Rotten Eggs

[P0rkins]

So my mead was going great. but then in 2nd fermentation i added 1/6 tsp of Potassium Metabisulfite, 6 whole vanilla beans, and 1 package of dried lingonberries. a few hours later and my batch (5 gallons) smells of rotten eggs. What do i need to do to salvage the batch.

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0064O9FB6/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o02_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1 the metabisulfite i used
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0064BEEPQ/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o08_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1 the berries
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B074NBPV87/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o09_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1 the beans.

the berries only listed lingonberries, sugar, and sunflower oil on its ingredients.

Also used D47 yeast when i started and its been around 70 degrees till about 2 days ago when my AC broke now its around 75-78.

 

[Squatchy]

So 2 things. That strain needs to be kept in the low 60's for it to not make off flavors. And you can't add sulfites to a working ferment without having problems. What were you trying to accomplish in doing this?

 

[bernardsmith]

A smell of rotten eggs suggests that your yeast is producing hydrogen sulfide and that product suggests (and I use that word quite loosely) that your yeast is under stress. Some yeasts are known as heavy producers of hydrogen sulfide even at the best of times but every yeast (I think) will burp out this gas when stressed. And stress can be caused by many factors. But one issue is that if the fermentation is not aggressive enough the H2S can simply build up and hang around. Aggressive fermentations are more likely to blow off such gases.

But how to deal with the smell: you might try whipping air into the carboy (I know. I know - Air? In the secondary? but oxidation is a possible risk. What you have is a present problem) and or you might try racking through some copper scouring wool - the sulfur will bind to the copper producing copper sulfite (in tiny quantities) and the hydrogen will bond to the oxygen (producing water).

 

[Squatchy]

I would try vigorous agitation first. If you use a copper scouring pad. Make sure it's 100% copper as a lot of them are only coated. Early on when I first started I had 1 stinky batch. I bought a copper fitting from Home Boy and cleaned it up nicely and hung it in my carboy for a while on some fishing mono.

 

[m0n5t3r]

I think I heard Ricky from Groenfell Meadery in a podcast telling a story about getting this in a large batch (temperature controller failed), they fixed it eventually by blowing CO2 through the mead; apparently the neighbors were not amused.

 

[Squatchy]

I think I heard Ricky from Groenfell Meadery in a podcast telling a story about getting this in a large batch (temperature controller failed), they fixed it eventually by blowing CO2 through the mead; apparently the neighbors were not amused.

Basically accomplishing the same thing with a different method.

 

[Cobrac]

So my mead was going great. but then in 2nd fermentation i added 1/6 tsp of Potassium Metabisulfite, 6 whole vanilla beans, and 1 package of dried lingonberries. a few hours later and my batch (5 gallons) smells of rotten eggs. What do i need to do to salvage the batch.

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0064O9FB6/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o02_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1 the metabisulfite i used
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0064BEEPQ/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o08_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1 the berries
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B074NBPV87/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o09_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1 the beans.

the berries only listed lingonberries, sugar, and sunflower oil on its ingredients.

Also used D47 yeast when i started and its been around 70 degrees till about 2 days ago when my AC broke now its around 75-78.

Lingonberries! A swedish all-around-to-everything-berry! I think I might know why you get the rotten egg smell. Lingonberries has a quite high concentration of benzoic acid naturally, benzoic acid is extremely tart and function as “natural” preservative. Your yeast probably got pH-chock. Have you got a pH-measurement possibility? When I used lingonberries (frozen) just a few weeks ago I had it in my primary and it ended up about pH 2,5-2,7. I had to adjust quite a bit with bicarbonate before even reach over pH 3,0.

Your yeast is probably stressed as hell, above this benzoic acid will cripple the yeast cells bad. Fortunately benzoic acid drops a lot in efficiency when pH raises. So my suggestion is simply to check your pH-level and adjust.

 

[Squatchy]

I hate to even say this. It runs against my principles to a degree, and yet I have another that is juxtaposed.

I know of no one ( and I have asked around a good bit. I have a good deal of friends active in many ways in the mead world. I have found no one who can say one good thing about the meads that Groenfell turns out. So take that as you will. Personally, I cannot condone his way of turning on it's head, what everyone else does in the industry. So just beware YMMV.

 

[Cobrac]

I hate to even say this. It runs against my principles to a degree, and yet I have another that is juxtaposed.

I know of no one ( and I have asked around a good bit. I have a good deal of friends active in many ways in the mead world. I have found no one who can say one good thing about the meads that Groenfell turns out. So take that as you will. Personally, I cannot condone his way of turning on it's head, what everyone else does in the industry. So just beware YMMV.

Was this post a reply to mine? Just asking cause i didn’t understand it fully due to my limited understanding of English.

 

[darigoni]

Was this post a reply to mine? Just asking cause i didn’t understand it fully due to my limited understanding of English.

No, it's in response to posts #5 and #6. Ricky, the mead maker at Groenfell Meadery, does some things, during fermentation, that are considered out of the ordinary. One thing he's talked about is (intentionally) fermenting at 90F (and higher).

 

[Cobrac]

No, it's in response to posts #5 and #6. Ricky, the mead maker at Groenfell Meadery, does some things, during fermentation, that are considered out of the ordinary. One thing he's talked about is (intentionally) fermenting at 90F (and higher).

I assumed that was the case. Had to make sure. I was a bit insecure since the first part of the post could point out that changing pH during late stage of fermentation is bad practice. Which it is, but sometimes it can be necessary. To change pH after yeast pitch is not preferable.