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My only other experience with homebrewing is making mead. For mead it is necessary to shake the must vigorously before pitching the yeast in order to make sure there is lots of oxygen in the must. Is this necessary for cider?

What size is your batch?

Hey all! I started my first mead back in December with Lalvin D47 yeast, and though it's not ready yet, I know I had it fermenting at a bit high of a temperature (which D47 is especially unforgiving about). So before the summer starts I'm starting another batch, this time it will be sweeter...

Ah, I think I see. I knew yeast could be stressed by being under pitched, but I didn't know over crowding did it as well. So are fusels generally just longer chains of alcohols?

Any biologists or chemists know why a higher temperature can cause fusels? It's confusing to me that by simply raising the temperature of the fermentation can change the actual molecular structure and chemical composition of the products. I can't seem to find anything from a basic google...

Yeah, I guess that would be one way of doing it. But CO2 production doesn't necessarily tell you alcohol content does it? I would imagine different sugars yield different product ratios.

As a physics student, I always think of the microprocesses and what exactly is going on and am always predicting the future. Now, I have a question about the rate of fermentation. The way I see it there are two possible trends at a given time frame. The rate could be either generally linear...

Racking to a new container will leave a sizable head space, so is it reasonable to just fill that up with more honey water? I know it will essentially restart fermentation, but it should finish quickly compared to the primary and on paper should end up with the same ABV. Do secondary...

I added the entire orange, rind and all.

I kinda figured "rotting" wasn't really a bad thing, because that's a natural process and what the hell did I expect? Put a piece of fruit in water for a month at room temperature and it's gunna get vile. I supposed I'm just new and paranoid.

I started it about 9 days ago and it's still in the primary (for at least another 2 weeks). I didn't wait 24 hours to add the yeast, not really sure the point of that. As far as the fermentation goes, it's going really well. As for taste there's no telling, until I taste test it before the...

https://www.homebrewtalk.com/f80/christmas-y-mead-will-accept-suggestions-446617/ Here it is. I think I was definitely foolish to think the orange wouldn't add flavor.

I have a few questions about using an orange in the mead. Does the orange contribute much to the flavor of the mead? I was under the impression that it's more for the pH and nutrient, so I'm afraid it's going to completely ruin the flavor I was looking for. Also, my batch was put in the primary...

Ah. Is it alright if I crack open my mead in the primary to smell it, then? Or can I assume if I can't smell anything with it closed it should be fine?

I just started my first mead ever yesterday, and it's not really a simple recipe at all. It's got a lot of flavors. It seems to be fermenting beautifully, so I think it will turn out great. Though, before I set it aside to ferment I took a whiff to see what I was dealing with, and I wasn't...

I'll be making this recipe for the first time in a couple of weeks, but I'm not entirely sure on the proportions. Suggestions and feedback would be great. For a 1 gallon batch: 3lb Clover honey 1 packet Lalvin D-47 yeast 1 large orange (more for pH than anything) 20 raisins 1 whole clove 1 and...

Ahh why didn't I think of that? Thanks. Also what about a clove or maybe a pinch of nutmeg? There are so many ingredients that would work well, but I don't wanna overload it.

So with many wines and some meads I've seen people put oak chips in it. I guess that kinda simulates the taste of wines aged in oak barrels? If I'm making a 1 gallon batch of mead, could I just put a solid piece of oak in there to get the same effect? If so, should I do this during the...

I'm new to brewing and I notice some recipes call for oddly specific amounts of yeast. Does it really matter? Because yeast is a living organism that multiplies extremely fast (it can double its population in 20 minutes). So if the yeast reproduces, theoretically can't you put in a very small...

I see. Actually it was only a couple people who said not to rack. I thought it was weird that they said that too, but the number 1 recipe for mead on this website said not to rack it, but I'm not gunna jump on that bandwagon. So yeah, I'm definitely going to rack my mead. Thanks!! P.s. Any idea...