Hello,
I am very new to mead making and I currently have two batches going.....1st one is about 3/4 of a gallon....The 2nd batch is about 2 gallons.
I started the first batch around 1/11/06....It is basicly a spice mead style with ginger, cloves, fennel, and anise as the main spices added, there is also some brown sugar and clover honey as the sweets......I cook a lot and so I felt ok about experimenting instead of following a strict mead recipe......The must was about as sweet as a Coca cola soda.
So only after about five days the bubbler has completely stopped......At about that time I steralized a stir stick and stirred up the mix a bit......The bubbles started again (barely) and now eight days into it, the bubbles completely stopped again......I am guessing that I didnt put enough honey into the must correct?
Last night I tasted a nip of the stuff, and it tasted a lot like beer with a clove and ginger snap to it....(I was suprised how good it tasted already)......However the smell of the stuff in a the glass was more like wine.......There was absolutely no sweetness flavor anymore. Which is really why I tasted it in the first place, figureing that if there was no more sweetness then the fermentation must be done.
Anyway, For my questions....I really thought the fermentation process would have gone on for at least two plus weeks.....Was it was cut short because I didnt have enough honey in the must........Or does the fermentation process take less time with smaller quantities of must? As I said, 1st batch was only about 3/4 of one gallon, mabe a little less even.
My 2nd batch is still bubbling away nicely.....It was started on 1/13/06.....I believe this one has much more honey added.....This batch is more of a traditional mead and is basicly honey, water, and tea.
I forgot to mention that I am using Lalvin yeast EC 1118 and I also added a bit of lemon juice to both batches to up the acidic levels a bit.
I am very new to mead making and I currently have two batches going.....1st one is about 3/4 of a gallon....The 2nd batch is about 2 gallons.
I started the first batch around 1/11/06....It is basicly a spice mead style with ginger, cloves, fennel, and anise as the main spices added, there is also some brown sugar and clover honey as the sweets......I cook a lot and so I felt ok about experimenting instead of following a strict mead recipe......The must was about as sweet as a Coca cola soda.
So only after about five days the bubbler has completely stopped......At about that time I steralized a stir stick and stirred up the mix a bit......The bubbles started again (barely) and now eight days into it, the bubbles completely stopped again......I am guessing that I didnt put enough honey into the must correct?
Last night I tasted a nip of the stuff, and it tasted a lot like beer with a clove and ginger snap to it....(I was suprised how good it tasted already)......However the smell of the stuff in a the glass was more like wine.......There was absolutely no sweetness flavor anymore. Which is really why I tasted it in the first place, figureing that if there was no more sweetness then the fermentation must be done.
Anyway, For my questions....I really thought the fermentation process would have gone on for at least two plus weeks.....Was it was cut short because I didnt have enough honey in the must........Or does the fermentation process take less time with smaller quantities of must? As I said, 1st batch was only about 3/4 of one gallon, mabe a little less even.
My 2nd batch is still bubbling away nicely.....It was started on 1/13/06.....I believe this one has much more honey added.....This batch is more of a traditional mead and is basicly honey, water, and tea.
I forgot to mention that I am using Lalvin yeast EC 1118 and I also added a bit of lemon juice to both batches to up the acidic levels a bit.