Mead still fermenting after 3 weeks - help me!

Hi, first home brew so decided to follow this recipe:

http://www.makemead.net/easy-bread-yeast-mead-recipe.aspx


Its been 2 weeks since I put the balloon (in my case a spare condom cos I didn't have anything else at the time) and its still holding up stiff (haha).
Anyways, what should I do?

Cheers,
James.

Mead is active for 6 - 9 months, so you're a long way from having a finished batch. Also, think about it... why did the condom inflate? Yeast produces CO2 gas as a byproduct. Where is that gas going? How is it escaping? I think you'll find your answer there .

As a side note: I highly recommend going to the nearest store for a pack of balloons. Aside from the comical nature of using a rubber, many condoms contain spermacides, lubricants, and other chemicals that will both kill yeast and ruin the flavor of your batch. Plus, you lose any credit with women you bring over when they find out there was a rubber over the mead you're trying to serve them.

Best bet... buy a balloon and draw a smiley face on it. It goes over far smoother with the ladies.

Yeah, I also agree, but stet the balloon and go buy and airlock and stopper (2$ combined). Also a mead fermenting for 9 months is NOT good. Not sure where you got those numbers,

but 3 weeks without any nutrients is far from unheard of. You may even end up going another 2 weeks before it stops. Mead musts are pretty much void of nutrients which yeast require for a fast, healthy ferment.

MarshmallowBlue said:

Yeah, I also agree, but stet the balloon and go buy and airlock and stopper (2$ combined). Also a mead fermenting for 9 months is NOT good. Not sure where you got those numbers,

but 3 weeks without any nutrients is far from unheard of. You may even end up going another 2 weeks before it stops. Mead musts are pretty much void of nutrients which yeast require for a fast, healthy ferment.

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Here are some sources:

http://ramblings.markstarmer.co.uk/2011/05/marks-triple-fermented-mead/

https://www.homebrewtalk.com/f163/what-yeast-strain-use-6-month-mead-364125/

https://www.homebrewtalk.com/f30/does-mead-continue-ferment-119842/

To be honest, he hasn't really given any information other than an inflated condom. For all we know, it's an 80 gallon tank with 3 bags of granulated sugar, topped with a jimmy cap.

Fermenting and Aging are two very different words, which look like some (many) people have gotten mixed up. Fermenting is when there is changes in gravity between X time and X time. Also remember that airlocks are not capable of telling you when it is fermenting or not.

Mark's Triple fermented mead- Has 0 gravity readings to mark any active fermentation, but does Age it for some time.

The second article also lacks gravity but the big issue is the use of the wrong word between ferment and age. A quote from Robert George in the second post is case and point, and uses the correct terminology.

That said, a wine yeast such as champagne or montpellier would ferment it out pretty fast, perhaps in as little as 3 days. That at least would give you a head start on your bulk aging.

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Remember that just because its done fermenting, doesn't mean that it is done. The only thing I can think of that takes 9+ months to actually ferment would be sours and wild ferments (due to yeast viability and count). While I'm sure there are exceptions where an unfed mead took 9 months to actually ferment, it is not something to strive for.

I've used a 2L soft drink bottle and adjusted the ratios of the recipe as such, so as to make a smaller batch and not waste too many ingredients. Also, instead of raisins I put a twist on the recipe; my friend told me his relative used half an orange instead so I used a quarter.

JimmiJim said:

I've used a 2L soft drink bottle and adjusted the ratios of the recipe as such, so as to make a smaller batch and not waste too many ingredients. Also, instead of raisins I put a twist on the recipe; my friend told me his relative used half an orange instead so I used a quarter.

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Whereas the JAOM recipe uses a whole orange cut into 1/8ths and raisins (25 -30) in a gallon so maybe you'd want some anyway.

The JAOM recipe takes about 3 months from start to finish i.e. from mixing and pitching the yeast to when its cleared and the fruit has dropped. The actual ferment stage can take from about 2 to 4 or 5 weeks. The rest of the time is clearing and waiting on the fruit to drop...

just checked it out, the orange has floated to the top and is kinda white in colour. Also some stuff has collected at the bottom, not sure what it is...
Condom/Balloon still holding up.

What to do next?

JimmiJim said:

just checked it out, the orange has floated to the top and is kinda white in colour. Also some stuff has collected at the bottom, not sure what it is...
Condom/Balloon still holding up.

What to do next?

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Swirl it gently. The white on orange is most likely dried yeast.

It tends to cling to everything in the fermenter......

so the balloons finally gone down, guessing that means that its done fermenting.
Theres some stuff down the bottom (residue or something) when I shake it up it goes cloudy like, am I supposed to drink this stuff or strain it? When I mixed it and strained the solution it went through, only the bits of orange were left behind. Can upload pics if that helps explain things, I have very little idea as to what I am doing haha

Do everything in your power not to stir up the stuff on the bottom, don't shake it, don't stir it, those are the lees which are dead yeast and fruit bits. You want to siphon (rack) the clear or semi-clear mead off the top of it without disturbing it. Take the time and read the newbie guide at gotmead.com.