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Really Strong Mead

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Loadnabox,
The 'formula' is nit linear, but for wine strength meads, the factor is about 135. ie. Multiply the difference in gravity by 135.
1.100-1.000=0.100*135= 13.5%
EASY. But use the calculator. It makes less mistakes than us poor unworthy humans.

FYI, the factor decreases as the expected strength decreases. There's a table on this forum somewhere that explains it. I just took the number 135 and forgot the rest.
 
kudapucat said:
Loadnabox,
The 'formula' is nit linear, but for wine strength meads, the factor is about 135. ie. Multiply the difference in gravity by 135.
1.100-1.000=0.100*135= 13.5%
EASY. But use the calculator. It makes less mistakes than us poor unworthy humans.

FYI, the factor decreases as the expected strength decreases. There's a table on this forum somewhere that explains it. I just took the number 135 and forgot the rest.
Click to expand...

Thanks!

There ya go! formula for the taking!

Now forget you saw this brain or I'll stab you with a crayon! MMmmmmm, free internet mead calculator.
 
Well my exam for today is over and I stopped by the winery and picked myself up a hydrometer to take the measurement. Came to about 1.002. I read hastily through the recent posts and will have to come back to read them later but sadly I'm in a rush. The instructions on the hydrometer tell me not to bottle unless the SG is under 1.005. So according to that it looks like I'm safe.
 
Mikejones said:
Well my exam for today is over and I stopped by the winery and picked myself up a hydrometer to take the measurement. Came to about 1.002. I read hastily through the recent posts and will have to come back to read them later but sadly I'm in a rush. The instructions on the hydrometer tell me not to bottle unless the SG is under 1.005. So according to that it looks like I'm safe.
Click to expand...

While your SG could go lower, at 1.002 it's pretty darned dry and there's not much chance of fermentation restarting UNLESS you backsweeten before bottling, in which case cold crashing and stabilizing would be recommended.
 
:eek: Don't trust that instruction!! Not safe!!

1.002 means there is still sugar left that can potentially ferment and create more CO2, (wines can ferment down below 0.995) you'll want to check it for a couple of weeks to make sure it is actually done (it PROBABLY is given that you used bread yeast), and you may want to stabilize it before bottling just to be safe. Bottle bombs are no joke.

One thing to remember about hydrometer readings - the actual numbers don't mean anywhere near as much as the change between readings. If it's at 1.010 and has stayed costant for a year, it's far safer to bottle than something that's only just finished fermenting a week ago and is at 1.002 when the next week it could be down to 1.001 or lower.

Oh, and if you use "too much" honey? Well, there are degrees of "too much". At best, you'll end up with a much higher alcohol content than you intended and it'll take a long time to mellow out enough to be pleasant to drink. Next degree of too much, it'll end up high alcohol but still very sweet because there was more honey in there than the yeast could finish, it might be just right or it might be way too sweet, it's very hard to calculate exactly where your yeasties will poop out. Perhaps the worst case scenario is that you have so much honey in your initial must that the honey kills off or stuns the yeast before fermentation even gets going (there are ways to deal with this, usually involving making a starter to let your yeast get established before you put them into a harsh environment).
 
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