Question on my first mead.....

Actually this is my third attempt at any kind of Home brew...have done cider twice in the past. I have drank quite a bit of Hard Cider, my grandfather would let several gallons go hard every year, but I'm not counting those.....LOL!

This is also my first post...been a lurking for several months.

I made the Habanero Mead recipe listed under the recipe section. Except for adding a cinnamon stick and a teaspoon of Fermax Yeast Nutrient I followed the recipe to a T. I am using a one gallon glass jug with a drilled rubber bung and a three piece airlock filled with Vodka.

I sanitized everything with 1-Step including the Habanero's.

This morning I notice there is a bunch of muck in the Jug, looks very similiar to a "mother" you would see in a vinegar.

Not worried at all, I'm just wondering if this is normal?

There is a bubble every now and then in the airlock, but I understand it may take awhile for the Mead to get started, the muck is what concerns me....Honey ain't cheap....LOL

This is a great forum and I'm looking forward to being a member for many years.

Welcome to HBT!

It's probably just normal fermentation crud but if you could get a picture it would be good so we could see what you are seeing.

You can't post it here yet but because you're new but you can put a link to a site like Photobucket.

Thanks for the response!

I'm heading out to do some Thanksgiving shopping will stop by my office and grab a camera, and post a link later this afternoon.

Thank you for the welcome!

Not sure if this will work, but here are a few pictures. The muck seems to have all floated to the top, originally it was hovering...very little action in the airlock. I'm thinking it's OK....but would like an expert opinion..

the stuff above the water line is normal. thats just dried honey from the foam caused by the fermentation bubbles. the stuff below the line ... not sure what that is. did you pasteurize the chillies before you added them?

I soaked them in One step sanitizer for about a minute or so and let them dry.

I was very careful with regard to the sanitation stuff.

I forgot to mention I added one cinnamon stick, and I couldn't figure out how to sanitize it. Now that I think back on it I should have thrown it in with the honey and water while I heated and kept it at 180 for the 45 minutes.....

The pictures were taken at about the 24 hour mark.

I also added one teaspoon of Fermax Nutrient along with the Montrachet.

Yeah that's very interesting.

Maybe it's some krausen on it's way down the bottle? I've never seen anything quite like that, but I've never made one with fresh fruits and veggies.

Also, one step I don't think is a real sanitizer..I think it's a no-rinse cleanser that says "sanitizer" on it.

Go with iodophor or star-san in the future.

Most likely it is yeast / honey layering and resting. I see it often in my glass primaries. Once fermentation kicks off it will all get mixed up.
Cinnimon has oils that slow fermentation, not a big issue it will just go slower, but I usually add stuff like that after a week of a strong fermentation going on.

After 48 hours it seems like all is well...the airlock is burbing once every 10 seconds or so and the much is beginning to slowly settle.

Thanks Kauai!!! Looks like you're right on the money!