Bourbon Mead help please

[Scavanaugh]

So im on my 4th batch of Mead, all so far came out great. Decided to do a Bourbon flavor with vanilla extract. Used 5 gal of distilled water and 10lbs honey and Lalvin 71B-1122 yeast all at 68°. No boil on anything. It took longer than normal fermentation to begin (4days) then it bubbled every 30 sec for 2 weeks in primary. Transfered to secondary added vanilla 4oz and tested Alc% **1.062 *** WAS SAME ON DAY ONE. Am i missing something here? Did somethin go wrong or will it keep fermenting next 6 months? Hate to wait and find out i messed somethin up. Plan on putting in the soaking in Bourbon wood sticks tomorrow for 2 days. It was still bubblin every 30 sec when i did transfer. Thanks all

 

[madwilliamflint]

How'd it go? 10 pounds of honey on 5 gallons of water sounds awfully little to me.

 

[Scavanaugh]

Its in 2ndary now still bubblin away only been 20 days since i started batch. Should end up being 14% like my last 4 batches of flavored meads. But im not sure if this one is going right. Read my 1st thread. Any help id appreciate

 

[meatcleaver]

are you using a hydrometer or refractometer for these measurements?
if refractometer, are you allowing for the presence of alcohol?
2 lbs of honey in 1 gallon of water should give you a specific gravity around 1.080 (estimated) & even if it fermented completely dry I don't believe it would yield 14%, probably more like 10.
maybe someone else can confirm...

 

[BrewCrafting101]

I have dabbled with distillation to make ethanol fuels for my 67 Nova. I know this does not fit and in some US States it is illegal without the proper permits. Anyway, it does coincide with brewing and fermentation. I had a batch of wine go into "stuck fermentation" of which I after losing a batch to making a rank "Hot" beyond "Mad Dog 20/20" (Morgan Davis) styled concoction. You maybe ok but with my experience adding any alcohol to a ferment not only slows the process but can extend it longer than you wanted. I found doing sterile taste sample at different times (once a week) curtailed my process to my taste and allowed me to counter the fermentation process shutting it down where I wanted it. I'm not a master yet on Brewing's of Beers, Spirits or Wines yet but I'm pretty well grounded in it. You may want to google "Stuck Fermentation" which can go both ways too short the most common or too long and not wanted. Also google adding alcohol during fermentation cycle. I hope this helps and let us know what you get.

P.S. Aging will smooth out some of the "Hot" as well as purified water diluting but I'm not good at the water part losing too much flavor. Aging is better but can take years to get it where you want it.

 

[Synaster]

10 lbs ÷5 = 2 lbs per gallon.. Your measurement looks about right( 1.068 ).. I generally estimate 1 pound of honey into 1 gallon of water equals 1.032 gravity per gallon.. so 2 pounds would be right about there..
Where all your previous batches 5 gallons? If your looking for 14% ABV.. that's about 3.5 or 4 pounds per gallon... Did you take notes? So if you needed to make it again, you'd know what you did. .

 

[Scavanaugh]

Yes i take great notes. Yes i have Hydrometer. Just wierd the reading on first day of mix was same 2 weeks later. It is still in 2ndary and bubblin away every 30 sec. Smells good. Gonna give it another 2 weeks till i re rack it, taste and measure,.might add some raisens for nutrition.. Its dark and i plan on letting it sit for 6 months or longer. I also have a pinapple mead thats been down there for 2 months. Not clearing at all but wasnt expecting it to. All pinapple juice and honey. My first 2 batches were Raspberry peach apple, and a berry blend. All Old Orchard juice. 10lbs Costco honey. All batches were more like 4-4.5 gallons leaving room for honey. The berry blend i substituted 1 gall of water it dropped to 9% the rasp peach apple was 12.5%

 

[gfxprotege]

just curious why you racked to secondary if the gravity didn't change at all. by racking off of the lees, you effectively lowered the amount of active yeast available to work on the remaining sugar content

 

[RaHarmakis]

just curious why you racked to secondary if the gravity didn't change at all. by racking off of the lees, you effectively lowered the amount of active yeast available to work on the remaining sugar content

How much lees were on the bottom of your primary?

To me, It sounds like a bad pitch of yeast that just never got going to a critical level, but you need a microscope and stuff to dye the yeast cells to check for viability to confirm that.

I'd recommend a good dose of Yeast Nutrient and a fresh pitch of a good yeast starter to get the fermentation going seeing as the first pitch is now very likely pretty much gone.

Future notes: Always check gravity before moving!!