Dead mead

[SirVilhelm]

Hi guys, just a quick introduction before asking about my problem. I found this site when I got interested in brewing beer. After lurking for some time I decided to give brewing a go. My brother suggested I try making some mead. He never made mead himself but got interested when his buddy brought some to a party one time. I came to these forums and started reading and decided mead would be the first thing I would try.

Fast forward to 4/20/13. I went to the local HBS and picked up two 3 gal carboys, hydrometer, star san ect. We started the process of making our must. I put the must, yeast, energizer and nutrient in the carboy threw on the air lock and let it sit. The air lock went to work about three hours after and went strong.

I used Lalvin EC-1118 because I am aiming for a dry mead. I figure I could always back sweeten if I have to but I like very dry wines. The starting must was 1.120 measured by a hydrometer. By 4/23 the gravity dropped to 1.109, 4/24 I shook the hell out of the carboy and added more nutrient and energizer.

5/21 I picked up a refractometer and tested again. This time it was 1.084 which I calculate at 5% abv. Today I checked on my mead and the airlock is dead. Completely dead, no movement at all.

My question is what do I do now? I am going to pick up some PH strips to test but besides that how do I rescue my mead? I have some orange slices in there, is there a possibility of mold or anything? Should I rack into another carboy and re-pitch?

Like I mentioned this is my first time brewing anything so any advice is greatly appreciated! Thank you everyone!

 

[User]

You should relax. The airlock does not measure fermentation. As long as the gravity continues to drop, the mead is still fermenting. Just give it time. Also, be aware that alcohol has a higher refractive index than water, thus your readings with a refractometer will be skewed once fermentation has begun.

 

[SirVilhelm]

Thank you for the reply. Being as this is my first batch I figured I was being a bit anxious! I will measure gravity again tomorrow.

Regarding using a refractometer, would the reading be higher or lower once fermentation begins?

 

[iderwyddi]

Try this link. http://onebeer.net/refractometer.shtml

 

[SirVilhelm]

I appreciate the link but since my first measurement was with a hydrometer and my last measurement was with a refractometer I am unsure of the accuracy.

 

[ErinRae]

Start stirring!! I do think that's slow to drop that little esp with 1118. Here's a system I've been using and it works well. A day or two after I've added the yeast and I can tell it's active I stir everyday until around 1/3 sugar left. In this time I also put in 4 additions of nutrients - 1 at beginning and I always stop when there's a 1/3 sugar left. (Make sure to always stir first before nutrient addition or you could have a mini foam explosion, esp in a carboy) I usually stir for a few minutes. I've read a few articles on this forum as well that active stirring in primary can result in a better tasting mead sooner

The ferment is going pretty slow but is still going which is good. If it were mine I'd start stirring again and would add some additional nutrient a time or two more. This high gravity mead just might need some babying. For future I'd consider starting in a brewing bucket as well...might help for your yeast to get the much needed oxygen at the beginning of a ferment. I would suspect your oranges to be fine as long as they stay covered with liquid/submerged every day or so. Good Luck. Make sure you post your results!

 

[ErinRae]

One more note...I don't know if picking up the carboy and shaking it counts as good stirring. You should let some of the gases escape..take off the bung and use a large stirring spoon...get some of the initial CO2 out!

 

[huesmann]

Well, since the point of stirring early in the ferment is partly to release CO2, but also partly to oxygenate, unless you open the carboy to stir (which I doubt you can do when you shake it!), all you're doing is releasing CO2. I would use a wine whip or some other kind of mechanical stirrer, so you can introduce a little oxygen while you're offgassing. It would be better if you were fermenting in a bucket, since a carboy has such a small diameter interface for gas to enter and escape.

 

[ACbrewer]

Meads are notoriously difficult to get to ferment.. they run much more fits and starts than beer or even wine. And it is critical to get nuetriant+energizer into them (which you said you did) because the honey has almost zero nuetrent value on its own, only food value (it is so close to zero as to effectivly be zero).

So background light chem/bio here. 1, yeast works pretty well on it's own at about standard preasure, ie sitting in a pond. As the preasure goes up either through disolved materials (sugar for our purposes) or gasses (co2 for our purposes) it is harder for the yeast to move materials through the cell membrane. - thus the degassing helping the yeast to ferment, it releaves part of the preasure - the disolved gases. 2. yeast also works pretty well in water, but alcohol slows it down... thus the open air where it does total sugar to waste conversion, the yeast is fine, but in a closed system where it can't get o2, it begins to have problems with alcohol build up. Given this is a goal, nothing you can do about it. Well start with a lower OG. (note, alcohol is a way point on the energy chain for the yeast, in the presence of sufficent o2, it will convert all the alcohol into water and co2 )

So as already suggested, give it a stir. Take readings with a known device (ie hydrometer since refractometer takes more info than you have to be useful). If your sugar level is high enough - in your case starting at a 1.120, 50% is 1.060 and 30% is 1.036 - give it a stir. Above 50% I'd feel free to vigerous and introduce a bit of O2, below 30% I'd not stir. Between 30and 50% I'd debate stiring, and if I did, be sure to make it gentle and only degase, not introduce more O2.

the yeast you chose Lalvin EC-1118 has a high ABV tolerance 18% or about a 150 gravity point change, and a high osmotic tolerance (ie handles preasure well see #1 above) and a broad temp rang of I think about 59F to 84F - I'd aim for 65F myself, but in the summer I'm probably at about 70 to 73. So you should be fine, just give it time, and more time. I'd expect your hydrometer to give you a FG of .990 to .995

 

[SirVilhelm]

Great info, thank you thank you. I will pick up a whip wine on my way home and give that baby a stir. I didn't realize a refractometer wasn't accurate once alcohol was introduced, I thought I would get better readings doh!

One other question, when should I use yeast energizer vs nutrient? Or do they always go hand in hand?

 

[ACbrewer]

I don't use a refractometer so I'm out a bit on a limb here, but I think it can be as accurate as a hyrometer, BUT it needs to be calibrated, so to use it with your batch you need to get your initial reading, you can't start using it mid ferment.

As to the energizer v nutrient - they go kinda hand in hand. If you look they contain some of the same stuff (freely available nitrogen, also call FAN) but I think nutrient contains some other things, or maybe the energizer does. Frankly I forget without them infront of me. Your recipe will say something like 'x amount per gallon' and that is the total amount you should use. So if it is like 1/4 teaspon per gallon, then in 3 gallons you'd use a total of 3/4 teaspoon. I then subdivide that into however many feedings (usually 4) of the nutrient.

Now you have some oranges in there, which also are providing nutrient, but not as easily/fast as the energizer or nutrient would. I'm not aware if it is possible to over feed energizer and nutrient to the yeast and result in detrimental effects. But I'm sure that at some level that happens. If nothing else, you put in food they can't use and then have wasted money.

 

[SirVilhelm]

What is everyone using to stir? I am probably going to have to make something myself as my LHBS had nothing, they looked at me strangely when I asked for a wine whip.

 

[ErinRae]

I have a super long plastic spoon...it was from the wine store. I use a whip too.

 

[WVMJ]

Lots of good discussion on here about meadmaking. One thing about your refractometer is that you can use it for measuring the gravity, but as said you need to calibrate it. and as soon as you get an alcoholic fermentation going you have to compensate for the alcohol, there is a chart for that, but its a lot of work especailly since you already have a hydrometer.
On the idea of introducing O2, stir it up at the start like a madman to get some in the must. After the CO2 starts to be produced and saturates the mead you are not going to get more O2 in the mead when you stir, you are just removing the CO2. A good stirrer that we like because it easy to use in carboys has little plastic wings that fold sold at most online home brew stores, it also is great for stirring in the honey at the start.
You can add to much nutrient and energizer, you dont want a lot of extra nitrogen setting around in your wine as other spoilage yeast and bacteria can eat that stuff and ruin your mead.
Also you beer guys dont think about acid levels since its just not a topic in making beer, at some point you may need to add some acid blend to keep your mead from being flat and flabby, like if you ever had lemonaide that was much to sweet and didnt have enough lemon bite in it to balance out the tastes, some people put in it at the beginning or some just wait until they get ready to bottle and then adjust the acid levels to taste.
WVMJ

 

[ACbrewer]

You can add to much nutrient and energizer, you dont want a lot of extra nitrogen setting around in your wine as other spoilage yeast and bacteria can eat that stuff and ruin your mead.

Define to much? assume the mead wants 100 units, is +10% to much? +100% I'm just trying to get a feel for what is 'to much' I would assume in absence of contrary info, that going 10 to 20% (rounded teaspons, etc) isn't going to harm, but I can see your point especially with other bacteria.

side note - yeast starter? I mean nutrient and starts get to a quest I've asked before... what is the optimal pitching rates

Also you beer guys dont think about acid levels since its just not a topic in making beer, at some point you may need to add some acid blend to keep your mead from being flat and flabby, like if you ever had lemonaide that was much to sweet and didnt have enough lemon bite in it to balance out the tastes, some people put in it at the beginning or some just wait until they get ready to bottle and then adjust the acid levels to taste.
WVMJ

1. Guilty
2. yeah I can see that.

 

[WVMJ]

Too much is whatever the yeast cant eat up, each strain seems to have a preferential level of nutrients. More is better is not always true. Also it has been said by others that if you add to much you can get a metalic taste. Cant give you a better number. WVMJ

 

[SirVilhelm]

I took another reading today with my hydrometer. The gravity fell to 1.040 which I calculate to be 10.74% ABV. I believe I am on the right track. Thank all of you for the advice.

 

[WVMJ]

The most common usage of the refractometer is to check the fruit on the vine to see if its got enough sugars to harvest, keep your refractomer as now you can check your fruit before you even buy it or pick it. WVMJ

 

[MrJames]

The most common usage of the refractometer is to check the fruit on the vine to see if its got enough sugars to harvest, keep your refractomer as now you can check your fruit before you even buy it or pick it. WVMJ

Now that is very interesting! I did not know that. I have seen tv shows where a person is out in the vineyard and they have a refractometer with them and are measuring something but I never knew what. That is very very cool!!

 

[SirVilhelm]

This is very cool, now how do I know what to look at? For example what would be a good sugar level of an orange?

 

[WVMJ]

I dont know the answer to that, when you are at the supermarket you have to duck behind the onion bin, squeeze out some juice and measure it and then give it a taste. If its sweet you know what number to look for

WVMJ

 

[SirVilhelm]

Lol