This Sunday I am finally ready to rack out of primary. This batch turned out a bit too dry and I'm thinking about adding more honey. If the yeasties decide they're still hungry, that's fine with me. I figure I'm going to keep feeding them until they choke then backsweeten after they can't take it any more. This is my first time doing this though and I was hoping for any advice/warnings more experienced brewers might have. I wan't to have as high an alcohol content as possible. Hoping to knock my friends on thier butts. Thanks.
Adding Honey Need Advice
- Thread starter Kube
- Start date
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Howdy Kube!
Use the forum search tool and do a search on "backsweetening" you'll find tons of references.
Also do a search on "step feeding" and as always remember the mantra of gotmead.com:
Exact recipe please!
Cheers,
Oskaar
Use the forum search tool and do a search on "backsweetening" you'll find tons of references.
Also do a search on "step feeding" and as always remember the mantra of gotmead.com:
Exact recipe please!
Cheers,
Oskaar
Normal. K1-v116 has a tolerance of 18% alcohol. A starting gravity of 1.089 gives you a possible 12% alcohol (approx). If you don't want to feed a ton of honey all the way to 18%, you might want to consider stabilizing with Potassium Sorbate and Potassium meta-bisulphite before adding honey. Or you could add a bit, then stabilize.
Kube,
Well, it sounds like you've built a batch very simmilar to my very first batch of mead.
Granted, I made other mistakes but here's what I did and what I learned from it.
http://www.gotmead.com/component/option,com_smf/Itemid,183/topic,288.0
In a nutshell though, I found that step feeding did bring up the final ABV but there were significant aceteldehyde production, and it never really did mellow out. Nearly 2 years later it still is not an enjoyable drink.
David
Well, it sounds like you've built a batch very simmilar to my very first batch of mead.
Granted, I made other mistakes but here's what I did and what I learned from it.
http://www.gotmead.com/component/option,com_smf/Itemid,183/topic,288.0
In a nutshell though, I found that step feeding did bring up the final ABV but there were significant aceteldehyde production, and it never really did mellow out. Nearly 2 years later it still is not an enjoyable drink.
David
Thanks guys. My thinking is this. Tell me if I'm wrong. I sort of underdid it with the honey to begin with. I put in enough honey to make a 5 gallon batch but ended up with a six gallon batch thanks to poor planning. I figure that if I just add the amount I should have used in the beginning it should bring up my abv to a more normal level without stressing the yeast too much. As it is right now, I can taste the presence of alcohol but it could use a bit more of a bite. Also I think once I stabilize I may have to backsweeten because it is extremely dry. Almost no sense of sweetness whatsoever. I never knew getting drunk on my own label would be so much work. :confused2:
