Pre-boil the water?

Hi all, I'll be making my first mead this week. I'm not going to boil the honey (just aiming for about 115 degrees or so), but I was wondering if you recommend pre-boiling the water the night before, then letting it cool. Is this normal, or should I just go with the spring water I have coming?

Good technique to get out some undesirables in treated city water.
I do not have access to a well, unfortunately, and don't like the idea of bottled water. I usually either give it a boil for an hour or let it sit a few days uncovered. I heard someone call the later technique a "chlorine rest" once. Not sure of the science behind it, but both seem to improve water quality IMHO. using both techniques together might just work even better.

i don't really like the idea of bottled water either... but I use it. I use distilled water I get from the grocery store for 69 cents a gallon. If it's distilled, there's nothing in it but good ol' H20. (Or so one would hope.)

I read that distilled water isn't good for mead because it is lacking in minerals for the yeast. As I understand it, the wort from brewing beer is sufficient to feed the yeast, but with mead, using spring water (i.e. water with more minerals) aids in fermentation.

Bottled spring water is pasteurized, give consistent results batch-2-batch. You can also get a mineral report for the brand you use. I would have to ruin a batch with questionable water when it is relatively cheap. Plus it's way easier not to boil.

I use water directly from the tap when making mead and wine and mine turns out fine.

Boiling your water can drive off dissolved O2, which makes it less yeast-friendly when you pitch. In my experience (which goes back a few deca..., er, years), boiling anything prior to mixing your must is generally unnecessary unless you get your water from an open surface groundwater source (like directly from a lake or stream). If you are pitching a viable commercial yeast (liquid or dry), that is almost always all you need -- the commercial strains of yeast are far more aggressive than most of the things naturally found in city or well water.

boiling tap water doesn't remove chloramines either. you'd need campden tabs for that.

when i make mead I just buy spring water a the grocery store. A couple extra $ and peace of mind.

cant you just oxidize the "wort" *Honey/water* like in beer making? i have a 5 micron ss oxidation stone and was thinking of just running that in the wort for a few minutes.

Thor the Mighty said:

cant you just oxidize the "wort" *Honey/water* like in beer making? i have a 5 micron ss oxidation stone and was thinking of just running that in the wort for a few minutes.

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That's what I do, as well as twice a day for the first couple of days. It results in a very healthy fermentation when used in conjunction with the proper nutrients.

wait, during the first couple days of fermentation, you pry the lid off, and oxidize it again? i thought that'd give it some kind of cardboard taste....but then again i usually just brew beer and stay away from that..

Thor the Mighty said:

wait, during the first couple days of fermentation, you pry the lid off, and oxidize it again? i thought that'd give it some kind of cardboard taste....but then again i usually just brew beer and stay away from that..

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This is where beer brewing and winemaking (and likewise meadmaking) are completely different animals. Beers ferment to relatively low ethanol concentrations (on average), and thus beer yeast use less oxygen, and produce less CO2, than an equivalent volume of yeast in a wine must. Wine yeast use more O2, and need it available throughout at least the first 1/3 of fermentation, in order to be relatively stress free. So, while introducing any air post-pitch is heresy to the typical beer brewer, it is standard practice for an experienced wine or meadmaker. Different strokes for different folks.... :fro: