target values for TA, pH, sulfite?

[cfiffpm]

This is my first mead. It appears very similar to winemaking, so now that primary is complete I feel like I should be adjusting TA, pH, and sulfitiing. But most newbie mead guides don't mention these steps, and even the excellent "NewBee guide" on this site only mentions the chemicals in passing.
In mead-making, do you normally do these steps?

-Do you do a post-fermentation adjustment of Total acidity, and if so, what value range are you shooting for?
-After you've adjusted TA and have your final pH, Do you use a post-fermentation sulfite treatment in mead? and if so, would use the same ppm target as you would for a white wine? A red wine? Something different?
-Lastly, would you sulfite just once before bulk aging, or also just prior to bottling as you would in wine?

Sorry I don't have my exact gravities or pH/TA readings...I'm out of town on a business trip, but if you can answer in theory, then thanks in advance!
(the recipe I used is basically JAOM with a half pint of blueberries thrown in)

 

[fatbloke]

Welcome to the forums.......

similar to wine making ? Yes

same as wine making ? No

new bee guide linked in left side yellow box. Check that first and some of that will be apparent.

ph values can be important, especially with traditional, because of the nature of honey and ferment reaction. Equally TA is hard to test.

There are few real standards with meads and it's often down to personal preferences. The style being generally described but FG and ingredients/adjuncts.........

 

[antonioh]

Wellcome Cfiffpm !

I am from a country of grapes and wine, and here many do wine.

I had a vineyard in the family and about thirty year ago I used to play winemaking, so, being hobbyist beekeeper, I began trying making mead four years ago, applying the same principles I applyed to wine...I was not very successful...

Somehow, mead usually has less body than white wine. For instance, 100 ppm of kmeta in mead, are very much more detectable than in white wine.

 

[Bob1016]

TA cannot be tested with one way titration (you have to use a base and an acid titration to get the acidity), so it's not regularly tested. Acid adjustments are best done by taste using acids or fruit.
SO2 requirements are the same as wine: you want the correct amount of free SO2 for the pH. I tend to sulfite after ferment (about 2 weeks after), and at 6months and bottling (12-18months).
pH is best increased prefermentation to prevent stuck ferment due to low pH. After fermentation you can lower the pH if needed for taste and microbial stability. If the pH is high (>3.8) it might be advisable to lower it to reduce the amount of SO2 needed.

 

[McJeff]

Kinda a side question. But how do you lower ph In a mead?

 

[Bob1016]

Same way you increase TA: add acid, or add acidic fruit (still adding acid).

 

[GntlKnigt1]

Calcium carbonate lowers pH . See my blog entries for article on alcohol, pH and sulfites. Oh, and if it is a JAOM, you don't need to fuss with it.

Sent from my Nexus 7 using Tapatalk

 

[Bob1016]

Carbonates raise pH. Of the carbonates, calcium carbonate is the least effective due to low solubility, which is why you see a lot of people use potassium carbonate, or potassium bicarbonate.
I agree, it's a JAOM. It doesn't need fussing with (normally).

 

[GntlKnigt1]

Carbonates raise pH. Of the carbonates, calcium carbonate is the least effective due to low solubility, which is why you see a lot of people use potassium carbonate, or potassium bicarbonate.
I agree, it's a JAOM. It doesn't need fussing with (normally).

You're right of course..... don't know where my head was at.