Hello! I'm sure the answers I need are here in the forums, but I'm not sure which issue is my primary problem, and so I was hoping to get some experienced opinions sooner rather than later, so that I will be less likely to lose by batch!
I am making my first mead, but I have experience making wines from kits. I researched as much as I could about meads before starting a batch. Here is what I have, started at 8:00 pm EST last night:
Orange-spice melomel (inspired by Joe's Ancient Orange but I changed things, see notes below)
6 gallon batch
22 lbs. white clover honey (Sue Bee brand)
spring water to make 6 gallons
1/4 tsp ground cloves
1/4 tsp ground allspice
5 sticks cinnamon
3 tsp yeast energizer (LD Carlson brand, label ingredients in order are Diammonium phosphate, Springcell, and Magnesium sulphate, no percentages given)
6 navel oranges, zested and peeled, all parts except white pith added
1 packet Lalvin ICV D47 yeast, 5 grams, rehydrated according to package directions
Beginning S.G.: 1.130
Beginning temperature: 72 F
pH: roughly 6, used roughly titrated chemistry pH strips as my wine strips don't measure high enough.
Steps:
Mixed the yeast in a separate cup with 105 F water according to package to rehydrate. Added all the honey and about 2 gallons of 150 F water to the carboy and stirred, using a drill-mounted mix-stir. Added the balance of spring water to make 6 gallons and stirred. Checked S.G., at 1.130. Added cloves, allspice, and cinnamon sticks and stirred. Added yeast energizer and stirred. Added orange zest and about 2/3 of the peeled orange slices before I ran out of room (oops). I removed 25 oz. of orange spiced honey water for use to sweeten hot tea (recipe bonus!). Added the rest of the orange slices and stirred. Rechecked S.G., still at 1.130, clogged my wine thief with orange pulp, fun. Checked pH, was a pretty purple dot on the wine pH tester(higher than 4.4), so rechecked with full range chemistry strips, at about 6. Added rehydrated yeast, stirred well. Capped the carboy with an orange cap and airlock and stuck it in its corner.
Measures this morning at 10:30 am EST:
Temp: 62 F (no heating apparatus on the carboy)
No fermentation activity
Stirred the must and checked pH, still 6.
S.G. 1.134 (up either from temperature difference or sugars in oranges)
Tastes fine, like orange honey water.
Additional notes:
I did not pasteurize the honey. I figured if it was sold in the big box store it's already had enough done to it.
The honey amount is high, as I am trying to make a dessert mead. I thought about backsweetening, but I was hoping to not have the new honey added cause the hazing effect I've read of, and I wanted to have the tastes blend without years of aging.
Though I have Fleischmann's bread yeast, I used Lalvin D47 because I had read negative opinions about the flavors imparted by the bread yeast. I am sensitive to the yeast taste in the wines we make, and so I thought the Lalvin, designed for fermenting, would be less likely to impart the yeast taste. Since it dies out at 12-14% abv I thought it would be okay.
I rehydrated the yeast according to the Lalvin package directions, adding only warm (105 F) water, choosing to not make a yeast starter since I was already adding the energizer in the must and was worried about the effect.
I did not use raisins, but used the yeast energizer as a (hopefully adequate) substitute. I don't like raisins, and did not want to risk their taste coming through.
I zested and peeled the oranges to remove the bitter pith (don't like that either). Bitter finishes in wine are yucky for me, I just can't get over them, and every sip compounds the effect.
I have not added heat to the carboy, since this yeast says it works from 59 F to 68 F, and my heating belt will bring the temp up to 72-74 F.
My main worries are: 1) Is there enough yeast for 6 gallons of high-gravity must? 2) Is the gravity too high to ever start fermenting at all? 3) Do I need to increase the temperature, and if so, to what? 4) Will the yeast energizer work to nourish the yeast, and is there enough, or is there something else I should add? Do I need those nasty little buggy raisins?
I do have an extra carboy right now, so if I need to split the batch to add water and lower the gravity I can do that.
Thank you in advance for your input! I know it may be early still for worries, but I don't want to wait too long if there is something I need to do right away.
Karen
I am making my first mead, but I have experience making wines from kits. I researched as much as I could about meads before starting a batch. Here is what I have, started at 8:00 pm EST last night:
Orange-spice melomel (inspired by Joe's Ancient Orange but I changed things, see notes below)
6 gallon batch
22 lbs. white clover honey (Sue Bee brand)
spring water to make 6 gallons
1/4 tsp ground cloves
1/4 tsp ground allspice
5 sticks cinnamon
3 tsp yeast energizer (LD Carlson brand, label ingredients in order are Diammonium phosphate, Springcell, and Magnesium sulphate, no percentages given)
6 navel oranges, zested and peeled, all parts except white pith added
1 packet Lalvin ICV D47 yeast, 5 grams, rehydrated according to package directions
Beginning S.G.: 1.130
Beginning temperature: 72 F
pH: roughly 6, used roughly titrated chemistry pH strips as my wine strips don't measure high enough.
Steps:
Mixed the yeast in a separate cup with 105 F water according to package to rehydrate. Added all the honey and about 2 gallons of 150 F water to the carboy and stirred, using a drill-mounted mix-stir. Added the balance of spring water to make 6 gallons and stirred. Checked S.G., at 1.130. Added cloves, allspice, and cinnamon sticks and stirred. Added yeast energizer and stirred. Added orange zest and about 2/3 of the peeled orange slices before I ran out of room (oops). I removed 25 oz. of orange spiced honey water for use to sweeten hot tea (recipe bonus!). Added the rest of the orange slices and stirred. Rechecked S.G., still at 1.130, clogged my wine thief with orange pulp, fun. Checked pH, was a pretty purple dot on the wine pH tester(higher than 4.4), so rechecked with full range chemistry strips, at about 6. Added rehydrated yeast, stirred well. Capped the carboy with an orange cap and airlock and stuck it in its corner.
Measures this morning at 10:30 am EST:
Temp: 62 F (no heating apparatus on the carboy)
No fermentation activity
Stirred the must and checked pH, still 6.
S.G. 1.134 (up either from temperature difference or sugars in oranges)
Tastes fine, like orange honey water.
Additional notes:
I did not pasteurize the honey. I figured if it was sold in the big box store it's already had enough done to it.
The honey amount is high, as I am trying to make a dessert mead. I thought about backsweetening, but I was hoping to not have the new honey added cause the hazing effect I've read of, and I wanted to have the tastes blend without years of aging.
Though I have Fleischmann's bread yeast, I used Lalvin D47 because I had read negative opinions about the flavors imparted by the bread yeast. I am sensitive to the yeast taste in the wines we make, and so I thought the Lalvin, designed for fermenting, would be less likely to impart the yeast taste. Since it dies out at 12-14% abv I thought it would be okay.
I rehydrated the yeast according to the Lalvin package directions, adding only warm (105 F) water, choosing to not make a yeast starter since I was already adding the energizer in the must and was worried about the effect.
I did not use raisins, but used the yeast energizer as a (hopefully adequate) substitute. I don't like raisins, and did not want to risk their taste coming through.
I zested and peeled the oranges to remove the bitter pith (don't like that either). Bitter finishes in wine are yucky for me, I just can't get over them, and every sip compounds the effect.
I have not added heat to the carboy, since this yeast says it works from 59 F to 68 F, and my heating belt will bring the temp up to 72-74 F.
My main worries are: 1) Is there enough yeast for 6 gallons of high-gravity must? 2) Is the gravity too high to ever start fermenting at all? 3) Do I need to increase the temperature, and if so, to what? 4) Will the yeast energizer work to nourish the yeast, and is there enough, or is there something else I should add? Do I need those nasty little buggy raisins?
I do have an extra carboy right now, so if I need to split the batch to add water and lower the gravity I can do that.
Thank you in advance for your input! I know it may be early still for worries, but I don't want to wait too long if there is something I need to do right away.
Karen
