Howdy all, I am fresh to the mead thing, and have started a batch with all the hopes and dreams of someone completely naive to the process... after reading about mead ad nauseam I started a 'wild' batch about a week and a half ago, using a 4:1 ratio of water to raw, unfiltered honey, period. I read that there are enough wild yeasts, nutrients, etc. in 100% raw unfiltered honey to make mead without adding anything extra, so I didn't (was that my first mistake?). According to the book I was reading (The Art of Fermentation by Katz) I should have seen vigorous bubbling and active fermentation shortly after mixing up my batch, provided I stir, stir, stir to allow for oxygen to feed the yeasts while they established themselves. Then once the bubbling subsided, I was supposed to transfer to a carboy with an airlock and let it do it's thing.
So I mixed, I stirred, I stirred, I stirred... and nothing. After about 3 days, my must started smelling very yeasty, though it never bubbled, so I kept stirring and waiting, and after a few more days with no bubbles but a strong yeast smell I transferred it into my carboy with an airlock, and topped it off with fresh water and honey at the same 4:1 ratio. It has now been in the carboy/airlock setup for 4 days, and there have been zero bubbles STILL, and this morning there was a thick filmy layer on the quarter-sized surface area that looked like the wax caps, pollen, etc. mixed with slimy mold. It was whitish-gray with black dots throughout, but it still smells yeasty- not boozy OR vinegary.
At this point, I've skimmed the goo off the top and replaced the airlock, but I feel like I'm missing something obvious out of ignorance. Is my batch ruined? Was it a bad call to try this for the first time using "wild" fermentation? Why have I not seen a single bubble, or experienced any effervescence when the mead is stirred?
*sigh* I need some help. Thanks in advance!
So I mixed, I stirred, I stirred, I stirred... and nothing. After about 3 days, my must started smelling very yeasty, though it never bubbled, so I kept stirring and waiting, and after a few more days with no bubbles but a strong yeast smell I transferred it into my carboy with an airlock, and topped it off with fresh water and honey at the same 4:1 ratio. It has now been in the carboy/airlock setup for 4 days, and there have been zero bubbles STILL, and this morning there was a thick filmy layer on the quarter-sized surface area that looked like the wax caps, pollen, etc. mixed with slimy mold. It was whitish-gray with black dots throughout, but it still smells yeasty- not boozy OR vinegary.
At this point, I've skimmed the goo off the top and replaced the airlock, but I feel like I'm missing something obvious out of ignorance. Is my batch ruined? Was it a bad call to try this for the first time using "wild" fermentation? Why have I not seen a single bubble, or experienced any effervescence when the mead is stirred?
*sigh* I need some help. Thanks in advance!