Hello everyone. I started my first batch of mead yesterday. I only did a gallon for my first time. I used 3 lbs of pure honey which I got at a local health food store. Not sure which type of honey it is. I sanitized everything with Star San. I added the honey, yeast energizer, and yeast nutrient to the water and shook the hell out of it. Then I added about half a packet of yeast (Lalvin ec-1118) to a couple oz of warm water (just over 100 degrees f) for about 5 min and added it to the mix and shook the hell out of it again. I put on the airlock and put it in my closet wrapped in a blanket. I noticed the airlock started to bubble about once every 10 seconds immediately. I went to bed and checked it this morning and it's bubbling like crazy. I can see everything bubbling at a nice pace in the glass jug as well. Is this normal for it to start fermenting this fast? I though it would take at least a day. Is this maybe because of the yeast energizer or nutrient? I followed the instructions and measurements on the bottles. Do you think it could stop fermenting too soon? Thanks in advance for any help.
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Mead Fermenting too Fast???
- Thread starter reese27k
- Start date
So how do you know its fermenting too fast ?
How do you know that you haven't just created the right conditions and balanced environment for the yeast so its showing you its happy and not stressed by giving you bubbles ?
If it seems to be doing what its supposed to do, why do you suspect a problem ?
Did you take a starting gravity ? Have you measured it to learn how low its got since you pitched yeast ?
How do you know that you haven't just created the right conditions and balanced environment for the yeast so its showing you its happy and not stressed by giving you bubbles ?
If it seems to be doing what its supposed to do, why do you suspect a problem ?
Did you take a starting gravity ? Have you measured it to learn how low its got since you pitched yeast ?
Too fast? What does that mean? There is no such thing as "too" fast. Fast just means its a clean, happy ferment. By fast, I mean a fast gravity drop. Not bubbles. Bubbles mean very little.
Sorry if that was a dumb question. I had done some research before starting the batch and I read that it would take at least a day before you could actually see it fermenting. It just caught me off guard when it started to bubble so soon after I started. I wasn't able to check the specific gravity at first but I am going to get a hydrometer tonight. Thanks guys.
Not dumb at all. Just stated in a way that suggested that numbers might not have been taken and "surprise" at the bubbles......
Both indicative of a newer mead maker.......
If you get a hydrometer, once the bubbles stop, make a gravity test, then another say about 3 days later and repeat until you've got 3 identical reading and it can be considered finished (but that would depend on the consistent reading).
When taking readings, as long as you sanitise the kit you use to take and measure the samples, there's usually no problem in putting the sample back into the main body of the batch (I routinely do that all the time, using sanitised turkey baster, test tube 100ml and hydrometer).......
