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sweet mead methods

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Oddball

NewBee
Registered Member
Nov 7, 2013
9
0
0
Montreal
Hello,

I have been brewing beer for about 2 years now and am starting to try my hand at mead making. I prefer sweat mead and have a question about the process.

Is there a consensus or "best practice" for producing sweet mead? Do you think that it is better to stop fermentation at a desired final gravity or to back sweeten?

Also as far as stopping the fermentation, what fg's produce different levels of sweetness?

Thanks for you help!
 

Jim H

Worker Bee
Registered Member
Jun 8, 2013
434
2
18
NYC
Hi oddball, welcome. I also came at this via beer brewing.

One of the folks on this forum, fatbloke, mentioned this general method to me, and so far, so good:
Ferment bone dry, to the limit of the yeast's tolerance, then backsweeten by adding honey (in small steps, until you know how much you like). You can adjust the tannins and acid in the same way. This lessens the chance of bottle bombs, and gives you the most control over the flavor. This is a very practical method.
 

danr

Got Mead? Patron
GotMead Patron
Aug 2, 2012
432
4
0
San Diego, CA
Also as far as stopping the fermentation, what fg's produce different levels of sweetness?

Welcome to GotMead. Be careful, it is addicting.

From the NewBee Guide (link in menu on left side of page):
Dry: 0.990 – 1.006
Medium: 1.006 – 1.015
Sweet: 1.012 – 1.020
Dessert: 1.020+
(The NewBee Guide and the Search command are your friends.)

There is no wrong way to make a sweet mead. I typically ferment dry, stabilize with sorbate and sulphite, and backsweeten to taste. Others cold crash and stabilize at the desired sweetness or step feed until the yeast reaches its ABV tolerance. From what I have read, the least predictable strategy is to try to use the ABV tolerance of your yeast to anticipate an exact final gravity. Yeast can be unpredictable and the data provided for wine yeast may not directly translate to mead.

A ratio of 15 lbs of honey for a 5 gallon batch is a common way to start, which gives a starting gravity around 1.11. You do not want to start too much higher or it might stress out your yeast. There is a Mead Calculator and a Yeast Table linked from the left sidebar menu that can also help you plan your mead.
 

fatbloke

good egg/snappy dresser.....
GotMead Patron
The "start lower, ferment dry" method just seems to be less fraught with problems that you read about when trying the "all fermentables up front" technique.

The later works fine for beer but that is a much lower start gravity and not all sugars fermentable.

Honey numbers tend to be considerably higher and its close to 100% fermentable.....
 

Oddball

NewBee
Registered Member
Nov 7, 2013
9
0
0
Montreal
Welcome to GotMead. Be careful, it is addicting.

From the NewBee Guide (link in menu on left side of page):
Dry: 0.990 – 1.006
Medium: 1.006 – 1.015
Sweet: 1.012 – 1.020
Dessert: 1.020+
(The NewBee Guide and the Search command are your friends.)

There is no wrong way to make a sweet mead. I typically ferment dry, stabilize with sorbate and sulphite, and backsweeten to taste. Others cold crash and stabilize at the desired sweetness or step feed until the yeast reaches its ABV tolerance. From what I have read, the least predictable strategy is to try to use the ABV tolerance of your yeast to anticipate an exact final gravity. Yeast can be unpredictable and the data provided for wine yeast may not directly translate to mead.

A ratio of 15 lbs of honey for a 5 gallon batch is a common way to start, which gives a starting gravity around 1.11. You do not want to start too much higher or it might stress out your yeast. There is a Mead Calculator and a Yeast Table linked from the left sidebar menu that can also help you plan your mead.

Thanks, I did read through the guide, but I must have overlooked that.

The "start lower, ferment dry" method just seems to be less fraught with problems that you read about when trying the "all fermentables up front" technique.

The later works fine for beer but that is a much lower start gravity and not all sugars fermentable.

Honey numbers tend to be considerably higher and its close to 100% fermentable.....

Thanks for all of the responses. You helped me out over at HBT as well if I am not mistaken. I figured I could probably find more detailed and thorough information over here.

So, if I understand this correctly....once fermentation is complete, I would rack onto my sorbate, sulphite, and backsweetening honey to taste? I am doing 1 gallon batches and want a semi sweet mead so I would start small , perhaps 1/4 of a pound to hit around 1.010 (according to this chart: http://www.homebrewersassociation.org/attachments/0000/4795/Mead_Maker_of_the_Year_Panel.pdf ), then taste and add more if needed. I hope I don't end up drinking it all during the back sweetening. It is only a gallon after all....
 
Last edited:

Noe Palacios

Aristaeus' Apprentice
GotMead Patron
Hi oddball, welcome. I also came at this via beer brewing.

One of the folks on this forum, fatbloke, mentioned this general method to me, and so far, so good:
Ferment bone dry, to the limit of the yeast's tolerance, then backsweeten by adding honey (in small steps, until you know how much you like). You can adjust the tannins and acid in the same way. This lessens the chance of bottle bombs, and gives you the most control over the flavor. This is a very practical method.

Here's how I backsweeten my semi-sweet meads:

  • Ferment bone dry
  • Stabilize = Metabisulfit + Sorbate
  • I don't use honey on backsweeten, neither sugar. I use endiginous sweet fruits, just enought to extract mostly sugars. To calculate how many fruit use I usually google it in order to know their sugar concentration. I estimate about 100% because I leave them in the barrel no more than months without any issue.


Saludes,
 

Oddball

NewBee
Registered Member
Nov 7, 2013
9
0
0
Montreal
so do you use the calculator and put in just enough honey to reach the alcohol tolerance of your yeast?

I am not 100% but I don't think the alcohol tolerance of the yeast is relevant when backsweetening. You could use the guidelines from the newb guide posted by danr above along with this http://www.gotmead.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=423&Itemid=14 in order to achieve the gravity for the desired style. What I plan to do is shoot for the bottom end of the range (i.e. 2.25 oz of honey to hit 1.006 for medium) and add more to taste if needed. Hopefully that will work. I suppose you could use the calculator to do the same thing.
 
Last edited:

Oddball

NewBee
Registered Member
Nov 7, 2013
9
0
0
Montreal
It is relevant only insomuch as the closer the ABV is to the tolerance of the yeast, the more reliable the chemicals will be in making sure the yeast don't start fermenting again.

Thanks for the clarification.

So, for example, sorbate and bisulphite are less likely to do what they were intended to do if the fermentation stopped very high leaving the abv much lower than the potential/tolerance of the yeast? So it is relevant for the chemicals typically used before backsweetening but not necessarily the act of backsweetening itself or in determining how much to backsweeten. Is that accurate?
 

kudapucat

NewBee
Registered Member
Dec 2, 2010
2,383
10
0
Bundoora, Melbourne, Australia
The chemicals are used to 'stabilise' a mead.
This is often done as a matter of course, even when not back sweetening, just to ensure the yeast don't wake up hungry one day.
Meta bisulphate kills yeast, sorbate stops them reproducing, alcohol kills yeast.
Use all three an you have a higher chance, than using one alone.
It's also easier to kill yeast in their sleep, so make sure they're not up and eating when you do it.
No sugar, cold temperatures, high alcohol, all make for good times to stabilise.
 

MikeTheElder

NewBee
Registered Member
Sep 18, 2013
114
1
0
Central Ohio,USA
The only nearly 100% safe way to make sweet mead that I've used is to ferment dry then stabilize with k-meta and K sorbate before back-sweetening.

K-meta releases SO2 which is toxic to yeast, although some strains are more tolerant of SO2 than others.

K-sorbate prevents yeast cell reproduction

It is my understanding that yeast cells have a lifespan of only a couple weeks when hydrated, so k-meta in conjunction with k sorbate is pretty much guaranteed to kill off already stressed yeast from either high %ABV or fermenting dry and the survivors are neutered, then allowing to clarify a few weeks before back-sweetening makes sure they all died off from old age.

To regulate the %ABV of your Mead, just limit how much sugar you feed them, use the Mead calculator or use the potential %ABV scale on a hydrometer, they aren't perfect but they are pretty close
 

Chevette Girl

All around BAD EXAMPLE
Moderator
Lifetime GotMead Patron
Apr 27, 2010
8,443
53
48
Ottawa, ON
It is my understanding that yeast cells have a lifespan of only a couple weeks when hydrated, so k-meta in conjunction with k sorbate is pretty much guaranteed to kill off already stressed yeast from either high %ABV or fermenting dry and the survivors are neutered, then allowing to clarify a few weeks before back-sweetening makes sure they all died off from old age.

I'm not sure about that, considering yeast have woken up years after appearing to be stable.
 

Chevette Girl

All around BAD EXAMPLE
Moderator
Lifetime GotMead Patron
Apr 27, 2010
8,443
53
48
Ottawa, ON
Yeah - don't underestimate the tenacity of yeast.

Unless, of course, you WANT them to keep going. Then, of course, the'll stall out no matter what you do. Them yeasties, sometimes I think they just want to drive us 'round the bend.
 

bernardsmith

Got Mead? Patron
GotMead Patron
Sep 1, 2013
1,611
32
48
Saratoga Springs , NY
Hello,

I have been brewing beer for about 2 years now and am starting to try my hand at mead making. I prefer sweat mead and have a question about the process.

Is there a consensus or "best practice" for producing sweet mead? Do you think that it is better to stop fermentation at a desired final gravity or to back sweeten?

Also as far as stopping the fermentation, what fg's produce different levels of sweetness?

Thanks for you help!

There is a third option. You have the quantity of honey in the must that the yeast can easily convert to the level of alcohol you want. The yeast stop creating alcohol because there is no more sugar for them to convert. You stabilize the mead after all the yeast have been racked off or have died and then you back sweeten. In other words, there is less chance and luck involved and far more control by you..
 

Shelley

Honey Master
Registered Member
Sep 13, 2013
365
32
28
Harford, NY
MeadMagic.com
Just for comparison, my personal tried-and-true method of making sweet meads (our favorite variety in my home) is to load everything up front to an SG of my desire, ferment with cotes-de-blanc and bottle when it's done. I've never backsweetened any of my sweet meads, and that lets me keep the beverage pretty chemical-free (save for the campden tablets on the outset, since I don't heat my must).

This isn't my preferred method for a semi-dry, but with the sweets it's worked fine every time.
 

Medsen Fey

Fuselier since 2007
Premium Patron
And it will work fine every time until the time when the yeast decide wake up again. While Cote des Blancs is less prone to do this than a Champagne strain, I have seen it happen when things warmed up and would suggest long bulk aging before bottling.


Sent from my THINGAMAJIG with WHATCHAMACALLIT
 

Shelley

Honey Master
Registered Member
Sep 13, 2013
365
32
28
Harford, NY
MeadMagic.com
And it will work fine every time until the time when the yeast decide wake up again. While Cote des Blancs is less prone to do this than a Champagne strain, I have seen it happen when things warmed up and would suggest long bulk aging before bottling.


Sent from my THINGAMAJIG with WHATCHAMACALLIT

Right - your mileage may vary, especially with the yeasts involved. Three years and counting for some of my sweet meads. (Which, in retrospect, means I really need to drink more mead!)
 
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