Fermentation won't start.. Brew too acidic?

Hi HBT.

I recently found a recipe for a ginger brew.. I thought great, the recipe looked tasty. So i dished up a batch of it. But four days later, it hasn't started. I've repitched yeast several times. I wondering if it is too acidic for the yeast to start fermentation?

The recipe for 4.5 L is:

Four whole organic lemons (thrown in a blender)
A fistful of ginger
Sugar until content is enough for about 5% ABV
Some raisins
Top up with water
Yeast: Bioferm Champ

Does anyone have a clue as to why it is not starting? I've tried warming the carboy gently with luke warm water as well.

Thanks alot

pH probably too way low from lemons. Test it out using litmus strips, 3.2 at absolute lowest if you wanna see fermentation. You can add calcium carbonate but you can't add too much without getting off flavors. Another idea is to just water this down more and go from there.

Don't forget that raisins need to be cut, and you need to aerate (if it wasn't done yet). If I remember correctly, a lemon mead like this probably won't be too drinkable unless you backsweeten the living hell out of it.

snuesen said:

pH probably too way low from lemons. Test it out using litmus strips, 3.2 at absolute lowest if you wanna see fermentation. You can add calcium carbonate but you can't add too much without getting off flavors. Another idea is to just water this down more and go from there.

Don't forget that raisins need to be cut, and you need to aerate (if it wasn't done yet). If I remember correctly, a lemon mead like this probably won't be too drinkable unless you backsweeten the living hell out of it.

Click to expand...

Thanks for your reply. It is already aerated and raisins were cut before they were added. I tried watering it down a bit the other day.. I added another 1.5L of water but nothing happened yet. Im thinking to water it down further and then gradually add the mash. I tried making a starter with just a bit of mash in it and it worked.. I think i'll try watering it down further. Thanks again!