Temperature question

I've never made mead so pardon my ignorance. I live in a sub-tropical part of Japan and summer get really hot and sweaty here. We probably average 35C (95F) for a few months with 80% (or more!) humidity. Will I be alright to make mead or melomel?

Thanks for the advice!

Brad

 

Its all in yeast selection, and storing your mead while its fermenting. Not sure humidity plays a roll beyond making you uncomfortable.

There's some yeast strains that do get into the mid 80s for tolerance. I would find one of those, and set up a swamp cooler, or keep it in the coolest part of your living space during fermentation. After fermentation you don't have to worry as much.

Swamp cooler is a fancy name for putting your fermenter in a tub of cold liquid. here's a thread on it. http://www.homebrewtalk.com/f39/swamp-cooler-199965/

 

I think there's a few more obscure yeasts that might go higher but K1v1116 has a published top end at 35C and is excellent for meads.

MB's suggestion of swamp cooling may be the way ahead if you don't have AC'd facilities. Even wide temp tolerant yeasts like k1v1116 are known to have foibles. Like it does very good esters when fermented cooler, just that it will go to 35 doesn't mean that's the ideal.

The Aus mead makers have to be careful too, especially when they're heading toward summer. So it may be just better to wait until spring/autumn/winter for your ferments. I don't know. Just that it seems that the majority of places that have a long history with meads tend to be temperate countries. So you'd just have to tailor your ferment times to suit a bit more......

 

A good location is in the empty bathtub if you have a second bathroom that doesn't get used. It's cooler than the rest of the house plus its easy to add water to if you still want it to be a swamp cooler. I'm in the same situation you are living in Hawaii temps get up there

 

Excellent information. Hopefully I'll be able to get a batch going before the big heats hit. We are already regularly into the high 20s here in Japan. I'll have to wait about 10 days or so until my fermenters are free. I'll definitely report back if I can get something going! Cheers!