Really stuck, literally and figuratively

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I made a blueberry melomel..... Half way

10/17/08
15# clover honey
Energy/nutrient pack
fill to ~5 gallons using bottled spring water
EC-1118
OG 1.091
Airlock was bubbling in 18 hours

11/7/08 (yes only 3 weeks activity had stopped and there was a thick layer of lees)
Racked onto 40oz Blueberries and an additional 5# clover honey
Gravity sample was taken during racking 1.055

11/8/08
No new bubbling activity, but had started drawing great color from the berries. Gravity was 1.088. Blueberry packaging listed no preservatives

11/11/08
Still no activity, pitched a new starter of EC-1118. Fed the starter a few ounces of the blueberry must over a few days to acclimate to the must.

11/12/08
The following morning it was bubbling away. I went out of town for 12 days.

11/24/08
Returned this day and still had occasional bubbles (1 every 3-5 minutes)

11/30/08
No bubbling observed

12/8/08
Racked off berries, didn't want berries to keep leeching more sugar into a stuck fermentation.
Off the berries gravity was 1.080

It smells like blueberry schnapps. Sweet, strong alcohol, and strong berry flavors.


I believe the problem was insufficient aeration. Since this incident i have purchased an aeration kit and used it successfully.

I need advice to save this batch....
 
Question...Mr Big Kahuna, why do you always post after me? I mean seriously why cant I have the last say on anything? Of course its fine when your response follows one of mine to let me know I succeeded in getting you to spit out your coffee :D
 
About aeration, some questions (I might be having a similar problem)
Apparently there is some controversy on stirring or shaking the must for aeration. My first I shaked, and progress was steady. The second one I stirred vigorously, but bubbles at day 7 are already somewhat scarce (and it´s four times the volume of the first one). On measuring it (1100+OG--->1090 now) I gave it a small stir, but it did seem to improve a bit.

So, is in your opinion shaking better then stirring? (or just in some kinds of mead?)
Is the aerator (with filter) a absolutely better way to do it (I´m thinking of buying one)
Do berries mead suffer specially from aeration trouble?
 
for aeration go buy the stir stick, its a plactic rod with two little fins that fold up to get in the carboy and fall in once there. at the top of the stick is a metal nub that fits in a drill. This is what I use just start slowly so you dont make a mess, I did that once
 
Put it in a deep, dark closet, and forget about it for 6-9 months. You've probably got higher alcohols, which need to age out. These things take time.
 
based on the gotmead.com calculator my Total OG should be 1.145 and it is only 1.080 after 2 months and no activity. Waiting 6 months is not going to solve this.

I've started a solid 1.5 quart starter. I'm planning on racking off one gallon and pitching a well aerated starter in to the other 4 gallons. Then once the large batch (hopefully) takes off, i will rack it back on to the 1 gallon and leave an active 1/2 gallon bottle to finish.
 
based on the gotmead.com calculator my Total OG should be 1.145 and it is only 1.080 after 2 months and no activity. Waiting 6 months is not going to solve this.

I've started a solid 1.5 quart starter. I'm planning on racking off one gallon and pitching a well aerated starter in to the other 4 gallons. Then once the large batch (hopefully) takes off, i will rack it back on to the 1 gallon and leave an active 1/2 gallon bottle to finish.

That sounds like a good plan. Don't forget to add yeast nutrient to the must.
 
based on the gotmead.com calculator my Total OG should be 1.145
Although I do not use that calculator, I do know that your recipe (15# of honey, water to make 5 gal) should result in a must OG of 1.106, not 1.145.

The math is: (1.4171)*(1.271)+(1.000)*(3.75) = OG (Vt)
Vt = 1.271 + 3.75 = 5.02 gallons, and 1.4171 = SG of 18% MC honey, water = 1.000 [15# of honey =1.271 gallons)

Do the math and the OG = 1.1058 (rounded to 1.106)
 
Although I do not use that calculator, I do know that your recipe (15# of honey, water to make 5 gal) should result in a must OG of 1.106, not 1.145.

The math is: (1.4171)*(1.271)+(1.000)*(3.75) = OG (Vt)
Vt = 1.271 + 3.75 = 5.02 gallons, and 1.4171 = SG of 18% MC honey, water = 1.000 [15# of honey =1.271 gallons)

Do the math and the OG = 1.1058 (rounded to 1.106)


Read more carefully and you would see i added an additional 5# and dried blueberries. Therefore 20# of honey, and berry sugar. Thanks for the backup though.
 
Read more carefully and you would see i added an additional 5# and dried blueberries. Therefore 20# of honey, and berry sugar. Thanks for the backup though.
I did review the recipe and I believe the misunderstanding was based on the fact the the berries and extra 5# of honey were added 3 weeks after pitching the yeast.

From the yeast's viewpoint the OG is what it sees at the point it enters the must. Supplemental fermentable additions do not change the recipe's Original Gravity, but does alter the final gravity...

Just a difference in terminology - no harm, no foul... :)
 
Success!!!!!

I have saved this batch.

Accomplished by a divide and conquer.
I took to 5 gallon carboys, added 2 gallons of spring water to each and aerated them thoroughly. Then I racked 2.5 gallons of stuck mead on top. I pitched a 1.5 liter starter into one of the carboys and pitched a rehydrated 10grams into the other.

Both were bubbling actively at 36 hours, after 2-3 days when steady fermentation had taken over i added an addition 2.5lbs of honey to each carboy. Strong fermentation continued for 10-12 days.

Here is the complete recipe:
~10 gallon batch
25# honey
2 nutrient/energizer packs
40 oz of dried blueberries

During the next racking i will taste and decide if more blueberries are necessary. Prior to splitting the batch the color was a solid purple, barely translucent in a glass. The carboy was deep purple/black. After splitting it obviously has a nice soft purple, and looks almost like a clear lavender color in a glass. Now all i need is a 10 gallon bottling bucket to completely blend both together.
 
Right on, glad it worked out. I need to do something similar to my stuck batch of mead too, now I'm feeling hopeful.
 
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