Dharma

Recipes 

While this is my first mead and i typically try not to worry about these things, i thought i should ask:

I have 2 inches of yeast (and growing) building up in my 1 gallon secondary fermenter. I also added a few new raisins upon transfer into secondary fermenters. This seems like an abnormal amount of yeast settling. Is that so?

Should I take the raisins out?

Should I rack it again?

Should I leave it the eff alone?

Bugeaud

Recipes 

It's called a "Yeast Cake" and yeah it's like just dead yeast. It means your mead is nearing finishing (fermenting, you still have another year bulk aging, then bottle lol.)

fatbloke

Recipes 

Without knowing recipe, ingredients, technique, etc etc, it's hard to guess (no psychic ability here).

Some recipes can actually foster the production/growth of the yeast colony more than others, I'd guess that it seems to be dropping a fair amount of sediment - well it would be for a 1 or 2 gallon batch, but maybe not a 5 or 6 gallon batch.

Anyway, it would depend on the yeast as to whether there's any worry about how soon to rack. If the ferment is still going, I'd let it finish, as the dead yeast cells/sediment are often a source of nutrients etc for the yeast cells still doing their thing.

Newer mead makers often read about autolysis and start to worry. It doesn't happen over night, but it can be an issue when a ferment is finished and the weeks start to change to months (which isn't too say that it's definitely gonna happen after X amount of time).

There's also the issue of "sur lie" i.e. ageing a brew on the lees. Now I don't know for certain, which yeasts are good or best for this, but the only one that I've heard is best avoided, is 71B. Apparently, it's one that needs to be racked out reasonably quickly over a period of a month or two as the results of autolysis/batonnage/sur lie ageing will impart off flavours from that one specifically.

Just remember that it may also be that you need to remove it as it will increase your racking loses, etc etc....

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Dharma

Recipes 

3x 3in cinnamon sticks
6 lbs Wildflower Honey
2 cups Black tea
2 oranges
6 tsp lemon juice
2 gal water
12.5 oz. Grade A organic maple syrup
1 cup of sugar
50 (give or take) raisins
Lalvin 71B-1122 yeast


Thanks for the speedy responses, albeit my lack of information.

Bugeaud

Recipes 

The extra sugar and maple syrup in your recipe was really not necessary in my opinion. Hard to tell without SG readings, but seeing as how 71B-1122 goes up to around 14% (According to internet sources) I can see this coming out rather sweet.

Well, I've had at least 2 inches of yeast sediment in JAOM, so it says it's possible, but I guess JAOM is different seeing how the lees are so fine and cloudy and easily stirred up, they probably don't condense on the bottom very well.