Curious Fermentation

[JohnFenn19]

Hi everyone and let me say first and foremost thank you for taking the time to read this thread I have created. I recently have started a mead and it has had an interesting turn. I started my mead on the 6th of November. I used 3 lbs honey, Cotes Des Blanc yeast, a teaspoon of yeast nutrient, and capped it off with an air lock with a gravity of 1.105. I checked back yesterday on the 16th of November and its gravity is at 1.000. It smells like rocket fuel and tastes just as bad. It wasnt sweet at all. Just bitter. Its not clear whatsoever and now Im worried it might be contaminated. There is like a white foamy bubble layer on top of the fermentation like what you would see if you poured a carbonated sprite. Do I need to throw the batch out, how can I make it sweeter, is it any good?

 

[S-Met]

Welcome,

A pic or two may help with suggestions of the white film.

Given the OG/FG, it shouldn't be sweet at all. The abv is within the alcohol tolerance for the yeast 12-14% but may exceed beyond. You would need to exceed the alcohol tolerance before sweetening will be achieved.

Regarding the taste, its only been 10 days. While primary fermentation is done, the wine still has a long way to go. I repeat the mantra, "Time heals all brews," meaning, have patience. The rocket fuel tast may be bad fermentation or sanitation, but more likely to be suspended yeasts - hence the cloudiness. Give it another week or 4 and see what you got. Maybe after another week, cold crash and give it a few more days.

 

[CKuhns]

DO NOT THROW THIS OUT! I use Cote Des Blanc almost exclusively for higher ABV meads and no longer have the issues you are seeing here. But this yeast does need some care and good practices / techniques.

I suspect you are OK, let it go another 30 - 90 days in your carboy. Rack from the lees anytime you get 1/4" or so. (Usually just once or twice)

The "Rocket fuel is likely due to the fact you fermented pretty quickly due to temperature (Probably too high) and limited nutrients you likely stressed the yeast. Stressed yeast throw some pretty "hot" flavors by producing fusels.

With that said, given enough time this will clear and improve dramatically. Wait until clear - Read a newspaper through it clear. Bottle it and then wait some more as much as a year or two. It will come around!

For your next batch look into:
- Releasing CO2 early in the ferment.
- Staggered Nutrient Addition protocols. (SNA, TOSNA 2.0 or TOSNA 3.0)
- Keep your temps on the low end of the range.

I ferment at 60-62 Deg F. Primary from 1.120 to 1.010 takes 20 - 40 days and secondary from 1.010 to < 1.000 takes another 30 days then clears up in another 30 days. (Yes 90 days total for a 16% ABV, significantly less time if starting OG is less.) Then bottle and don't touch them for 6 - 9 months.

 

[bernardsmith]

A gravity of 1.000 suggests that almost all the sugar (sweetness) in the honey has been fermented so in that it tastes dry it should. That you fermented dry in such a short period suggests that the temperature of the fermenter was a little high. You always want to aim to ferment at the lower end of the range at which the yeast is comfortable. And remember that fermentation is exothermic: if the room is at 70 F your fermentation is likely to be at 80F but the yeast probably prefer to ferment at 65 or lower.
Often, simply allowing the mead to age will allow the higher alcohols to evaporate off. As to improving the taste - adding sweetness may help, but as others have mentioned this is a very young mead. If you decide to back sweeten, remember that you must stabilize the mead by preventing any remaining yeast from treating added sugar as fair game. You do this by adding both K-meta and K-Sorbate in tandem.The first hobbles the yeast cells that are present and the second acts to inhibit their reproduction.