Orange spice, smells funny.

Started 21/02/2009

Orange spice mead.

Main ingredients
3.5lbs oranges
8lbs windflower honey
1 Dried pear half, sliced up
3 Chunks Crystallised ginger
Small Handful raisins
Small Handful of dates
Splash of Maple syrup
4tbs Christmas Flavour tea
3Gal of water
2 tsp Yeast nutrient (Diammonium Phosphate,Ammonium sulphate)

Spices
Ginger powder
Clove powder
Cinnamon powder
Ground nutmeg


Method
1.Washed the oranges and took the zest from half of them.
2.Removed all the skins and mashed up the flesh and added to my fermenting bin.Added all the spices and other ingredients here too.

3.Dissolved 8 lbs of honey in a gal of cool water and added to the fermentation bin.

4. Made up to 3 gallons and left to stand in warm place 2hrs. To bring the must up to a reasonable temperature.(took a sample to make a yeast starter,added a little warm water to the starter.)

5.Took a hydrometer reading.SG was 1.090~ give or take.

6. Aerated the must with a sanitised paddle for 5 mintues or more.

7.Added the yeast starter ,that I prepared earlier, to the mixture whilst it was still swirling.

8. Put the fermenter lid on and left.


The lag time ended Saturday evening,I aerated the must twice on sunday and all was well.

I went to college today without aerating it and when I got home my whole brewing room smelled of orange juice that had been left under a radiator , quite nasty. I checked the sg and it wasn't at the 1/3 break, so I aerated it vigerously which got rid of most of the smell.

What do you think the problem is, its being fermented at 71 degrees F ~, too warm? Should I remove the orange fruit cap or just aerate it some more?

Everything else seems fine, its fermenting vigerously.

1/3 sugar beak

Thismorning it had reached the 1/3 sugar break, so it was down to 1.060~ from

Looks like the regular aerating early on payed off as there was no longer an unpleasent smell.

I have removed the fruit cap and it smells even better now. The yeast activity is churning the liquid all on its own. It looks like mini eruptions of lees swirling all over the place.

TheRabidKumquat said:

But I don't see any where what yeast you used. That might help the more experienced people here answer your question so that it doesn't happen again.

Click to expand...

It was a Young's "Boredeaux" yeast, not sure how good or bad they are.

I used it with the intention of making something smooth and rich with a festive flavour to put down for christmas, though I don't know alot about yeast.


I'm going to rack one gallon of it onto some gorse flowers, as they are in flower at the moment. Not sure how it will come out, but if you don't try you will never know.