least one open in September.
Spiced or fruit are melomel mead! "Mead" is honey, water, and yeast! They all should go through a three step fermentation and best if aged at least a year. I own a home brewing store and needed to be able to teach what I sold.
Thanks for sharing!
Sounds great, good job
When you add that Xtra honey ,will yeast start fermentation again...or ?? I've seen backsweetening before, but batch is pasteurized 1st Good video ( Hope it turns out real tasty!) pc
Yes. It has the potential to do so but we’re following the recipe as it was written.
I'm curious to see how it comes out....how long before your 1st 'Racking ' ? ....Sounds tasty ! pc
Usually 2 weeks to a month to our first re-reracking.
Wow | /
The solar eclipse in Hamilton was amazing. ❤ No overcast
We are already planning our next trip and will be sure to have a car 😝
Thanks for the review
Looks like good raw material for some more Bees Mead brewing !
Fingers crossed!
That's a great sight
Good video. Keep rocking 🐝
Thank you! Will do!
Part 2??
Oops. I forgot to put that in the description Making Peach Mead - Part 2 ua-cam.com/video/xuWGyYl4DvA/v-deo.html
Great information, thank you
First off, thank you for sharing your experiences and challenges in beekeeping. It's always enlightening to see how others navigate the intricacies of managing hives, especially during unpredictable weather patterns like a false spring. Here are a few thoughts and pieces of advice in response to your video: 1. Preparing for False Springs: You've rightly pointed out the challenges posed by sudden warm spells followed by cold weather. To mitigate the impact of these unpredictable conditions, consider increasing hive inspections as the weather begins to warm. This can help assess the bees' food stores and overall health, allowing for timely intervention. It's also beneficial to have emergency feeding supplies ready well before these conditions occur. 2. Feeding Strategies: While fondant and sugar water are indeed useful emergency food sources, maintaining adequate honey stores within the hive throughout the year is preferable. It sounds like you're already mindful of this, but perhaps planning for additional reserves or exploring other feeding options like pollen patties earlier could be helpful. For those times when you must use fondant or sugar, ensure it's placed as close to the cluster as possible to make it accessible during cold spells. 3. Custom Equipment Challenges: Your experience with custom covers and equipment compatibility highlights an important aspect of beekeeping-adaptability. Custom solutions are great but do come with their own set of challenges. Sharing your designs or modifications with the community could provide you with feedback or suggestions on how to improve functionality or compatibility. Additionally, always have a contingency plan or alternative solutions ready for critical components like feeding systems. 4. Pest Management: Dealing with ants and spiders can indeed be tricky. Your approach using diatomaceous earth for ants is a good one, as it's effective yet safe for the bees. For ongoing pest management, consider integrating more physical barriers or moats around the hive stands. Regular maintenance and checks for gaps or openings in the hive can also deter pests. 5. Bee Health and Aggression: Aggression in hives can be a sign of various issues, including queen problems, pests like mites, or even genetic factors. Regular health checks and mite treatments are crucial. If aggression persists, requeening with a more docile strain may be a solution worth considering. Also, sharing your treatment regimen and timelines might help others offer more targeted advice. 6. Safety and Health Precautions: Your experience with a bee sting reaction is a stark reminder of the importance of personal safety. Always having protective gear and a smoker ready, regardless of the task's perceived simplicity or urgency, is wise. Your proactive approach to health management post-sting is commendable, and it's a good reminder for all of us to be prepared for allergic reactions, even if we've been stung before without issue. 7. Community Engagement: Lastly, the beekeeping community is an invaluable resource. Sharing your experiences, both the successes and challenges, contributes to our collective knowledge. Engaging with local beekeeping clubs or online forums can provide additional support, advice, and perhaps even hands-on assistance when facing challenges like equipment compatibility or hive health issues.
Thanks for all the amazing tips and taking the time to write them all out for us. We started UA-cam on a whim but its really been awesome resource and support
Love your beautiful hives! I think we have all taken a sting like that! New subscriber and looking forward to bee season! We just got socked with 7-8” snow, but were in bee yard just last Saturday. Hope you feel better soon!
Thanks for the sub!
Correction at 7:36 diatomaceous earth can harm bees, take care to only put on outside and around hive.
Hi there. . . Nothing wrong with 'own' Boxes ! I reclaim* lots of unused 'heat treated' Pallet Wood. (Pallets from monthly Chicken Feed Delivery !) Do Check* its not Chemical Treated Timber (bad for Bees.) Most Pallets here in the UK are Coloured Coded (Painted: Red Blue etc) And or have 'Branded' Burnt on Markings : re Heated, Chemical Dipped, Surface Spray Treatment etc. . .) So a lot of nice Pine Wood to Reclaim/Upcycle if you 'choose' the appropriate "Safe Wood*" version of said 'Pallets. Any waste bits of Timber : Use to make Frames ! Offcuts : add into your Smoker for Fuel. 👍 I use the Principle : Make the 'bigges' Box to need. Then anything smaller will fit into it ! 😁 Eg I have US Langstroth Hives, the UK Nationa Hives and the Tall stacking French 'Warre Hives.' All different in Sizes and associated Gear use 'Requirements' ! Don't be put off my different 'variants'. . . But instead : Think outside the "Box" . . . Eg : x2 Warre 'Frames' will easily 'nest' inside x1 Langstroth Brood Frame. Or two Warre Frames within x1 National Brood Frame. You can even make DIY Mating Nuc 'Frames' and these can be : X3 Within a Langstroth Brood Frame. X2 withing a UK National Brood Frame. And x1 within a 'Warre Frame'. Bit like "Russian nesting Babushka Dolls". Where one 'Frame Style' can be temporarily aded thru 'Twist Wire' (Wired by its top Bar) within its bigger Frame Cousin wise. . . You now have 'options'. Why you ask ??? : 👀 Well, a great Colony might 'be' the one you make Queen Cells from. You might 'carefully' cut out a Section of age related Eggs and Larva in its 'Comb' to Size. Rubber Band this say from a 'Beek Friend / Bee Club' 'Donor Hive' into your "Smaller Framed' DIY made Hive Bodies. And their associated Smaller Frames. Get it . . . It's a Win, win. 👍 You to might get that Wood Shop "Relative", to make you 2a small customed made mini 'Mating Nuc' or two, so you can 'make/take/mate' these QC's. Sell some on to other Beeks (make some Bee 'Kit' needs Money.) Or Donate on to the next Newbie Beek who has their first Hive : That too needs reigning in 'if their Colony' gets a bit angsty ! And needs, the help of a better Queen, to calm it down to being manageable once more. . . Hope this helps. 😎
Hi there. Like you little Hives there. 👍 I have similar Hives here in Scotland 🏴 called "Warre Hives". And I have about the same 'Space' under the Roofs above a Crown Board. I would add a big Heap of Dry White Sugar around the 'feed' Hole. This sugar will attract a bit of 'moisture from the Air' and harden in Situ. That's no big Deal. Bees will 'take the Sugar' as they need : and any Water available in your local Environment (rain, droplets, dew) even the Hives internal Condensation will allow the Bees to make their own 2:1 type Syrup. This works really well through a long hard Winter. You can just prior to Spring (when Bees can do Cleansing Flight) add a bit of Pollen Powder Subsitute or a Pollen Patty. But as this is a 'Protein' source : its a Solid in the Bees gut (so don't feed this if your still to get Snow & Ice etc.) Or the Bees will have a Bathroom issue. . . Hope this helps. 😎 🐝🐝🐝🐝🐝🐝🐝🐝🐝🐝🐝 Happy Beekeeping 2024 🐝🐝🐝🐝🐝🐝🐝🐝🐝🐝🐝 Just Subbed too. . . Like your Style of Beekeeping Hope to see more of these little Hives. . . 👍
PS. Instead of a Smoker, you could of used a Fine Mist from a Misting Bottle. Make a very weak solution of Sugar Water. Say a x1 Pint Water and maybe x4 Tablespoons of Sugar. And a Single drop of Lemon Grass Oil (essential oil.) That will 'keep' the "Alarm Phremone" of a angry 'Sting,' masked from more stinging you. 🤞 Hope this helps.😎 At the end footage. . . Think you have a 'Chest Infection' of maybe a viral variant. Even you have a Covid - come Flu symptoms. The Fever, Aches, sensitivity to 'Pain' (that Sting !) I would rest up. Yours a (RN) now a Hobby Beek. 😏 Suggestion: Take a break from that Green Hive (do a Re-Queen) of that Colony when Drones are back in the picture by maybe making some QC's off your 'best' Calm Hive ! 😉 If you need help on this. . . Add a reply comment : and I will be 'notified' or a Comment on my comment. 🙃
Yeah, getting stung aint no fun, lol
*Promo SM* 😋
Enjoyed watching
Glad you enjoyed
@The Bees' Meads when scanned the ground in the beginning it looked like one of the dead bees was a Queen
That would be super scary to see.
What model is your thermal camera?
Flir one
USA beekeeper always lucky. Dr. Harbo and Tom Glenn work 30 years VSH bees. You can easily reach breeder queen. My advice get good genetics. No winter lose no Nosema no Varroa.. Your bee hives cute ❤. I hope best 🍀
Your hives look nice with the sloping top. Hopefully they all make it through the winter. The mushroom may have been from a squirrel if there are any trees or branches above. Thanks for sharing!
Yes we do. That’s reassuring.
you have the ele fence but the hives look so close that a bear could reach thru and slap the hive off the stand
It’s designed as a deterrent. The idea is most bears will go sniffing around and once their nose gets bopped they go away.
@@thebeesmeads except a cup if a cub gets playing around and gets a shock, most of the time they will go right on thru and blat a little which gets the mother excited, then it's game on, the fun begins . I had the fence 4 inches from the ground( for skunks also) and every 4 inches up to 4.5 ft and one night a mom and 3 cubs visited and the cubs got playing around. bears were so many around that p0lace that they would come by even in the day time.
That’s a good cluster of bees, you have carniolan breed
@@thebeesmeads once the Bears get a good whiff of the Bees game over. There needs to be at least 5 feet between fence and hives. And once a bear tastes the pupae the fence will do nothing in stopping them from then on. Their not after honey. they prefer the pupae of bees. Don't get why your fence is shutting off at night. That's the time the hives are mostly attacked. On some fences they have different settings and icons. E.g Sun Moon and such. Moon is the strongest setting. Make sure the fence has a good earth and none of the wires touching grass. That will drain the battery fast.
I am glad the bees are still there. If you don't mind me asking, what part of the country are you in?
Foothills of the Sierra Nevada Mountains
Interesting...any mead tasting or making in your agenda? pc
Later in the year. Those take a few months to complete.
how is it that you raised bees to make honey but failed learn about the extraction process. Should have known to not remove honey frames til extraction time or known to freeze the frames while storing off the hive. Study in advance when engaging in something you are not sure about. Don't put hive moth infested frames back in the hive until you freeze them for 48 hrs to kill the moth larvae
I don't see any videos of you doing it right. Maybe you'd like to teach a master class?
My blueberry mead is in its sixth week and it's a bit cloudy yet. I wonder if you guys have any clarification tips to get the cloudiness out ? pc
Re-rack it and in time it should clarify before bottling it
So...what % alcohol did the Peach batch come in at ?
16%
From what I’ve been hearing and learning is yeast can’t read and they don’t know they only should make alcohol to what the the package says so I’m just using enough honey needed then I’ll back sweeten to taste for now on.
lol
Another way to get it sweeter instead of keep adding more and more honey is to find a yeast with lower alcohol tolerance. Say if you want a 10% abv, find a yeast with a 10% abv tolerance and add enough honey for say 12% or 13% abv, then you don't have to backsweeten. But this is also not guaranteed. As yeast may go slightly above its alcohol tolerance. The reason people tend to ferment their mead dry to 1.000 or lower is because it is more controlled and can backsweeten to get more consistent results. Sounds like it is coming along nicely.