tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-276581264737472765.post1693540042136018181..comments2024-02-27T20:46:58.487-08:00Comments on Bikes, Beer, and Adventures: Prickly Pear SyrupJeffrey Cranehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01520169652639837640noreply@blogger.comBlogger3125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-276581264737472765.post-13808248841353493492010-09-03T07:54:19.056-07:002010-09-03T07:54:19.056-07:00I made the syrup for a couple reasons: 1. It helps...I made the syrup for a couple reasons: 1. It helps to remove the mucus 2. More space efficient way to store it. I don't have a beer ready for this yet.<br />I was out riding the other day and picked a few pounds of another variety, much smaller. I'm going to try to make a fresh syrup out of these. According to the guy I got them from he always boils for at least 2 hrs before he uses them in his mead. The mead was a hit at our homebrew meeting and the interesting part is that it loses almost all its color during aging. I think he uses around 2-2.5 lbs/gal.Jeffrey Cranehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01520169652639837640noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-276581264737472765.post-39579851140362037422010-09-03T06:16:30.883-07:002010-09-03T06:16:30.883-07:00I was just eyeing some of these in the store. I...I was just eyeing some of these in the store. I'm interested in how this turns out. I was also thinking of adding some to secondary in one of my meads just for kicks.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-276581264737472765.post-26654972393872822712010-09-03T02:14:51.444-07:002010-09-03T02:14:51.444-07:00nice post. glad you brought these back to my atte...nice post. glad you brought these back to my attention as they are ripe and ready right about now! we have always had some optunias growing @ my parents place somehow in the middle of iowa. when i first started brewing, i did some meads and my original thoughts were to make a melomel with them. recently i've been thinking about doing porters with fruit so that might interesting or perhaps even using them in a sour brew...so many possibilities! berlinerweiss sounds like a great idea tho. It has been so long since i've had one, i need to re-taste them. a friend of mine recently purchased a prickly pear from a mexican grocery store here in town but it was not ripe and rather moldy. i dont know if i'd go to the effort of making a syrup tho, seems like i'd just cube em up small, freeze em, and add to the secondary. cheers!ReverendTenHighhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16204236468709967565noreply@blogger.com