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Oops.....newbie mistake??

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Sleepy_Friar

Sleepy_Friar

NewBee
Registered Member
Sep 9, 2010
4
0
0
Mississippi
Greetings and blessings upon you all. I misread the ingredient list and only added 2 teaspoons of yeast nutrient rather than 2 tablespoons. This was only a day ago. My question is this: do I open the bucket back up and add the remainder to it? I was using the Leeners kit recipe and had merely pitched the yeast onto the top after stirring the rest of the ingredients in.

I hope i didn't mess up too bad!

Thanks in advance.
 
Hello and Welcome!

I'm not familiar with that particular kit, so it might be helpful to post up the details (ingredients and process) so we can understand what you're up to.

As a first guess I'd say yes, it's fine to add the extra nutrients now. Many here follow staggered nutrient addition schedules and will add nutrients to the fermentation over about a 3-7 day period of time.
 
Welcome to the "GotMead" community, Sleepy Friar! I am somewhat familiar with the Leener's Kits, and they rely upon information and technique that we would say is a little "out of date" these days. You'll learn a lot more about fermentation process and procedures by poking around the forums here, I'm sure. As akueck mentioned, getting the rest of the nutrient in a little late isn't only not a bad thing, it may even be beneficial for the fermentation! But I wouldn't wait too much longer; go ahead and add the rest of the dose as soon as you can. If you search on the terms 'staggered nutrient addition' here on the forums you will find that after fermentation has proceeded past a certain point, then some forms of nutrient will not be taken up by the yeast, making it available instead for potential spoilage organisms at worst, or at least leaving it behind where it might affect the taste of your mead.

Good luck with your batch, and keep us updated on its progress!
 
Thanks!

Thanks for the welcomes and advice. As usual I bought the kit before I found this great forum and have read many different books on mead to date. I just thought I'd try the recipe they sent first.....oh well! Will add remainder of nutrient tonight. Thanks again!
 
Making alcohol (mead, beer or wine) is as much art as it is science. The nutrient is only needed as an insurance policy. I made many meads with no nutrient, or very little of it. There is some good science behind why and when to add it. But, there is also some nature here at work where the yeast will try to live and reproduce without it. However, the quality and consistancy of the final produce is more likely to turn out the way you expect if you feed the yeasty beasties.

So, don't worry about it to much! If it's in the first 3 days, add the rest now. If it's been a week, don't bother. Leave it out and see how it goes.

Congrats on your fist batch. Good luck to you too! :-D
 
Working now

Many thanks to all of you for the warm welcomes and friendly advice. I cracked open the bucket, smelled something wonderful (honey bread!), and then added the rest of the nutrient....incorporated that, then closed it back up. Within 30 minutes the airlock was bubbling like crazy. I'm a happy camper now. Thanks to all!

In case you are wondering, Sleepy Friar is the name of my mead. :cool:
Sleepy Friar Mead

Anyhow.....cheers!

Sleepy Friar

PS: here is the recipe from Leeners kit

6lbs of honey
2 teaspoons acid blend
1 teaspoon wine tanin
2 tablespoons (TABLESPOONS) yeast nutrient
1 packet wine yeast (Cote)
3 gallons spring water
3 camden tablets for the racking into carboy
 
Sleepy_Friar,

Thanks for posting the ingredients! This will help the folks on the site help you as well! Also, I'm sure you've read by now about keeping good mead logs. These are invaluable for tracking progress and improving your mead skills as you walk down this fun, enjoyable hobby!

BTW, what kind of honey did you use?

As to the kit, it sounds like it is rather light on the honey; 6 lbs (1/2gal of honey) with 3 gallons of water ~ 3.5gal starting volume, and according to the mead calculator, this has an ABV potential of only 8.3%.

Also, as Akueck and Wayneb stated regarding information on this site, start poring over the NewBee Guide in addition to the other areas in this site. The information and help will significantly help your progress!

Best of luck and WELCOME to GotMead!

Eric
 
Local honey

Eric,

I used honey gathered around 3 miles from my home. J/R Farms is a local apiarist in central Mississippi. The recipe called for 6lbs, but I actually added more than than because I like a slightly sweeter mead. We shall see. I plan on making a new batch following the basic recipe found on this site.
Thanks!

Sleepy Friar
 
Sleepy_Friar said:
Eric,

I used honey gathered around 3 miles from my home. J/R Farms is a local apiarist in central Mississippi. The recipe called for 6lbs, but I actually added more than than because I like a slightly sweeter mead. We shall see. I plan on making a new batch following the basic recipe found on this site.
Thanks!

Sleepy Friar
Click to expand...
Hum? well 6lb of honey in 3 gallons ? not only will it be low alcohol (relatively speaking) but it will also be as dry as a buzzards arse!

I'd suggest that if you can, add a further 3lb (you might need more to back sweeten with as well).

regards

fatbloke
 
fatbloke said:
...but it will also be as dry as a buzzards arse!
Click to expand...

LOL!

I generally go with 2-1/2 lbs per gallon if I want it dry, 3 lbs if I want a little residual sweetness and 3-1/2 lbs per gallon if I am sure I want a sweet finish... although now that I'm learning how to treat my yeasties better, I may have to adjust that upwards as they are able to process things better when I'm nicer to them (things like aeration and energizer).
 
Chevette Girl said:
LOL!

I generally go with 2-1/2 lbs per gallon if I want it dry, 3 lbs if I want a little residual sweetness and 3-1/2 lbs per gallon if I am sure I want a sweet finish... although now that I'm learning how to treat my yeasties better, I may have to adjust that upwards as they are able to process things better when I'm nicer to them (things like aeration and energizer).
Click to expand...

Well, in line with honey to water ratios and Sleepy_Friars future batches, here are some suggested guidelines:

Per the BJCP style guidelines for Mead:
Dry mead FG is <= 1.010
Semi-Sweet FG is 1.010 - 1.025
Sweet mead FG is 1.025 - 1.040+

Obviously, the strain of yeast will impact the FG, but for the sake of discussions, assuming a 14% ABV capable strain (that is well cared for, fed, etc.) and per the mead calculator, the following honey to water ratios for a finished mead at 1.000, 1.020 and 1.030 would nominally be as follows:

Dry = 3lbs of honey/gallon
Semi-Sweet = 3.5lbs/gallon
Sweet = 3.8+lbs/gallon

Again, using a yeast strain that has a lower alcohol tolerance as well as desireing to be at the lower or higher category limits will modulate these numbers, but this should provide a good starting point.

Eric
 
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