I racked the mead and the cherry cyser today, a month after fermentation started (but with about a week or so of cold temperatures retarding the fermentation in the basement). The cyser filled one glass jug nicely; the mead went into three seltzer bottles.
The last time I made quick mead, it tasted super yeasty. This time, I let it go longer, and the yeast taste is gone. I am not entirely sure my decision to add dried grapefruit peel was a good one, though. We'll see how it is after it sits a little longer.
Right now - neither of them are awful, nor wonderful. The cyser has something of a cherry aroma, but tastes nondescriptly tart. The mead... I'm not even sure how to describe it? Not very sweet, some kind of edge that's either from the grapefruit peel or because it's still so young.
