Mead recipe and first time.

[João Machado]

So...I decided to try to make mead...

I used this:

- 1Kg of local honey;
- 4L of filtered water (3.5L hot and 0.5L room temperature);
- 6 raisins (chopped in half);
- Lemon peel (the outer skin only);
- Tangerine peel (the outer skin only);
- 1 lemon juice;
- 1/2 cinnamon stick;
- fresh herbs (a little bag, from the turkish herbs my aunt gave me);
- nutmeg powder (tsp).

I put the wort on the porch, covered by a net. 24 hours later I'm going to take it out of the pan and put it in the fermenter.

Should I put the mead yeast I bought (and hou many?), or should I leave it that way, and wait for the fermentation to begin?...

Besides that...should I put cooked (dead) bread yeast in it? If so, how do I prepare the bread yeast to add to my wort as a mead yeast nutrient?

Last question...I hope...ahah. How many fermentations should I make?

 

[Kyzaboy89]

What you've got will ferment, boil some bread yeast and add that if you don't have anything else for nutrient. The citrus is going to make it more acidic and honey already lowers pH so hopefully your yeast won't stall. Once it's cool enough you can add the M05 and ferment, that net isn't all the way to the base of the table so make sure nothing gets in there before you start. If you can make one batch instead of splitting it. 1 kg to 4l water isn't to high to cause issues. You are taking a very basic beginner approach and you will learn alot. Raisins aren't going to do anything but if you have them in there it won't hurt either, what comes out of this in a few weeks will be rough most likely and need significant aging.

There are a lot of resources here whether you take a modern or traditional approach to brewing, take your time to read a bit and you will learn to brew with more understanding. Adding stuff to a jug and letting it ferment will make alcohol but whether or not you will drink it is entirely up to you, make what you like and good luck.

 

[João Machado]

What you've got will ferment, boil some bread yeast and add that if you don't have anything else for nutrient. The citrus is going to make it more acidic and honey already lowers pH so hopefully your yeast won't stall. Once it's cool enough you can add the M05 and ferment, that net isn't all the way to the base of the table so make sure nothing gets in there before you start. If you can make one batch instead of splitting it. 1 kg to 4l water isn't to high to cause issues. You are taking a very basic beginner approach and you will learn alot. Raisins aren't going to do anything but if you have them in there it won't hurt either, what comes out of this in a few weeks will be rough most likely and need significant aging.

There are a lot of resources here whether you take a modern or traditional approach to brewing, take your time to read a bit and you will learn to brew with more understanding. Adding stuff to a jug and letting it ferment will make alcohol but whether or not you will drink it is entirely up to you, make what you like and good luck.

I was thinking of not using the bread yeast yet... I was considering using the mead yeast on this batch and later do a new one, but instead of putting on the porch, I was going to put the boiled bread yeast, and when the wort cooled, I would put the mead yeast. Give me your opinion about these pls.

Btw, I already read something about the raisins, that they do pretty much nothing to contribute to the fermentation. I putted them to add flavour (basically all the ingredients are for flavour ahah).

Questions:

How much mead yeast should I put?

Can you explain better the acidic part pls?

I'm only putting this batch in the fermenter tomorrow morning...so, until then, can you explain me better the fermentation part? How it's done, and what should I do?

Still talking about fermentation, should I transfer to the second fermenter, and when? And how much time should I wait until that part?

When I transfer, and if I transfer, should I add more yeast? The same amount as the beginning?

Sorry for all these questions...ahah

 

[Kyzaboy89]

Sugars lower the pH of water thereby making an acidic environment, yeast can stall or struggle if it's to acidic and unless you can measure the pH it's just a guess and experience game.

The raisins for flavor, you will most likely need alot more, like a few cups at least, not sure how much flavor it will give.

Mead yeast, read the directions on the packet, if that's 5 grams just add the whole thing, better to have extra than not enough yeast.
When you add the wort/must to the fermenter you need to aerate it (add alot of oxygen.) Whip/stir/shake and get it as foamy as you can, minimum 5 minutes. Twice a day stir/degas to release CO2 for the first week or so then let it ride.
After a month or so when fermentation is complete it's time for secondary, that's when you transfer and no need for more yeast at that time.

 

[João Machado]

Sugars lower the pH of water thereby making an acidic environment, yeast can stall or struggle if it's to acidic and unless you can measure the pH it's just a guess and experience game.

The raisins for flavor, you will most likely need alot more, like a few cups at least, not sure how much flavor it will give.

Mead yeast, read the directions on the packet, if that's 5 grams just add the whole thing, better to have extra than not enough yeast.
When you add the wort/must to the fermenter you need to aerate it (add alot of oxygen.) Whip/stir/shake and get it as foamy as you can, minimum 5 minutes. Twice a day stir/degas to release CO2 for the first week or so then let it ride.
After a month or so when fermentation is complete it's time for secondary, that's when you transfer and no need for more yeast at that time.

So...to make my wort less acidic, what can I do?

My mead yeast has 10g...can I put 3/4 g of yeast? Or do I put the 5g?

How do I add oxygen?...I stir the wort and then i put the bucket lid?

I have an airlock...do I need to stir to release the CO2?

Thanks.

 

[Kyzaboy89]

To buffer acid in a mead there are store bought additives such as a generic acid buffer or more reliable is K2CO3 which is potassium carbonate. That's something you can play with later in your brewing experiments unless you can get it before you start.

I would add half the pack of yeast if it's 10 grams. If you have a scale in grams add 5 and save the rest for later batches or if anything bad happens.

The simplest ways of adding oxygen is to shake the life out of your must/wort or stir it vigorously. Splash it as much as you can for at least 5 minutes, more is better.

During the first few days, morning and evening, remove the airlock and either splash it around slowly to release CO2 or insert a sanitized stirrer of some kind to degas it. Releasing CO2 helps to keep your yeast in a healthy environment.

 

[João Machado]

To buffer acid in a mead there are store bought additives such as a generic acid buffer or more reliable is K2CO3 which is potassium carbonate. That's something you can play with later in your brewing experiments unless you can get it before you start.

I would add half the pack of yeast if it's 10 grams. If you have a scale in grams add 5 and save the rest for later batches or if anything bad happens.

The simplest ways of adding oxygen is to shake the life out of your must/wort or stir it vigorously. Splash it as much as you can for at least 5 minutes, more is better.

During the first few days, morning and evening, remove the airlock and either splash it around slowly to release CO2 or insert a sanitized stirrer of some kind to degas it. Releasing CO2 helps to keep your yeast in a healthy environment.

I putted a TSP of sodium bicarbonate, I read that has a similar effect.

I will put 4g, and I already putted 6g of cooked bread yeast. In the morning I will shake then add the yeast.

Maybe it's a silly question... But can I put the yeast and let the must as it is? With the net above? Since the yeast needs to release CO2 and needs O2...

 

[Kyzaboy89]

You can try whatever you like, the airlock prevents anything else from getting in there, foreign yeast, bugs etc. Most of the time people use a towel over the top instead of a net but you can if you want to.

 

[Kyzaboy89]

As for oxygen, leaving the top open doesn't get enough into suspension, you need to whip it into the must, release carbon dioxide and add oxygen at the same time.