Is it ok to degas mead after primary fermentation? I was always told that when racking into secondary you must ensure as little to no contact with air as to prevent oxygenation. Recently someone told me it is ok to degas at the time of racking after primary, exactly like making kit wine. Just rack it into brew bucket stir the hell out of it and than seal it with an airlock. Is this ok to do? How do proffesional meadmakers go about degassing their brews?
Noob question about degassing.
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Degassing isn't necessary at all, unless for the purpose of preventing a fizz-over when adding feedings. I don't degas at all. Between racking and stabilizing and bottling and all that, and the time involved, my mead is dead flat by the time it gets poured into the glass.
https://www.gotmead.com/forum/showthread.php/25287-Regarding-degassing?p=251007#post251007
It helps to keep the pH a little higher as well so yes, degas your mead during fermentation.
It helps to keep the pH a little higher as well so yes, degas your mead during fermentation.
https://www.gotmead.com/forum/showthread.php/25287-Regarding-degassing?p=251007#post251007
It helps to keep the pH a little higher as well so yes, degas your mead during fermentation.
That's an old opinion. Modern take is that it "doesn't matter".
That's an old opinion. Modern take is that it "doesn't matter".
You should do what you feel is best but my reading suggests degassing is beneficial.
You should do what you feel is best but my reading suggests degassing is beneficial.
You're quoting Ryan as your source. When I questioned him about it a short while back (struggling to find the post, actually) he mentioned that even he isn't degassing anymore, apart from right before nutrient additions, and that's only for the purpose of avoiding a foam-over. I avoid the foam-over completely by simply tapping off a little mead, warming it up in the microwave and dissolving the Fermaid O in there, then pouring it back into the fermenter, so I don't degas anymore. At all.
You're quoting Ryan as your source. When I questioned him about it a short while back (struggling to find the post, actually) he mentioned that even he isn't degassing anymore, apart from right before nutrient additions, and that's only for the purpose of avoiding a foam-over. I avoid the foam-over completely by simply tapping off a little mead, warming it up in the microwave and dissolving the Fermaid O in there, then pouring it back into the fermenter, so I don't degas anymore. At all.
Just to be clear, when I advocate "degassing" I mean stirring during fermentation and not removal of CO2 via a vacuum pump. Besides releasing some CO2, stirring puts more yeast back in suspension which allows for quicker, healthier fermentations (many wine yeasts do not function as well unless they are in suspension) and you can add a little O2 which is required during fermentation.
As I said earlier, you should do whatever you believe is correct. I know why I do what I do and that is good enough for me. That said, the science of brewing is a moving target especially considering we are working with a living, reactionary biomass that will do as it does and that may be different from strain to strain and fermentation event to fermentation event. I stir and will continue to as my experience is positive.
OK well that makes sense. Degassing literally means to "remove gas", typically the CO2 formed during fermentation. I haven't done it in the last few batches and it worked perfectly for me. In fact, I like a bit of CO2 in suspension, as it means a tiny little bit more protection for my mead as it's sitting there. CO2 forms a little bit of a blanket over the surface as it escapes the solution, and that blocks off O2. I like the fact that it blocks off O2.
So I was the one who started this whole gassing debacle. I also went public and proclaimed I was wrong to teach that after a long enough time that it had become standard procedure for everyone in the mead world. It surprises me that I had that much influence with my teaching. After I learned I was wrong I told everyone. So now newbie's get started and see that written all over.
You do not need to degass, ever. At least not to make your must a better place for the yeast to exist. They wouldn't make something that would kill them. That would go against everything we know about life-sustaining itself and reproducing to continue to promote life.
I don't degass one bit. I have always and still insist that keeping your lee's off the bottom is very necessary. But you can do this very gently without disrupting enough to even cause much foam. Yeast only usesO2 untile they go anaerobic and that happens once the exponential growth phase is over wich pretty closely correlates with the 1/3 sugar break.
Lastly, most new mead makers are overly concerned about oxidation. You only need to be concerned once you move your stabilized mead into an ageing vessel. And even then if you follow good SO2 management like you should be doing by now it's almost a no brainer.
I have a nitrogen tank that I use to sparge O2 and Co2 out of suspension now and have used it for all of my 30 some carboys. When you stick the stone into a must and turn on the nitrogen to push out all gasses you can see the difference in how it bubbles and foams when the nitrogen is in there. Once all the foreign gasses have been removed the bubbles look different than when it has CO2 and O2 still in suspension. I had a couple of hundred gallons that had aged, some as much as a couple of years. I was amazed to see how much gas was still in suspension when I sparged them with nitrogen for the first time.
Hope this helps to clear things up guy
You do not need to degass, ever. At least not to make your must a better place for the yeast to exist. They wouldn't make something that would kill them. That would go against everything we know about life-sustaining itself and reproducing to continue to promote life.
I don't degass one bit. I have always and still insist that keeping your lee's off the bottom is very necessary. But you can do this very gently without disrupting enough to even cause much foam. Yeast only usesO2 untile they go anaerobic and that happens once the exponential growth phase is over wich pretty closely correlates with the 1/3 sugar break.
Lastly, most new mead makers are overly concerned about oxidation. You only need to be concerned once you move your stabilized mead into an ageing vessel. And even then if you follow good SO2 management like you should be doing by now it's almost a no brainer.
I have a nitrogen tank that I use to sparge O2 and Co2 out of suspension now and have used it for all of my 30 some carboys. When you stick the stone into a must and turn on the nitrogen to push out all gasses you can see the difference in how it bubbles and foams when the nitrogen is in there. Once all the foreign gasses have been removed the bubbles look different than when it has CO2 and O2 still in suspension. I had a couple of hundred gallons that had aged, some as much as a couple of years. I was amazed to see how much gas was still in suspension when I sparged them with nitrogen for the first time.
Hope this helps to clear things up guy
I heard it is beneficial to stir during initial stages of primary fermentation, what about after racking into secondary? It is wildly said that removing CO2 from your brew will help to clear it. I think I'll try it my next batch, because my brews never clear on their own, no matter how many rackings and how many months of waiting. I am still to figure out what prevents my brews from clearing.
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So there are many different fining agents available. Usually, things clear pretty nicely when one finds the correct one for the mead in question. Pectin will not clear with a fining agent nor by running through a filter. So do a test to see if it's pectin and if it ends up being that. You need to add three times the amount you would use at the beginning of the same fruit.
So there are many different fining agents available. Usually, things clear pretty nicely when one finds the correct one for the mead in question. Pectin will not clear with a fining agent nor by running through a filter. So do a test to see if it's pectin and if it ends up being that. You need to add three times the amount you would use at the beginning of the same fruit.
Have you ever had a mead clear without having to use a fining agent? Also, when you add extra honey to back sweeten after stabilizing the mead, it's going to cloud up some. How long should you wait before using a fining agent in it?
Not very often.
Yep, it sure does.
That depends. I like to fine as soon as it makes sense. Obviously you don't want to fine twice. But I really don't think it starts aging well in earnest until it's relatively clear,
Yep, it sure does.
That depends. I like to fine as soon as it makes sense. Obviously you don't want to fine twice. But I really don't think it starts aging well in earnest until it's relatively clear,
