DAP and Fermentation

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Wraithraider

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I need a sanity check. I started a one gallon batch of a cherry melomel at the end of last week. I followed a traditional schedule of adding nutrients at the sugar breaks but then something odd happened. It stopped fermenting. Entirely and within minutes of adding the nutrients. The airlock hasn't moved in over 24 hours and the fluid in it is responding to negative pressure. Has this happened to anyone else? Thanks.
 
What is the exact recipe?

What was your starting Gravity?

What is the current gravity?

Finnally ... And I know this is coverecd in the recipe but I stress this because it is important .. What yeast was used?

Let us know that and we can suss out the issue much more efficiently.
 
Recipe was simple and designed to finish dry and tart.
1lb of local wildflower honey.
Half a gallon of black cherry juice.
Qt. Of warm water to soften honey and dissolve 1/8 tsp of yeast nutrient and energizer.
Rehydrated 5g of Lalvin 71B.
When temp was right everything was put in a glass gallon jug. Aerated like my life depended on it
Brought to one gallon with more water and pitched yeast.

I had activity within 3 hours of pitching. SG was approx 1.1
Ph was acceptable as well, but don't recall exactly what.


What I found out last night was that sometimes if you add too much DAP regardless of yeast type, gravity, or volume, you can cook the yeast.
They get supercharged on the minerals, metabolically speed up, and then generate so much heat they cook themselves. I suspect this is what actually occurred given how immediate the reaction was. I have used all of these ingredients In the past successfully.

Thanks for the help Arpolis.
 
If tou started with 1/8th tsp of yeast nutrient and inly added at the normal sugar breaks I would think you did not go over 1 or 2 tsp of total nutrients right?

That level of DAP on 71b should be fine. It sounds more like fermentation is just finished. I have seen gallon batches ferment that fast. My cucumber mead was about that fast. My most recent strawberry mead only took about 12 days. Probably only 10 or 11 but I did not check it's gravity then.

So the original gravity was 1.100, what is the current gravity.
 
I would gladly tell you the current gravity, but guess what just broke? Won't be able to get another hygrometer quick enough.

I took what you said in to consideration. I agree with your assessment about the amount of nutrients. I figured my scaling back was in the ballpark. Also, you may be right about the sugar. I was thinking pitching another 5 grams of 71B. Figured they would make up for the potential overdose or eat any remaining sugar. Couldn't hurt, right?
 
At the time of the addition it was 1.06. My FG goal was hopefully closer to 1.00
 
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