First Batch Questions - Semi-Sweet Artasianal

[Medsen Fey]

SNA = ?

Staggered Nutrient Additions - that's what they call it when you spread the additions out over time.

You're doing the right things for success. Feed the yeast, aerate them during the first 1/3 of fermentation, and pitch a healthy amount are all good steps.

The only other concern that frequently plagues traditional meads is pH drops. Most folks that make traditionals find it helps to be prepared to check pH and to have some carbonates handy to move it up to 3.2-3.5 if it gets below that.


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[Maximus]

Yeah, made a second trip to the brew shop to grab some ph strips when my bucket spigot broke and they were out of the wine range strips! I'll see if I can order some to have in a couple days. Will I be missing out on anything if I don't test pH until Day 3? Which chemical is best to raise the pH? I'm a biochemist by training so feel free to be technical. Thank you for taking the time to help me out here, tchuss!

Also, woke up this morning to semi-strong fermentation. We'll see what happens around lunch, but how much should I focus on aerating it before I add my energizer/nutrient blend? I measured out 3/4 tsp of energizer and 1 tsp of nutrient for my additions.

 

[Medsen Fey]

Potassium bicarbonate is your best option for pH adjustment. A pH meter is a useful investment because the pH strips are a bit of a pain.

I typically just add the nutrients and stir them in with a whisk to aerate while making the nutrient addition.



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[Maximus]

Sounds good, I'll be using a mix-stir while doing the additions on a low speed (~500-700 RPM).

For pH meter, something similar to one of these?

http://www.amazon.com/Etekcity®-PH-...=UTF8&qid=1378126373&sr=8-3&keywords=ph+meter

http://www.amazon.com/Hanna-Instrum...UTF8&qid=1378126608&sr=8-13&keywords=ph+meter

 

[fatbloke]

The cheap one looks very similar to the one I use......

And its cheaper than the hanna one....

Just remember it helps to have calibration fluid.....

 

[Medsen Fey]

Either of those will do the job.

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[Maximus]

Excellent, thanks guys! Also, is it a big no-no to pour your thief sample back in? Everything will be well star-san'd.

 

[Maximus]

Just got back from my first addition. Stirred it first, lots of activity (MEA #1), then added nutrients/energizer (1tsp each as per rec'd) and stirred again with a minor MEA followup. All done in a 6.5 gal carboy. Smell was pretty amazing though. Blow-off tube might be a good idea I guess as opposed to a standard air lock. Seems the airlock is at capacity right now.

 

[Medsen Fey]

It is safe to pour the sample back in.

 

[Maximus]

So, 48 hours in and while it looks like it is fermenting strongly, I am unsure if it is strong enough. At 24 hrs I was at about 1.100 SG then 48 hrs at 1.095 with a OG of 1.105. The 48 hour reading might be a bit off since I broke my hydrometer and had to use my back up. I'll be able to get pH readings at 96 hrs, and I hope its not too late to do any changes. Thanks again for all the help! Thoughts?

I was planning on doing just one more addition at 72hrs with 1tsp of both energizer and nutrient.

 

[Jim H]

OK. So we are looking at a total of 4 doses, so 1 tsp of energizer and 2 tsp of yeast nutrient (DAP). That works out to about 10 grams of DAP or about 110 ppm YAN from the DAP and about 4 grams of energizer providing another 20 ppm YAN (that last is a bit of a guess on my part as I'm not sure of the nitrogen content of the LD carson energizer product - most folks around here use Fermaid K or O, or Fermax, or products that are a nice tan powder).

That is the bare minimum and is lower than the usual level I set as a floor (150 ppm). While this will probably get your batch done, as these kits are designed to work, I typically use a minimum of 200 ppm, and often use much more.

In the future, you may want to get some of these other energizer products so that you can plan the doses of nitrogen you want to add more easily. For now, I would suggest increasing the energizer in your plan. 1 tsp is very, very little. I would have no problem adding a total of 5 tsp of energizer along with the 2 tsp of nutrient (DAP). I don't mind a lot of yeast hulls and vitamins.

Thanks for this post. I think my current mead, which has a calculated SG of 1.137, could use a boost. This got me looking for additional info on how to calculate what's needed. I think I will beef up the food additions a tad based on what I found.

 

[Maximus]

So, 48 hours in and while it looks like it is fermenting strongly, I am unsure if it is strong enough. At 24 hrs I was at about 1.100 SG then 48 hrs at 1.095 with a OG of 1.105. The 48 hour reading might be a bit off since I broke my hydrometer and had to use my back up. I'll be able to get pH readings at 96 hrs, and I hope its not too late to do any changes. Thanks again for all the help! Thoughts?

I was planning on doing just one more addition at 72hrs with 1tsp of both energizer and nutrient.

 

[Maximus]

Sorry to bump this again, but I do my 3rd (and last?) addition of nutrient in 3 hours and am just a tad worried. I am going to go to town oxygenating and do another tsp of each energizer/nutrient. Is that a bad plan? Thanks! OG was 1.105 and curreng SG (at 48hrs) was ~1.095.

 

[Maximus]

Well, went ahead with aerating and adding nutrient. SG was ~1.080 which is a 0.015 drop in the last 24hrs. In my mind that is good progress and I should be set, but should I check again in a few days to make sure I am tracking? I'd love to see some graphs if anyone has done that before of optimal fermentation. Maybe a bell-like curve? I seem to remember yeast density (population) reaching peak was optimal at about day 6.

 

[Maximus]

I'm trying to decide if I should go in for another SG.

OG: 1.105
24hrs: 1.100
48hrs: 1.095
72hrs: 1.080

I can't seem to find any supporting documentation in Meadmaker or here for specific trends, but I was thinking of going back in around Day 6. I just hate opening the thing back up all the time.... Can anyone appease my minor concern? Thanks!

 

[rmccask]

Usually I am watching the airlock during this period. As long as it is bubbling actively, I can be pretty confident that fermentation is going on. I also smell the output of the airlock to see if there are any odd odors signaling a problem. When the airlock activity slows to the point that I am not sure it is bubbling anymore, then I start checking the SG every couple of days or so.

If you really want to know the SG, opening it to test it isn't adding too much risk as long as you sanitize all your tools. The must should have a blanket of CO2 protecting it from oxygen while the fermentation is going on.

As far as trends, I have seen so many variations that I am not sure what is normal. It varies a lot because of yeast, OG, nutrients, temperature, and pH plus probably other things I am forgetting. Your values so far seem reasonable.

 

[Maximus]

That's basically what I was thinking. I just haven't been able to measure pH yet and was worried it would drop a little low. Doesn't look like I'll break in there just to measure it. The fermenting is still glugging along strong about one big one per second out of the S-lock. I was just expecting more of a foam on the top like with beer making. Doesn't look like much here.

 

[Medsen Fey]

Traditional meads don't foam as much as beer.

You won't harm mead by opening and checking it. As long ad there are actively fermenting yeast the must will not oxidize. Traditionals tend to be resistant to oxidation even after fermentation is over. So if you need to check pH go ahead - it is better to make adjustments before problems stress the yeast. Most times, if there are pH issues you will be able to measure them within 24-48 hours. If the pH is OK at that point it is unlikely to become a problem.

With that said I usually have my pH in proper range and my aeration done in the first couple of days, and my last nutrient in by the 1/3 fermentation point. After that I close it and forget it except for swirling it occasionally to resuspend the yeast. When it seems to be done, then I confirm the gravity is stable. I try to do as much "nothing" as possible with meads.

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[Maximus]

About 7 days in now to the fermentation and I plan on checking SG and pH today. Fermentation is going along ok still. One bubble every 6 seconds. I am hoping to see a much larger point drop from the 72 hour point.

 

[Maximus]

Well, 7 days out and I am at 1.045. A 60 point drop, which I hope is not terrible. I figure another 7 days and I should be right about where I want it. Totally forgot to take a pH reading...doh! Tasted it and I was surprised by the mildly medicinal taste, but certainly solid honey characteristics (I would hope!) and mildly flowery on the nose. Was mildly "off", but not as much as I was fearing.

Does this seem on track?