First Mead in Underway! Triple Berry.

[NothingRhymesWithCurtiss]

I got a 12# jug of honey from a local farm so I decided to try my hand at making Mead (I've been brewing beer 5+ times a month for the past few years).

Details

• 12# Bake & Brew Honey - A blend of Titi & Popcorn Honey
  • https://sleepingbearfarms.com/honey-news/bake-n-brew-honey/
• 6# Thawed/Frozen Berries (Blueberry, Raspberry, Blackberry)
• 2 Whole Oranges Quartered
• A Handful of Raisins
• White Labs WLP720 Sweet Mead/Wine Yeast
• Water filled to 5 Gallons
• OG 1.091 (I didn't take this until after adding the fruit.)

Everything I've read said to leave this alone for 6 weeks, so I'm going to leave it for 8 before taking any gravity readings. Once fermentation is done, I plan on bottling half of it straight, with the remaining half getting more fruit, as well as some wine soaked oak chips for another month or so.

Since I'm new to this, any and all feedback is appreciated!

Thanks!

 

[Shine0n]

In myour limited experience, the zest of the orange is better, a little goes a long way!
The raisins are a great nutrient when chopped fine or boil down to a concentrate but if left in I'm sure they will be fine as well.

I did a raspberry melomel last Aug that I just put the smack pack wyeast sweet mead in and just left it for a few months and it turned out Fantastic.

I'm sure it will be fine in the long haul but don't expect to drink it for a few or many months.

I'm doing a blueberry melomel now and using nutrients in 3rd breaks and it's almost at 1.020 and it's been 10 days now from 1.120, I'm going to rack tomorrow and add another 3 lbs of blueberry for a month. I'll rack again and filter and let sit for 4 months before I check it.
Good luck with yours and report back with progress.

 

[Pappers_]

Good luck with your first mead. Mine was less than palatable . . . .

 

[NothingRhymesWithCurtiss]

So as I read more and more about Mead (which, yes, I should have done before fermentation started), I'm seeing references to degassing and adding nutrients.

Any thoughts on this? Should I try and do these, or just leave it for 8 weeks, and if it's garbage, chock it up as a learning experience?

 

[Pappers_]

So as I read more and more about Mead (which, yes, I should have done before fermentation started), I'm seeing references to degassing and adding nutrients.

Any thoughts on this? Should I try and do these, or just leave it for 8 weeks, and if it's garbage, chock it up as a learning experience?

Definitely add nutrients to keep the fermentation going and strong. Degassing is more about when its time to package, I believe. But someone who has actually made good mead should answer your questions . . . .

 

[Kent88]

One thing I've found with the sweet mead strains (mostly referring to the wyeast strain), it does a lot better with melomels than traditional/plain/unfruited mead.

Something to consider with your next batch (I say leave this one alone and see what happens), you might want to be mixing it up every other day for the first week, maybe even two. I've made wines where I left it alone and they've turned out great, but a few good meadmakers that I've seen interviewed have commented that mixing it up helps. I think it is because getting rid of the carbon dioxide helps, it gets the yeast and yeast nutrients back into suspension, it keeps the fruit from just floating there and having some with very little contact time, and it might even keep a more uniform temperature.

That and yeast nutrient. I know you have raisins, but a little yeast nutrient isn't going to mess it up, and it shouldn't break the bank.

 

[GrandwizzardGillias]

I am doing my first get bottles of mead also, and just like you I started reading this forum after fermenting started. Hahaha "de gassing what's that" I said. Your not alone my friend but it's so much fun.

 

[Ryue]

As Kent88 stated, degassing is meant to remove co2 and get the yeast back into suspension rather than sitting on the bottom for a better and stronger fermentation.
Nutrient also helps a lot, particularly in the beginning in my experience to get things rolling. My first batch took 3 days to get going, second batch of the same mead I used nutrient and it was rip roaring in about an hour!

While not completely necessary, both will help the end product. I didn't degass or feed nutients to my first batch and it turned out great. This batch should be done in about 4 or 5 more weeks, I have noticed a slightly stronger, more steady fermentation with nutrients and degassing this time and am hoping for an even better end product.