First mead, when to rack
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The first one, I need to get another air lock and drilled bung before I can start the JAOM, or wait till this one has finished and I can put the solid bung on. And move the airlock over. Is it better to age it in a dark place? Or is normal lighting okay? (not over exposed to sunlight)
Sam
Sam
Sunlight and fluorescent light can cause wines to oxidixe. Meads are more resistant to oxidation but it's usually best to err on the side of caution. If you can't move it to somewhere dark, you could wrap a towel or shirt around the carboy, that works just fine. I used to have my carboy shelf in front of a south-facing window but the tablecloth I put across the lower half of the window seemed to do the trick, none of the off flavours from my early winemaking could be attributed to oxidation (plenty of other things I did wrong, but not that!)
I think you should be ok with a little yeast on the bottom. I haven't really aged mead much but I would probably rack it as the yeast built up significantly. But that's me and I'm a freak.
Sent from my galafreyan transdimensional communicator 100 years from now. G
Sent from my galafreyan transdimensional communicator 100 years from now. G
With a new batch, I usually rack as soon as the SG stops dropping or gets close to 1.000, then again in a few weeks if a lot of sediment has built up or if I used 71B yeast.
Well, if you don't use something to halt the yeast, you're going to possibly wind up with a carbonated (sparkling) mead. I know that's not preferable for everyone, but me, I prefer sparkling over non-. It's just personal preference really. On the other hand, if your yeast is pooped out (reached its max) then back-sweetening will occur just fine. Although, if you haven't been step-feeding them with shots of honey/sugars, then you'll likely do just that by trying to backsweeten without something to halt fermentation. Depends on temp, too, as you can get some more residual fermentation with higher must temps.Perfect! This is such a good forum!
Sam
Certainly someone more knowledgeable than me can give you more specifics. For now, I tend to "wing it" too much and I don't think the majority of folks around here do that as much as I do. (Or maybe they don't admit it anyway.
) I'm new here, but I've been making sparkling cysers for 2 decades, just not lately. I brewed beer/ales for about 25 years total, with longer breaks toward the end when things just didn't work out or weren't conducive to brewing in my new place. I'm certainly no mead expert, although cysers are similar in nature; they're just more forgiving. I've never made a true mead as I am always tempted to throw some kind of fruit in there, some spices, experiment, etc.This is a great website, and I hope these guys aren't too polite to at least point out when I'm being an idiot or suggesting something stupid. They won't hurt my feelings; and I'm sure some of my techniques learned by trial-and-error are outdated and non-avante garde. I hope to correct a lot of that in the upcoming weeks/months/years.
Will back sweetening with honey still create a sparkling mead? do you finding bentonite gives it a better taste? I've heard mixed reviews. Some say it's makes it crisper and smooth... Others think it dulls down the body etc... What's everyone's preference? I think mine will clear just fine by itself, but I'm still up for improving
Sam
do you finding bentonite gives it a better taste? I've heard mixed reviews. Some say it's makes it crisper and smooth... Others think it dulls down the body etc... What's everyone's preference? I think mine will clear just fine by itself, but I'm still up for improving Sam
It's always always better if you give it time to clear itself. Clearing agents are additions used by those too immature and desperate to just wait the prescribed time to let the yeast fall out of suspension on its own. I am one of those people. I used to use gelatin as a fining to clear beer, but recently discovered the miracle of Super Kleer. It will make a turbid opaque mead crystal clear in as little as 24 hours and in no more than a week! Get some!
As to your other question... it's highly likely that adding any additional sugar in the form of honey or sugar or anything will re-start the fermentation. This is most dangerous if you bottle the stuff because you will be making bottle bombs that at worst could seriously hurt someone and at best will blow up and send mead all over the place. Stabilize before you bottle or get ready for the BOOM!
As to your other question... it's highly likely that adding any additional sugar in the form of honey or sugar or anything will re-start the fermentation. This is most dangerous if you bottle the stuff because you will be making bottle bombs that at worst could seriously hurt someone and at best will blow up and send mead all over the place. Stabilize before you bottle or get ready for the BOOM!
If the idea of sparkling mead appeals to you as it does to Ebonhawk, you might want to consider planning the batch out that way. Just winging it is a recipe for bottle bombs, you only want to give the yeast a certain amount of sugar with which to create carbon dioxide, so you don't want to add too much (the yeast won't stop at a safe carbonation level) and you don't want to add it when there's already sugar present (same as adding too much). Since your mead is at .998 already, it's probably done all the sugars it had, so if you wanted to carbonate it safely, I'd recommend letting it clear and then priming it, then bottling in bottles rated for carbonation... Or if you want to just wing it in a somewhat safer manner, sweeten it up and use a PET pop bottle and when it gets hard like a new bottle of carbonated drink, put it in the fridge and drink it within a month.
But if you don't want it sparkling, then as Ebonhawk said, you can either keep feeding it honey till it poops out (step feeding) or stabilize it with metabisulphites and potassium sorbate (either one on its own isn't sufficient, you need the one-two punch).
When I do the boiling test to figure out the actual alcohol concentration, I fill my hydrometer test tube to a line I drew on it with Sharpie (where it's enough to float the hydrometer but won't overflow) and that's all the sample I use (admittedly a bigger sample would make it more accurate but I'm usually only interested in a ballpark figure). Boil it in a very small pot till I've lost more than half the volume, then let it cool, put it back in the sample tube, and keep adding water (I rinse out the pot with small amounts of water to make sure I get everything and then pour that into the tube) till I get back to that line, then let it adjust to room temperature, then check the SG. Go online and look up Spirit Indication and you should be able to find a website that tells you what your alcohol % is based on the SG with the alcohol and the SG once you've boiled it all off and replaced it with water. I have it bookmarked on another browser or I'd post the link
but I'm a lazy-ass
But if you don't want it sparkling, then as Ebonhawk said, you can either keep feeding it honey till it poops out (step feeding) or stabilize it with metabisulphites and potassium sorbate (either one on its own isn't sufficient, you need the one-two punch).
When I do the boiling test to figure out the actual alcohol concentration, I fill my hydrometer test tube to a line I drew on it with Sharpie (where it's enough to float the hydrometer but won't overflow) and that's all the sample I use (admittedly a bigger sample would make it more accurate but I'm usually only interested in a ballpark figure). Boil it in a very small pot till I've lost more than half the volume, then let it cool, put it back in the sample tube, and keep adding water (I rinse out the pot with small amounts of water to make sure I get everything and then pour that into the tube) till I get back to that line, then let it adjust to room temperature, then check the SG. Go online and look up Spirit Indication and you should be able to find a website that tells you what your alcohol % is based on the SG with the alcohol and the SG once you've boiled it all off and replaced it with water. I have it bookmarked on another browser or I'd post the link
but I'm a lazy-ass I might re-create that batch to get the OG. I can tweak it after then if I choose? My understanding is:
FG - OG = X
X / 0.00736 = ABV
Correct me if I'm wrong? :') I've ordered some sodium metabisulphate and some potassium sorbate so I shall add them when it comes, do I wait 24 hours to back sweeten? Also I have lost some amount of mead to racking, the SM and the PS are giving directions for 1 gallon, will they be that precise?
Sam
FG - OG = X
X / 0.00736 = ABV
Correct me if I'm wrong? :') I've ordered some sodium metabisulphate and some potassium sorbate so I shall add them when it comes, do I wait 24 hours to back sweeten? Also I have lost some amount of mead to racking, the SM and the PS are giving directions for 1 gallon, will they be that precise?
Sam
If you're close to a gallon, use the directions for a gallon.
Again, about being a lazy-ass, I just run the OG and FG through a wine calculator.
And sure you can tweak it, do anything you want!
Again, about being a lazy-ass, I just run the OG and FG through a wine calculator.
And sure you can tweak it, do anything you want!
I always get a lower % for the boil test but I think that's because I don't think we account for the ethanol (which has a lower SG than water and hence brings the SG lower than 1.000) in our calculations. But do compare a calculator and your calculation. I always figure we're going to be within a percent or two and that's really close enough.
Cherry mead: http://youtube/pvJ9YUuH3Ug
Right, I bottled the first mead yesterday , still at 0.998 and it tasted decent. A little hot still, but nice none the less (I drank a half bottle left over when bottling). I started a cherry mead after and can't quite decide what going on! I used the same recipe as before but substituted 1 litre of water for 1 litre of cherry juice (checked the ingredients, no sorbates mentioned) same yeast same method. But there is what looks like pulp floating around (juice is pulpless) is this normal? I assume it will settle to the bottom and it can be racked off? *
Sam
Right, I bottled the first mead yesterday , still at 0.998 and it tasted decent. A little hot still, but nice none the less (I drank a half bottle left over when bottling). I started a cherry mead after and can't quite decide what going on! I used the same recipe as before but substituted 1 litre of water for 1 litre of cherry juice (checked the ingredients, no sorbates mentioned) same yeast same method. But there is what looks like pulp floating around (juice is pulpless) is this normal? I assume it will settle to the bottom and it can be racked off? *
Sam
I would bet it is the yeast colony establishing itself. It often clumps up and looks like fruit debris, but it's not and it will settle out.
Every brew is different. I'm going to miss brewing/mazering in clear carboys. Watching the activity in a clear glass carboy...just you and your brew, alone, in the dark...ahhh, memories. Interesting things happen in the magic wonderland that is a growing, changing cyser. I'm seriously going to miss it, and I might have to do some primaries in glass just so I can watch.
It's probably okay. Are there any obviously "wrong" smells coming through the airlock? Something to indicate that something actually might be wrong? Maybe there was some suspended protein or fruit fiber/pectin (more than the other batch anyway) that's "precipitating" out and floating because of the CO2 being produced. #1 rule..be patient.
It's probably okay. Are there any obviously "wrong" smells coming through the airlock? Something to indicate that something actually might be wrong? Maybe there was some suspended protein or fruit fiber/pectin (more than the other batch anyway) that's "precipitating" out and floating because of the CO2 being produced. #1 rule..be patient.
It smells beautiful through the airlock... I'd drink it now if I couldn't see what was floating around in it :') I'll just leave it alone and see what happens
Could anyone shed light on uploading pictures? It doesn't matter what res I take the pictures in, it tells me I'm 40kb over sized :S
Sam
Could anyone shed light on uploading pictures? It doesn't matter what res I take the pictures in, it tells me I'm 40kb over sized :S
Sam
Get tapatalk and use your smartphone to post. So much easier.
Sent from my galafreyan transdimensional communicator 100 years from now. G
Sent from my galafreyan transdimensional communicator 100 years from now. G
