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Not enough honey?

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Z

zakcarr

NewBee
Registered Member
Jun 26, 2010
4
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Montclair, NJ
This is my first batch, so I'm sure it's a mess... But here goes.

-6 gallon batch
-10lbs honey
-Juice of 4lbs apricots approx 30oz
-1 1/2 cup chopped ginger boiled in 4 cups water. Liquid and solids added.
-2 pkg Lalvin EC-1118 re-hydrated in water
-Fermax yeast nutrient 3 tsp. (I stopped and didn't add the full dose of 1tsp per gallon because I realized this should prob go in at the 1/2 sugar break, if I was treating it like Fermaid)
-No Boil
-Initial SG 1.064 adjusted for temp

12 hours in all seems to be going well, things are bubbling away.

My major concern in that initial SG. I don't think I added enough honey. After the fact I saw a few references to 3 - 3 1/2 lbs per gallon, which I'm obviously far shy of.

Can I add more honey later with no ill effects? I purchased my honey from a local apiary at my farmers market but they wont be back till next week. I could go grab some at the store but I wanted to be consistent.

Can the batch sit for a week before adding more, and if that 3lbs per gallon rule is right I need to almost double... 8 more lbs.

I apologize ahead of time for my egregious errors.
 
Hi zakcarr!

Yes, you can add more honey, but first let's ask the question: What are you going for? This batch will be lower in alcohol than your "standard" mead, but that might suit you just fine. So are you looking for more alcohol for its own sake, looking for residual sweetness, looking for something else?
 
Thanks guys!

Is there any detriment to letting it sit for a week before I add additional honey? or should I get it in there asap?
 
It is better not to let the yeast run of out sugar as this puts them back into stationary phase or dormancy, so you should add the sugar sooner rather than later. However, in practical terms, EC-1118 is a very robust yeast that is going to chew up whatever you add to it, whenever you add it.
 
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