Flour in meadmaking

Not a nutrient, a fining agent. Flour would act as a positive ion attractor and help remove particles/cloudiness. It wouldn't be my top choice as a fining agent because of the possibility of introducing different yeasts to your must.

The practice of using flour stopped with the production of other fining agents as flour does add a flavor some people don't like. The TTB (Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Board) does allow soy flour to be used as a fining agent.

I'd say you didn't get much increased activity - yeast doesn't eat flour, it eats sugars. You just got more junk in the must so as carbon dioxide formed, the flour helped to form bubbles and froth up.

Baking 101: Yeast converts the complex carbohydrates in flour into the simple sugars that it feeds on.

So it is possible that flour can in fact effect the growth of yeast in mead. How much and to what extent I haven't a clue.

When being used as a fining agent, it might be added to the must, more then likely it would be add to the finished Mead or wine after fermentation, when the alcohol level would be fatal to any wild yeast.

Anthony

Adding particulate matter to a fermenting must or wort helps the yeasties by better allowing them to stay in suspension. You can accomplish the same purpose by adding yeast hulls, or by stirring the must from time to time. That might be what is going on.

As nutrient additive -- not very likely. Flour contains complex carbohydrates, which the yeasties can't use. This is the purpose of the mashing process in brewing, breaking down complex carbohydrates into simpler sugars which the yeasties can use.

Adding on to what Dan mentioned below, one of the main reasons to add particulate matter is to keep the yeast in suspension. This is important because while they are in suspension they have better access to sugars and nutrients they need to ensure a healty and vigorous fermentation.

It's been my experience that the more opaque or turbid a honey must is, the better the yeast ferment. While a nice big jug of crystal clear honey is great to look it, it really does not produce a must that is as good for your yeasties as a jug of really turbid honey does. The more turbid the must, the better the yeasties like it. In highly clarified grape, fruit or honey musts it is recommended by many of the big yeast manufacturers to add yeast hulls to the must. The hulls contain lipids, polysaccharides and chitin which are all beneficial to the yeasties during the fermentation of your must.

Cheers,

Oskaar

Dmntd said:

Baking 101: Yeast converts the complex carbohydrates in flour into the simple sugars that it feeds on.

So it is possible that flour can in fact effect the growth of yeast in mead. How much and to what extent I haven't a clue.

When being used as a fining agent, it might be added to the must, more then likely it would be add to the finished Mead or wine after fermentation, when the alcohol level would be fatal to any wild yeast.

Anthony

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Sorry Anthony, not fully correct.

There are two stages during the fermentation of a dough made from flour, water, salt and yeast, and with no extra sugar added.

First of all, yeast ferments sugars naturally present in flour, which can be directly and easily assimilated. These sugars represent about 1.5% of the flour weight. At the end of this first stage, gaseous releases more or less slow down.

The second stage corresponds to the fermentation of a sugar contained in flour called maltose. Maltose comes from the action of some enzymes, the amylases, on the starch granules of the flour, damaged during the milling process. Amylases which are naturally present in flour, split starch into small fractions of a much simpler sugar, the maltose. The action of amylases starts as soon as water is added to the flour and stops during baking.

The action of the flour amylases is completed by that of another enzyme of yeast, the maltase which, in its turn, splits maltose to give the most simple sugar, glucose. The glucose is transformed by the yeast into carbon dioxide and alcohol.

Maltose formed from starch must be present in sufficient quantity so that the production of carbon dioxide makes dough rise correctly until it is put in the oven.

However, baking and brewing are not the same. A teaspoon of 2 of flour would not be processed by the yeast, since there is an overabundance of available sugars in the must. More likely Dan and Oskaar are correct, the flour acts as a suspension agent, and fining properties are minmal.

Also note that many wine kits call for adding the fining agent, usually bentonite, at the beginning of the brewing process. The idea is that the carbon dioxide acts to keep the bentonite in motion, rising and falling to grab more particulates and thus a better clearing than just dumping in the agent after CO2 production has stopped. Not that I agree with that logic, but that's what a large number of kits recommend.

Thurisaz said:

Heya,

if memory serves, Fwee wanted to ask this question for me some days ago, but I haven't seen any posting from him mentioning this (of course I may just have overlooked it ), so here goes...

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Nope, you didn't overlook anything. You just beat me to it. That's all. ;D

As soon as I saw the title, "Flour In Meadmaking", prior to clicking into the Newbee section, I just knew that you were finally here.

What kept ya? Loki get in your way again? :'(

;D

Thurisaz said:

copy of "Thief: Deadly Shadows"...

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I see that you're still reading material that enriches your morality.






;D

I have no idea what that book is about.

Thanks Lugh,

I couldn't remember exactly how that worked, nor find the information.

As you've said, the yeast ferments sugars naturally present in flour.

Anthony

I'm still hooked on Rome Total War (with the Rome Total Realism mod) it's really addictive.

Cheers,

Oskaar