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sean_bingham

NewBee
Registered Member
Jul 3, 2017
13
0
0
Hello GotMead community,

I started my first batch of mead on 7/3/17 and it appears to be complete?

Recipe:
3lbs clover honey
1tsp yeast nutrient
.5tsp yeast boost
Lalvin wine yeast 71B 1122
Water to a gallon

S.G: 1.110

Had very steady bubbling for the first 4 days and then it rapidly declined to about once a minute. I checked the gravity today and it is 1.0. Does this mean that I am done in about a week? There is still very light bubbling about every minute or so and it does not appear to be very clear although I have it in a green carboy so it is somewhat difficult to tell. Should I rack it off the yeast and let it sit for some time or keep it in the primary for a while longer? It is not sweet at all, I just wanted to do a simple mead for my first recipe, has no bad taste to it that I could detect. Thank you for any advice and help.
 

bernardsmith

Got Mead? Patron
GotMead Patron
Sep 1, 2013
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Hi sean_bingham - and welcome. My 2 cents: While water has a gravity of 1.000, alcohol and water should have a gravity of less than 1.000 so if your gravity is 1.000 that means that there are still some sugars that could be fermented. The final gravity may not drop below 1.000 but it could fall as low as .996 or .994. In short your mead may not be fully fermented. But in addition,
yeast produce all kinds of substances as they ferment sugars, now you may not taste these chemicals but others might, and very young or green meads need a few weeks for the yeast to clear up these chemicals - and they will.
Should you rack this mead off the lees? I would say that you should. Racking will help allow the mead to clear more easily but you want to ensure that the carboy you fill is filled up into the neck so that there is virtually no head room.
But others on this forum may have a different take.
 

Squatchy

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So I respect Bernard's opinion as well as all of his great post here in our community.

I somewhat jokingly say "ask 10 mazers a certain question and you'll get 15 different answers".

It's kind of true. There is both science and art involved in making mead and this allows several different paths to the finish line. I have tasted many a great mead made in different ways, that turn out great at the end of the day.

I personally leave my yeast in the vessel for several weeks after the ferment is over. I believe they do several things to cause the mead to come good quicker.

1. I believe they continue to act as sponges and absorb different things that take more time to age out if the yeast aren't there to absorb leftovers.

2. I also believe they will hang around and eat their own leftovers. The same things that take time to age out. Contrary to a lot of peoples understanding. Yeast don't die right away once they reach their ABV tolerance level, They do stop assimilating sugar into ethanol. But the ferment doesn't stop because they die. For those that don't believe me try this. Wait a few weeks after your gravity has stopped moving and then add some water. If it's dry add some honey. If it's not ,,ok. By diluting the ABV with water. And providing they have either residual sugar or added fresh honey/sugar. They go back work. Proof they didn't die like you all think they did. That's why things restart months and years down the road. Even when they have thought to have been dead by chemicals and filtering.

With this in mind. Once you do stop rousing your yeast they drop out very quickly because the polymerization that has occurred makes them weigh more and they will drop out more quickly and compact harder as well. This action then shortens the amount of time a mead has to age to get better. You pitched on 7/3. Just 9 days ago. I would stir your yeast every other day for a month and then stop stirring so they drop and then rack them.

The only time I believe it's best to rack off the lee's right away is if you have had a reductive batch. (sulfur/rotten eggs smells). You don't want that locked up in a vessel because it will bind over time and you won't be able to get rid of the foul nose. That's why we teach to stir the crap out of a smelly mead as soon as you get the first hint of smell and feed it more food.
 

Dadux

Worker Bee
Registered Member
Jan 5, 2016
725
3
18
Spain, Europe
Hello GotMead community,

I started my first batch of mead on 7/3/17 and it appears to be complete?

Recipe:
3lbs clover honey
1tsp yeast nutrient
.5tsp yeast boost
Lalvin wine yeast 71B 1122
Water to a gallon

S.G: 1.110

Had very steady bubbling for the first 4 days and then it rapidly declined to about once a minute. I checked the gravity today and it is 1.0. Does this mean that I am done in about a week? There is still very light bubbling about every minute or so and it does not appear to be very clear although I have it in a green carboy so it is somewhat difficult to tell. Should I rack it off the yeast and let it sit for some time or keep it in the primary for a while longer? It is not sweet at all, I just wanted to do a simple mead for my first recipe, has no bad taste to it that I could detect. Thank you for any advice and help.

Im going to be the "bad guy" and tell you that gravity reading shouls always be 1.XXX. im guessing 1.0 is 1.000 but please clarify.
9 days of ferment is a bit short, it could be done it might need a few more days.

I do as Squatchy and leave the lees there. I dont know for sure if they do or not what he said, but i know the mead turns out better. I also read that keeping the yeast in suspension will protect against oxidation (mead doesnt oxidize much anyway) and bind proteins that make mead cloudy, leaving a clearer mead once you rack, and i have never had problems when i kept the yeast there.
Thats my opinion and experience of course.
In any case i would not recommend to rack right away. If you decide you dont want to rouse the lees for a month thats fine but give it at least another week. The ferment is probably still a bit active, and there is no reason to not give it the extra time
 

caduseus

Lifetime GotMead Patron
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Aug 20, 2016
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I disagree and agree with Bernard smith. He is correct if you can't pay attention to your mead and stir at least 2x/week. Leaving the yeast WITHOUT stirring will be bad for your mead absolutely as the yeast autolyse and damage the mead.

However if you have the time and energy to stir 2x/week there are 2 benefits:
1) the first 30 days you get the yeast helping you clear the mead as the stirring rouses th long enough to beak down byproducts
2) Sur lie ageing. This process has been done for at least decades in the wine world. It adds body to the beverage. Depending on the yeast it can be done for 4-9 months.

http://morewinemaking.com/public/pdf/wwhiw.pdf
Pp. 40-42
 

sean_bingham

NewBee
Registered Member
Jul 3, 2017
13
0
0
Thank you Bernard, squatchy, dadux and caduseus.

There are still bubbles every once in a while in the airlock so I guess it is still active and will leave it sit for the time being and give it a few stirs.

One another note there are some bubbles that only form at night on the top of the mead, large bubbles and seem strange to me but It may be nothing. I can't seem to upload pictures to the post from my phone, I made the picture my profile picture but I don't know if you will be able to see it well.
 

sean_bingham

NewBee
Registered Member
Jul 3, 2017
13
0
0
Sorry, the 1.0 was meant to mean 1.000. Still getting used to the wording and necessary specificness. Thank yoy for letting me know.
 

darigoni

Got Mead? Patron
GotMead Patron
Jun 4, 2016
945
63
28
Brookline, NH
Thank you Bernard, squatchy, dadux and caduseus.

There are still bubbles every once in a while in the airlock so I guess it is still active and will leave it sit for the time being and give it a few stirs.

One another note there are some bubbles that only form at night on the top of the mead, large bubbles and seem strange to me but It may be nothing. I can't seem to upload pictures to the post from my phone, I made the picture my profile picture but I don't know if you will be able to see it well.


I think there's a data size limit on images.

As a follow up to all this great advice; can you tell us how much yeast was used in your batch and what the temperature is/was?
 

sean_bingham

NewBee
Registered Member
Jul 3, 2017
13
0
0
I used one packet of the lalvin wine yeast and I'm not sure on the temperature when pitched. The thermometer I had planned to use wound up being broken, I now have a new thermometer for next time. The mead is kept in the house at a typically steady 74-76.
 

bernardsmith

Got Mead? Patron
GotMead Patron
Sep 1, 2013
1,611
32
48
Saratoga Springs , NY
Truth is I very much agree with Squatchy and I was having a hard time deciding how I should word my post. My concern was about whether sean_bingham was fermenting in a carboy that was filled right up inside the neck or whether his green carboy had a few inches of headroom. If there was no headroom I would argue along with many on this forum that you really want as many of the yeast cells to stay in contact with the mead to allow them to clean up after themselves. But if there was a great deal of headroom, despite the working assumption that mead is less open to oxidation, I don't know of any hard evidence (and that may be my ignorance) that demonstrates the truth of that assumption, so I would "err" on the side of caution (especially with novice meadmakers) and argue that racking when the gravity drops as low as 1.000 is better than exposing the mead to air (O2) and that racking won't remove anything like 100% of the yeast which is why fruit is so often fermented in the secondary with no worry about whether there are enough viable yeast cells after a first racking.

So again - and to agree with Squatchy - mead making is both art and science which is why there are at least as many opinions and preferences as their are mead makers. It's the way each mead maker views the particulars of each batch as either more or less critical, or more or less incidental, which guides those decisions. It's a bit like medicine: seasoned doctors are not likely to treat a 20 year old with a serious condition in quite the same way that they would treat a 95 year old suffering from the same condition and exhibiting exactly the same symptoms. Treating both exactly the same way would not necessarily be "good medicine".
 
Last edited:

Dadux

Worker Bee
Registered Member
Jan 5, 2016
725
3
18
Spain, Europe
Thank you Bernard, squatchy, dadux and caduseus.

There are still bubbles every once in a while in the airlock so I guess it is still active and will leave it sit for the time being and give it a few stirs.

One another note there are some bubbles that only form at night on the top of the mead, large bubbles and seem strange to me but It may be nothing. I can't seem to upload pictures to the post from my phone, I made the picture my profile picture but I don't know if you will be able to see it well.

The bubbles and foam on top of the must are nothing. It's called Krausen. Nothing to worry about. They happen because of the composition of the honey you used, and a bit from the yeast too. Some strains foam more others less, and some honey varietals will yield more foamish ferments because of their composition, but its ok.
 

sean_bingham

NewBee
Registered Member
Jul 3, 2017
13
0
0
Bernard, there is probably around a inch of the carboy before the neck and then the length of the neck. Also it is a 4 liter carboy instead of a 1 gallon so it has a little bit more room.
 

sean_bingham

NewBee
Registered Member
Jul 3, 2017
13
0
0
Ok perfect I was afraid it was an infection of some sort and me precious mead was going to go bad.
 

sean_bingham

NewBee
Registered Member
Jul 3, 2017
13
0
0
Thank you all very much for your help. I feel I'm more equipped to make an informed decision now.

Does anyone have a recipe or can point me in th direction of a good maple mead? I just want to do a gallon batch and thought it could be an interesting one. Or your favorite mead recipe? Next batch I want to do something with some flavor.
 

Dadux

Worker Bee
Registered Member
Jan 5, 2016
725
3
18
Spain, Europe
Thank you all very much for your help. I feel I'm more equipped to make an informed decision now.

Does anyone have a recipe or can point me in th direction of a good maple mead? I just want to do a gallon batch and thought it could be an interesting one. Or your favorite mead recipe? Next batch I want to do something with some flavor.

A maple syrup and honey mead is called Acerglyn. You can search for that in the search engine, on the top right. They are not very common beacuse the syrup is expensive and its usually added after the ferment and its a bit more complicated than what i would suggest.

My advice would be to make a traditional with good nutrients (Fermaid O or K or one equivalent of Fermaid K) and improved process. Post a detailed recipe before buying the stuff so we can advice you on what to do and not do, and if your plan had flaws.

Good nutrients go a long way. Getting some Fermaid O (the best) or Fermaid K/Wyeast wine nutrient (second best) will help wonders, and better ditch the ones you used this one (sorry, you bought the bad stuff. It happens a lot. Mead is not beer or wine). If i were you I'd take another yeast too, to experimet. Some recomendations of common mead yeasts are K1V or M05 (this two are very durable, good for newbees) or D47 and CY3079 (not as tough, you need to be more careful, specially keeping temps at 15-20ºC with D47).

Read the newbee guide.
To see what we advice newbees to do during the ferment, read the last 5-6 posts of this thread http://www.gotmead.com/forum/showthread.php/26793-Batch-001?p=266367#post266367

After the ferment is over you can backsweeten, add spices, oak, or whatever you want, if you want.

If you want more detailed recipes, you can find them searching, and in The Mead Log.
 

darigoni

Got Mead? Patron
GotMead Patron
Jun 4, 2016
945
63
28
Brookline, NH
Some really good advice from Dadux. Read. Check out the 9 episode YouTube Meadology series, by Canadian Sasquatch and do a lot of searching/reading on this forum.

The Canadian Sasquatch also has a great video on how to make a BOMM:

https://youtu.be/U1gJmPsaSFE

More details of which can be found here:

https://denardbrewing.com/blog/post/brays-one-month-mead/

You'll not only end up with some good mead, but it will introduce you to SNA (staggered nutrient additions) and becoming more interactive with your fermentation. (Aerating and degassing).
 

sean_bingham

NewBee
Registered Member
Jul 3, 2017
13
0
0
A maple syrup and honey mead is called Acerglyn. You can search for that in the search engine, on the top right. They are not very common beacuse the syrup is expensive and its usually added after the ferment and its a bit more complicated than what i would suggest.

My advice would be to make a traditional with good nutrients (Fermaid O or K or one equivalent of Fermaid K) and improved process. Post a detailed recipe before buying the stuff so we can advice you on what to do and not do, and if your plan had flaws.

Good nutrients go a long way. Getting some Fermaid O (the best) or Fermaid K/Wyeast wine nutrient (second best) will help wonders, and better ditch the ones you used this one (sorry, you bought the bad stuff. It happens a lot. Mead is not beer or wine). If i were you I'd take another yeast too, to experimet. Some recomendations of common mead yeasts are K1V or M05 (this two are very durable, good for newbees) or D47 and CY3079 (not as tough, you need to be more careful, specially keeping temps at 15-20ºC with D47).

Read the newbee guide.
To see what we advice newbees to do during the ferment, read the last 5-6 posts of this thread http://www.gotmead.com/forum/showthread.php/26793-Batch-001?p=266367#post266367

After the ferment is over you can backsweeten, add spices, oak, or whatever you want, if you want.

If you want more detailed recipes, you can find them searching, and in The Mead Log.

The nutrient I used was Fermax, is this not a quality nutrient? Also is the yeast boost necessary or just suggested for a stuck ferment?

I plan on getting some D47 for next time and do a side by side.
 

sean_bingham

NewBee
Registered Member
Jul 3, 2017
13
0
0
Some really good advice from Dadux. Read. Check out the 9 episode YouTube Meadology series, by Canadian Sasquatch and do a lot of searching/reading on this forum.

The Canadian Sasquatch also has a great video on how to make a BOMM:

https://youtu.be/U1gJmPsaSFE

More details of which can be found here:

https://denardbrewing.com/blog/post/brays-one-month-mead/

You'll not only end up with some good mead, but it will introduce you to SNA (staggered nutrient additions) and becoming more interactive with your fermentation. (Aerating and degassing).

Thank you for the sources of where to dive deeper into knowledge on the process.
 

Dadux

Worker Bee
Registered Member
Jan 5, 2016
725
3
18
Spain, Europe
The nutrient I used was Fermax, is this not a quality nutrient? Also is the yeast boost necessary or just suggested for a stuck ferment?

I plan on getting some D47 for next time and do a side by side.

Nearly all of your questions are anwered somewhere around here ;)
http://www.gotmead.com/forum/showthread.php/26745-Fermaid-K-vs-Fermax?highlight=fermax
You'd do well on reading to understand what are the differences in different nurients and what they bring.
I have no clue what your yeast boost contains, sorry. But those things are usually DAP and vitamins or stuff, and if so, wont do you more good than Fermax. Fermax is way better than nothing, but wont get you as far as Fermaid K or O.

D47 is a very picky yeast. Needs to be treated well, specially temp wise. If you are going over the 20ºC i would not recommend it. There are other great strains for mead that are a lot more versitile and will give you less problems in case of stress (be that from temperature or otherwise). That being said if you pick some good nutrients and will have the temps under 20ºC you can use it.
 

Squatchy

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Nov 3, 2014
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I have never made a me that I didn't just absolutely love using D21 from my yeast
 
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