A very quick turnaround mead based on an open source Groennfell recipe - Tart Cherry Mead

[noah0189]

I'm about to make my first batch of mead ever. I'm going to double OP's recipe to make a 2 gallon batch. I will ferment in a 5 gallon bucket.
My ingredients:
48oz of Aldi Raw Honey..unsure of type, but it's raw and unfiltered
2 pints Lakewood Pure Black Cherry juice (pure black cherry juice not from concentrate and no other ingredients)
Yeast nutrient
71B yeast- 1 packet

A few questions:
1. Does anyone see any issue with my supplies?
2. Do I actually need two packets of 71B if I double the recipe?
3. Do I only top off with water to reach the 2 gallon mark or is it add 2 gallons of water?
4. I plan to ferment in my house. We keep it around 68-73 degrees year round. Do I need a heat blanket?

Thanks in advance

 

[Seamonkey84]

Even half a pack will do it. Half a pack for up to 3 gallons, a whole one for up to 6. But better idea to use more with mead.
I’d recommend against heating it, that is a good temp to keep the room at during primary for healthy yeast. The activity actually warms up the must a little by itself. Bringing the temp up will cause the yeast to produce esters, which can be good or bad depending on what your looking for, so chose yeast wisely if doing so.

 

[noah0189]

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[noah0189]

Even half a pack will do it. Half a pack for up to 3 gallons, a whole one for up to 6. But better idea to use more with mead.
I’d recommend against heating it, that is a good temp to keep the room at during primary for healthy yeast. The activity actually warms up the must a little by itself. Bringing the temp up will cause the yeast to produce esters, which can be good or bad depending on what your looking for, so chose yeast wisely if doing so.

I see that 71B operates in the 59-89 degree range. Theoretically, I'm good, right? Can I still expect a quick turn mead? Thanks.

 

[Seamonkey84]

The original post was done at 60, you’ll be fine. That said, I do remember now that Groennfell uses higher temps to get those esters, as they use less honey so there isn’t as much of a flavor profile otherwise. Your good to go either way!

 

[Blacksmith1]

I'd go with a bit over 2 gals so that you rack to 2 one gallon containers with little to no headspace. say about 2 gals 8 oz. (guessing at the amount needed to cover the lees)

 

[Seamonkey84]

I'd go with a bit over 2 gals so that you rack to 2 one gallon containers with little to no headspace. say about 2 gals 8 oz. (guessing at the amount needed to cover the lees)

Yes! Absolute favorite reason I start all my batches in a bucket, and I always have bottles and growlers of different sizes, with bungs to fit each one. Always good to have extra for topping off with after racking... or just extra to “sample”

 

[noah0189]

Thanks all for weighing in.

Just to double check... my bucket currently has a little over 2.5 gallons of fluid in it.

48 oz honey
64 oz cherry juice
2 gallons of water
Nutrients
And tomorrow I’ll add one packet of 71B

Am I doing this right?

 

[Seamonkey84]

Why waiting till tomorrow? Did you add sulfites for some reason? If not, pitch yeast right away, you prob don’t want anything random to start to grow, with that much sugar and nutrients available.

 

[noah0189]

I read on several Groennfell recipes to wait 24 hours before pitching yeast. Is that not the case? If I throw the yeast on the must now, do I stir it in or just let it sit on top? Thanks.

 

[videojunkie1208]

I read on several Groennfell recipes to wait 24 hours before pitching yeast. Is that not the case? If I throw the yeast on the must now, do I stir it in or just let it sit on top? Thanks.

If you have something sterile to mix it in, and aerate it a bit, do that.

If you don't. It will eventually sink into the must and ferment anyway, just adds a few hours.

 

[Seamonkey84]

I haven’t read through most of their recipes, but usually the only reason to wait is if you are adding fresh fruits that you add campden tablets to (sulfites used to sanitize that needs to gas out). Or if the fruit is frozen and your waiting for it to thaw. But then again Peptic enzymes do work better without the sulfite or alcohol involved. As long as it’s sitting covered I guess you should be fine, but unless you’re waiting for the reasons I mentioned you can pitch the yeast.

 

[noah0189]

Thanks all. I’m a complete newbie to this.

 

[videojunkie1208]

We all started somewhere...

 

[Seamonkey84]

Hey, I’m only basically just a over year into mead/wine making myself, just got a bit obsessive. though I’ve only totaled about 19 Gallons Since I started. I should get around to bottling some of this stuff I’ve been bulk aging...

 

[Blacksmith1]

Am I doing this right?

No you are not! your plan doesn't include the most important part... Sending me a bottle.

 

[noah0189]

Alright, the mead took off pretty quickly after adding the yeast. My airlock was bubbling away. I took the lid off two days ago and gave it a gentle stir. When I snapped the lid back on, it didn't completely seal. Yesterday morning I noticed no bubbling and found it odd. I checked the seal and found that it wasn't secure. I snapped it on fully and it proceeded to bubble every two minutes or so. This morning there is no activity. Is this problematic? Mead was started on 5/16.
Thanks.

 

[videojunkie1208]

do you know what your original gravity was? Groennfell does low gravity meads, so I would expect a fairly fast ferment. I'd let it sit for another few days to let the yeast do whatever cleanup they do. If you have a means to take a sample and measure the gravity - it should be around 1.000 - 0.995

Then you can cold crash and enjoy!

 

[noah0189]

do you know what your original gravity was? Groennfell does low gravity meads, so I would expect a fairly fast ferment. I'd let it sit for another few days to let the yeast do whatever cleanup they do. If you have a means to take a sample and measure the gravity - it should be around 1.000 - 0.095

Then you can cold crash and enjoy!

I didn't take an OG reading (d'oh!), but I will measure current gravity.

Thanks.

 

[Jokester]

I am officially about to start my 2nd mead.
I made my first 1 gal as a way to use a jar of honey my brother left in my house in 2017, that I made into mead in 2019.
I am using 5 gal white "carboys" which I am fitting with a tap. These are basically big squarish food safe containers I have used to manipulate and hyper ferment beer into Brut. Some improved, some got worse, and some stayed the same but they all dropped under 1.000 by use of champagne yeast.
I want to just ferment it all in 1 container, and go straight to bottles in 1-2 months.
I am thinking of using the caps, leaving them a wee bit loose to let co2 out and stirring it as it does especially for the first week or 2. After which I may just airlock it.

So I have 4 quarts (176 oz by weight) mountain of wild flower dark honey. 5 gal fermenter.
I will read everything in this thread and post some questions if I have any, but are the nutrients etc needed "
I am thinking of using 71B hydrated with some of the honey water for 1-2 hrs and pitching that. I would like a mead that is good and nicely drinkable without much aging and I also want to ferment it to under 1.000. Would my amylo enzyme help that process ?

 

[madscientist451]

I will read everything in this thread and post some questions if I have any, but are the nutrients etc needed "
I am thinking of using 71B hydrated with some of the honey water for 1-2 hrs and pitching that. I would like a mead that is good and nicely drinkable without much aging and I also want to ferment it to under 1.000. Would my amylo enzyme help that process ?

Rehydrate your yeast with water and go-ferm. Go to the Mead Made Right website and use the nutrient calculator that's there.
The method is called TONSA, (can't remember what all the letters stand for) but it works great.
You don't need any additional enzymes with honey. If you use the staggered nutrient additions from the TONSA method you'll reach your goal and have a good tasting mead without a lot of aging. I would also recommend using 1 pack of dry yeast per gallon, which is more than the TONSA method says to use, but I've found that using more yeast really helps.

 

[Jokester]

I guess I have 11lb honey, going in 5gal fermenter, so 1.077 OG, FG of 1 would be 10.2%. Will work nicely I believe.
I'll get the Mead Made Right - TONSA steps and post in a "Log" thread. Thanks Madscientist451. But keep ideas coming.

 

[Jokester]

I had a question. This is the TOSNA numbers.

• The Breakdown
  (rounded to the nearest tenth)
• Go-Ferm needed 6.3 grams
  Water to dilute Go-Ferm 126 ml
• Yeast needed 5 grams
• TOTAL NUTRIENT NEEDED 14grams
• Each nutrient addition (4 total) 3.5 grams
• SUPPLEMENTAL DATA
• 1/3 Sugar Break 1.052
  
  Starting Gravity Converted to Brix 18.65
  
  NUTRIENT ADDITION SCHEDULE
  
  Add each nutrient addition at 24, 48 & 72-hours after yeast pitch.
  
  The fourth nutrient addition is added at the 1/3 sugar break listed above, or Day 7. Whichever comes first.
  
  
  So Do I rehydrate the yeast in water ? Or water + honey ? Or just in go ferm ?
  Then when do I know its done ? Hits 1.000 ?
  

 

[madscientist451]

For rehydration, use water and go-ferm, make sure your water is the proper temperature. For yeast amounts less than a whole pack, I just use the whole pack. There's also something called tempering the yeast, which gradually brings the rehydrated yeast/water to the same temp as the batch of must. I'm a lazy brewer and just do one tempering step, if the rehydrated yeast amount is 1/2 cup, I'll add 1/2 cup of must, wait about 15 minutes and then toss it in. Or I just let the yeas/water cool to room temp and add it in.
I figure my mead is done when my airlock activity stops, I usually wait a week and then take a gravity sample.

 

[Jokester]

Well I am even lazier. I'll be putting in spring water from the jug, likely at the ambient temp of ~75F. I'll likely microwave a little water to say 80f and go ferm the yeast in a conical flask then it waits 20 mins and triples in volume, and in the fermenter it goes. Probably between the 2 2.5gal's filling the thing.
I dont have a way to boil all the water and pour in. If I have to boil it, its in small cups in a microwave.

 

[madscientist451]

I don't boil anything when making mead. I'll heat some water to help dissolve the honey, but I keep it below 100F.

 

[Jokester]

Good, I'll be doing the same.

 

[Jokester]

I don't boil anything when making mead. I'll heat some water to help dissolve the honey, but I keep it below 100F.

Can I bloom the yeast in the water I'll be warming and swirling in the bottles to get the last of the honey out ? And fermaid also goes in that same and when it swells to 3X it will get pitched in the must.

 

[madscientist451]

Go-ferm and Fermaid are different products and have different uses.
It's my understanding that you don't want to introduce yeast nutrient during the first 24 hrs.
I rehydrate the yeast in a small measing cup and put a saucer on top and let it sit.

 

[JP_BeerFan]

Can I bloom the yeast in the water I'll be warming and swirling in the bottles to get the last of the honey out ? And fermaid also goes in that same and when it swells to 3X it will get pitched in the must.

I have read that another way to stress/kill yeast is to give it too much osmotic pressure shock, I.E. dump it into a very strong solution. If there's a lot of honey in that water it would stress the yeast that way. Also, you want to watch temperatures, if the water is too hot, that would do it, too.

Best is follow the directions from the manufacturer for GoFerm use. I think they also say, optimal wait time is 20-30min, and longer can cause the yeast to start to use up all those resources you just charged them with.