No yeast action...

[daimyo2k]

Hey guys,

Over the past 2 years, I've made several batches of cider and applejack that turned out great! So I decided to try my hand at mead. Everything started pretty good, but after about 3 days, fermentation pretty much stopped. It's been over a week and I do get the occasional bubble from the lock, but pretty much nothing. The one thing I noticed it that with the cider, there was always that bubbly 1/2" yeast scum at the top, with the mead, almost nothing. Was my mead yeast mostly dead? I've heard that yeast can stall and it actually happened to me once with my cider, but it didn't last a week like with my mead.

Any advice??

Thanks all!

 

[lumpher]

I'd suggest giving it some yeast energizer and swirling it around some.

 

[DBhomebrew]

The one thing I noticed it that with the cider, there was always that bubbly 1/2" yeast scum at the top, with the mead, almost nothing.

That bubbly scum relies on foam producing proteins in the wort/must. You would likely have noticed sparkling effervescence across the surface of your mead, that's it.

As to stuck or not, are you taking gravity measurements? If not, you're flying in the clouds with no instruments.

As to adding energizer/nutrient, have you added any so far? The proper amount (within a range) is helpful if not necessary. Too much can lead to off flavors.

 

[hotbeer]

I've not done mead. So I can't really say. But for beer, since I've gotten a electronic hydrometer that sits in the FV 24x7, I've seen that all my beers are finished with the fermentation 3 to 4 days after pitching yeast.

So not seeing bubbles can be the result. However for beer, I consider bubbles a poor indicator of anything. Knowing what the specific gravity is can tell you a lot of the things you might want to know. So consider getting a hydrometer. A refractometer can be had for a few bucks more, but the hydrometer for the most part will tell you with little doubt what your SG is. Provided you take the reading withing about 10 degrees of it's calibration temperature.

With beer, IMO being finished with fermentation doesn't mean it's ready for anything yet. Mead might be similar.

 

[daimyo2k]

Thanks for the replies!

Yes, I've done the swirling. I will get some bubbling for a few seconds, then nothing again. I also added nutrients when it action stopped.

I did take the reading, starting was 1.065 spec-grav., it is now at .995. I'm assuming it's done fermenting, but from what I've heard, usually mead takes a couple of weeks, not one week. I know my cider always took a few weeks.

The other thing is that it is very, very cloudy and no effervescing on the surface.

If it helps, I used:

2 lbs of clover honey
1 gallon of filtered water
1.5 cups brown sugar
cider yeast (that's all I had)
yeast nutrient

 

[DBhomebrew]

.995

It's pretty much if not fully done. The bubbling you get when you swirl is just the dissolved CO2 off-gassing. Just let it sit until it's clear. There are ways to speed it along, but mead needs time to mature anyway.

 

[hotbeer]

but from what I've heard, usually mead takes a couple of weeks, not one week. I know my cider always took a few weeks.

The other thing is that it is very, very cloudy and no effervescing on the surface.

Maybe because we call the containers fermenters, people have gotten the idea that fermentation should occur for the time the stuff is kept in the FV's. However, fermentation isn't the entire reason for the time beer or probably even mead is recommended to be in that container. It also serves as a bright tank to let the beer clean up. Both visually and flavor and aroma-wise.

Maybe your mead will clean up and lose some of that cloudy look if you wait long enough. There really isn't a need to rush it along.

 

[Kickass]

It might be done fermenting but I’m suspect of your hydrometer measurements. 2 pounds of honey and 1.5 pounds of brown sugar dissolved into 1 gallon of water is A LOT more than 1.065. It’s closer to 1.140.

If you’re starting gravity is that far off, you’re finishing gravity is likely considerably off.

 

[Miraculix]

Thanks for the replies!

Yes, I've done the swirling. I will get some bubbling for a few seconds, then nothing again. I also added nutrients when it action stopped.

I did take the reading, starting was 1.065 spec-grav., it is now at .995. I'm assuming it's done fermenting, but from what I've heard, usually mead takes a couple of weeks, not one week. I know my cider always took a few weeks.

The other thing is that it is very, very cloudy and no effervescing on the surface.

If it helps, I used:

2 lbs of clover honey
1 gallon of filtered water
1.5 cups brown sugar
cider yeast (that's all I had)
yeast nutrient

Congratulations, you might have just ruined your batch by adding nutrients into a finished fermentation. These nutrients are most likely now in solution and make the mead taste like......


Taste test it and if it does taste bad because of nutrients, you might add a big size of additional honey. If you're lucky, the yeast will digest these nutrients together with the additional honey.

 

[DBhomebrew]

1.5 pounds of brown sugar

Cups

 

[daimyo2k]

It might be done fermenting but I’m suspect of your hydrometer measurements. 2 pounds of honey and 1.5 pounds of brown sugar dissolved into 1 gallon of water is A LOT more than 1.065. It’s closer to 1.140.

If you’re starting gravity is that far off, you’re finishing gravity is likely considerably off.

LOL.... that's 1.5 cups of brown sugar. I like my brown sugar, but not that much =D

 

[daimyo2k]

Hey all...

Thanks for the advice. I transferred the mead to another container. With in a day it's nearly clear. It tastes fine (it was probably still fermenting when I added the nutrients), but really dry, I will definitely back-sweeten.

The odd thing is that it has a bit of a "smokey" smell. You can't taste it really. It kind of reminds me of the Renaissance Faire, that lingering smokey smell due to the open-fire cooking. It's not bad, just odd.

Penny for you thoughts.