First time making mead

[honeybrewmead]

Hello fellow brewers.

I decided to make mead. Bought 2 buckets for fermentation 30L each (one for primary and the other one to syphon in after a few weeks of fermentation) with the co2 thingy that i can stick on the top of the cap and some sanitation powder. I ordered 10kg of honey which should arrive in a few days. What's unclear to me is the amount of yeast im supposed to use. I can get the wine yeast 5g package, on it says for 25L of wine. For this amount of honey (10kg/30L) should i use 10g of yeast? What will happen if i use too much? I'll also get yeast nutrient but I don't know should i use 5g or 10g for such big batch. Im aiming for about 12-15% alcohol value.
Thank you.

 

[Maylar]

15 grams is recommended depending on chosen yeast.. Read this:
TOSNA CALCULATOR | Mead Made Right

 

[CKuhns]

You really cant overpitch yeast.

For 20L I typically start 10 grams dry yeast 12 to 24 hours prior to pitch in similar gravity as my must. Creates a lot of yeast and gets the ferment started quickly.

 

[DBhomebrew]

But you can overdo the nutrients. And when nutrient amounts (looking at you, GoFerm) are figured per g of yeast, overpitching yeast leads to overdoing the nutrients. Most nutrient calcs don't consider the GoFerm.

 

[honeybrewmead]

Thank you for the clarification. One more thing.. if i decide to make 10L mead in a 30L bucket, will the excess air in the bucket be a problem? Sorry for the noob questions I've never brewed anything before

 

[DBhomebrew]

I typically ferment a little over a gallon in a 2 gallon bucket. After ~2-3wks, I rack to a glass gallon jug with very little headspace.

 

[Hoppy2bmerry]

Thank you for the clarification. One more thing.. if i decide to make 10L mead in a 30L bucket, will the excess air in the bucket be a problem? Sorry for the noob questions I've never brewed anything before

The short answer is yes. However, if you don’t have a glass vessel for long term aging you could get away with the bucket by using wine preservation gas in the head space. That won’t prevent the oxygen from permeating the plastic however.

 

[honeybrewmead]

The short answer is yes. However, if you don’t have a glass vessel for long term aging you could get away with the bucket by using wine preservation gas in the head space. That won’t prevent the oxygen from permeating the plastic however.

Alright ill use the 30L bucket for the primary fermentation and then move it after a few weeks to smaller glass bottles if i dont find a glass carboy by then.
Thanks a lot for the replies!

 

[honeybrewmead]

It started! Im so excited
I used 2.5kg of honey just for a first time experiment. OG was 1.058 i think, close to 1.060. Stirring the bucket every now and then to release the co2 and because i cant get my eyes off it

 

[MightyMosin]

You really cant overpitch yeast.

For 20L I typically start 10 grams dry yeast 12 to 24 hours prior to pitch in similar gravity as my must. Creates a lot of yeast and gets the ferment started quickly.

Higher yeast pitch gets you less esters while a lower pitch gets you more esters... assuming that you have enough oxygen in the must.

 

[honeybrewmead]

I just took a measure with the hydrometer its 1.002. it is slightly carbonated and delicious
Ill leave it for another week and do another reading and bottle it.