I lost about 1/3 to 1/2 of my product using this process. I think I also obtained a serious case of PTSD.... Loud noises in my kitchen now freak me out. Most of the lost mead was due to caps blowing off but several bottles broke as well.
I started with a slightly more carbonated batch of mead which I tested using the soda bottle technique. I was out of town and let it go a bit to far. Still, the bottles did not gush, they were carbonated like a champagne might be. Pop Pop Boom, I ended up losing 3 six packs out of the two cases. I figured it was the carb level and I had to power through b/c they were going to be bottle bombs either way.
Next up, another much less carbonated batch of mead. I figured I better get it done to avoid the same problem. Same thing... In fact, I lost a whole case out of two cases.
Scary and nerve racking.
I'm wondering a couple things. Is it possible each bottle has a different carb level? My method for adding carb was to back sweeten with honey and add a little bit of yeast, then bottle. The carb seems very consistent with the bottles I had to open and drink to get through this process... Opening every bottle to check carb level isn't really an option when you have 96 bottles to pasteurize. How can I avoid this problem in the future? I see many people have used this method successfully so I can't figure what I did wrong. I thought maybe it was the hot bottom of the pan contacting the bottles?
I heated the bottles to 120 in my sink, then added 6-7 bottles to 180 degree water in my pot.
I have 8 gallons of cider I need to bottle and would like to use the same process. How can I do that knowing I'm in for hours of trauma???