Alright so I am trying to make a JAOM and followed the recipe accordingly. However, at the supermarket I noticed multiple types of Fleischmann's yeast and was like woooah what is this what is going on and decided that it either had to be the "Quick Rise" or the "Traditional" ....and decided that the word traditional sounded like it must be the more common one. NOPE. After noticing that there was no airlock activity, I decided to research it and found out that because the yeast is so granulated that they recommend dissolving in water before adding. Did not know that! Did not know I was supposed to get the quick rise one. Is there any hope or shall I accept that I am one of the few people capable of actually screwing up a JAOM lol
I may have used a terrible yeast (JAOM Disaster?)
- Thread starter meadnoob_83
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Welcome! I'm a noob too.
If by "traditional", you mean "Active Dry", you go the right one. I don't think Rapid Rise is as active or hearty... it isn't in bread, anyway. As long as you didn't get the cube 'cake' yeast, you should be fine. And even that, I suppose, would give you some results. If I remember correctly, the binding agent in that stuff is corn starch. Not something you'd normally add to mead, but I don't think it would keep things from fermenting.
Patience is the absolute hardest part of the process. And, as Mark Twain (I think) said, experience is something you only get after you need it. Hang in there. Every one of us has been in the first-timer's shoes. There are so many knowledgeable people here that its hard to swing an empty honey bottle without hitting someone who's about to ask "what kind of mead did you make with it?" <grin>
I'm sure that many more people will chime in, and probably see something I missed, but it sounds like you're on your way.
It could take several days for the yeast to kick in, so I wouldn't panic just yet.
And by the way, I screwed up my first JAOM.
See ya,
Joe
I don't recall quick rise being the recommended yeast...
In any case, if you don't have noticeable activity in a couple days, repitch with rehydrated yeast. I bet you'll be fine though!
In any case, if you don't have noticeable activity in a couple days, repitch with rehydrated yeast. I bet you'll be fine though!
As the others have alluded too, the main way of messing up, is impatience.
We all presume that with all the sugars etc, that its gonna start fermenting instantly and worry when it doesn't.
Honey is strange stuff. It will ferment, otherwise there wouldn't be mead, but yeast is a type of fungus and with some, when they grow, you can see some activity pretty quickly but with other kinds it can take ages before you see any signs.
I have a brew on the go at the moment (not a mead) and have used the often mentioned EC-1118, which some seem to think of as a wonder yeast, yet I know better. This batch was pitched 10 days ago and is just starting to show signs of fermenting now......... and no, I'm not worried about it. Its doing its thing.....
So give it at least a week, I'd bet it'll be bubbling away by then and you'd be wondering why you were worried.....
We all presume that with all the sugars etc, that its gonna start fermenting instantly and worry when it doesn't.
Honey is strange stuff. It will ferment, otherwise there wouldn't be mead, but yeast is a type of fungus and with some, when they grow, you can see some activity pretty quickly but with other kinds it can take ages before you see any signs.
I have a brew on the go at the moment (not a mead) and have used the often mentioned EC-1118, which some seem to think of as a wonder yeast, yet I know better. This batch was pitched 10 days ago and is just starting to show signs of fermenting now......... and no, I'm not worried about it. Its doing its thing.....
So give it at least a week, I'd bet it'll be bubbling away by then and you'd be wondering why you were worried.....
The good thing about using the wrong yeast is that you can always repitch with the right yeast... I know someone who screwed up a JAOM because they decided to shortcut the honey... then wondered why it tasted so bad... also this same person decided to baby the jar (i.e. move it around)... yep, they also wondered why it turned out so bad too...
You didn't mess it up.. the first yeast I used was Felishman's Quick-Rise. I don't think it made any difference. As others have said, wait a week before you start to panic. Oh, I have had a mead completely ferment to 16%ABV without any visible airlock activity at all.
with JAO you're not supposed to re-hydrate the yeast, just pitch and forget, and leave it alone for the next few weeks.
with JAO you're not supposed to re-hydrate the yeast, just pitch and forget, and leave it alone for the next few weeks.
I think my very first batch was with breadmaker yeast, worked fine. +1 on the patience suggestion 
and failing that, +1 on rehydrating more bread yeast.
and failing that, +1 on rehydrating more bread yeast.forgiving
the great thing about JAOM is that it is a VERY forgiving recipe (the only thing it WON'T forgive, however, is impatience)...i live in the UK so cannot obtain Fleischmanns yeast...but my local supermarket own-brand bread machine bread yeast worked fine for JAOM...just as long as you follow the recipe (don't alter things, don't move it, shake it, etc.)...just leave it alone! My yeast took a good 48 hours before it began to bubble, and then it bubbled slow and steady for 3 months before the mead cleared. I now have a batch of lovely straw coloured mead, which I have just bottled. Patience is its own reward!
the great thing about JAOM is that it is a VERY forgiving recipe (the only thing it WON'T forgive, however, is impatience)...i live in the UK so cannot obtain Fleischmanns yeast...but my local supermarket own-brand bread machine bread yeast worked fine for JAOM...just as long as you follow the recipe (don't alter things, don't move it, shake it, etc.)...just leave it alone! My yeast took a good 48 hours before it began to bubble, and then it bubbled slow and steady for 3 months before the mead cleared. I now have a batch of lovely straw coloured mead, which I have just bottled. Patience is its own reward!
