carboy vers bottle clearing

[tweak'e]

my original test run mead (unknown honey burnt to hell) was backsweeten and quickly bottled after the 2nd racking as i needed the carboy. the bottles have been lying in the rack for the last three months or so.
now i did a 2nd batch with a different yeast a couple of weeks after that one finished fermenting. its been sitting in the carboy for the last 3 months or so (minus a few weeks).

the mead was pitch black in the bottles, but some fine sediment has formed in the bottles and surprisingly its starting to look very redish in color.
however the carboy has not changed one bit despite only a few weeks difference in aging.

would the back sweetening make any difference to it clearing?

would it be worth emptying the bottles out, fining and rebottling?

 

[Medsen Fey]

If you've already got it bottled, I wouldn't consider going through the hassle of re-bottling unless the mead was refermenting and becoming fizzy in the bottles. If my meads form a sediment in the bottle, as much as I hate sediment, I still just leave it be. I know that the sediment consists of bitter things, and that by dropping out, they tend to leave the clear mead tasting better and better.

The challenge is to get the clearing done before bottling. Sweetening can have an effect, though usually it tends to make things clear more slowly. Sometimes, being bottled can allow temperature changes to have a greater impact on clearing, and the bit of oxygen exposure that occurs during bottling can sometimes create faster clearing as well. However, in your case, using a different yeast probably has more to do with it than anything else. That can make a huge difference in the rate of clearing.

 

[wildoates]

It seems like I always end up with a few floaters in my bottles no matter how carefully I try to rack. It's frustrating, but I guess that's the sort of thing that separates the duffers like me from the skilled brewers.

 

[tweak'e]

........ However, in your case, using a different yeast probably has more to do with it than anything else. That can make a huge difference in the rate of clearing.

thanks for that. o theres so much to learn

my Bentonite didn't turn up so i did my cyser with a half dose of kwik clear (gelatin and kieselol) and did the burnt crap mead with a 3/4 dose.
24hrs later the cyser has gone from an orange look to more apple look.
slight change on the burnt crap mead.

would it be ok to add finings when back sweetening or would it be best to wait a while after back sweetening?

 

[Medsen Fey]

would it be ok to add finings when back sweetening or would it be best to wait a while after back sweetening?

It depends on the fining, but I prefer to stabilize and backsweeten at separate time from fining. Bentonite, for example, has the potential to bind sorbic acid, and if added at the same time, might potentially interfere with the stabilization.