First Mead....

[Mashline]

Kept it VERY simple - 11 lbs of honey, liquid yeast(sweet) with nutrient, & 5.5 gallons of water. Decided not to boil as every article I read seemed to advocate for a different method.

The initial OG reading I had was 1.070. Disappointed, I went with it and closed the plastic fermenter hoping for the best. There was NO activity in the airlock after 4 days - I decided to remove the lid and shake it up. Replaced airlock and waited...

After 8 days (today) and still no bubbling, I decided to remove the lid again and take another reading. Once the lid was removed, I immediately smelled the alcohol and noticed the little bubbles on the surface of the mead. Now begins my confusion - the gravity reading was 1.110!!!! And even better, after sealing the fermenter and replacing the airlock, it is now bubbling slowly, but several times per minute.

SO - I'm glad to see the release of CO2 both on the surface of the liquid and within the airlock. I'm just confused about the gravity readings - comments welcomed and hoped for....thanks!

 

[MedsenFey]

I suspect your gravity reading is off due to the CO2 bubbles. They will adhere to the side of a hydrometer causing the reading to be high. 11 pounds of honey in a 6 gallon batch is only going to give a gravity around 1.060-1.070. It helps to take your sample in a test jar, and shake it (or microwave it) to get all the CO2 out and then take the reading. Spinning the hydrometer helps, but may not completely solve the problem.

Medsen

 

[Mashline]

Ah, I feel like an idiot - that makes perfect sense. The sample was bubbling quite a bit. The good news is, the airlock continues to bubble so the yeast is doing its job.

How long should it be in secondary? and whats the ideal temp?

 

[MedsenFey]

You can leave it in secondary until clear, or until it drops enough lees to need racking - say 1/2 inch or more.

 

[Mashline]

Still bubbling and still in the primary. I took a reading which listed as .1022, although it was clear that the CO2 bubbles may be skewing the reading again.

So...How much longer in the Primary? Also, I am thinking of adding fruit when racking to the secondary, specifically blueberries. Should I use frozen, dried???

As always, any insight is appreciated.

 

[Kershner_Ale]

Still bubbling and still in the primary. I took a reading which listed as .1022, although it was clear that the CO2 bubbles may be skewing the reading again.

So...How much longer in the Primary? Also, I am thinking of adding fruit when racking to the secondary, specifically blueberries. Should I use frozen, dried???

As always, any insight is appreciated.

Keep measuring your gravity every day or every couple days. When it stops dropping, rack to secondary. For blueberries, I'd add them mostly thawed. Definitely don't dry them, you'll get rid of the juices that you want in the mead. When they're frozen, maybe put them in a gallon plastic bag and roll them with a rolling pin just a bit to break over the skins, no need to crush them to a pulp though.

 

[Mashline]

Update and more questions....

Been in the secondary for about 1.5 months now. The fruit I added hasnt dropped out yet..should it have? Also - how long should it sit in secondary? Lastly - not sure if I want to carbonate when I bottle - any opinions? Thank you as always.

 

[biochemedic]

Sometimes fruit can be "held up" by trapped CO2 bubbles underneath. Did you put the fruit in a muslin or nylon bag? If so, it's pretty easy to rack around them and keep debris out of the transfer.

I don't think there's any hard and fast rule regarding how long to leave something on fruit...fruit tends to give you what it gives, and it's hard to overdo it...and you could argue that after a month and a half you're not getting anything else out...some other things (different spices, especially chillis, or oak chips) you may want to be more careful about the contact times, as the flavors can continue to transfer and become overwhelming if left on too long.

You wouldn't be wrong to rack it now to let it do final settling before bottling, but it wouldn't harm it to leave it longer...you could consider giving it a good swirl or stir to see if that helps the fruit drop out (if you didn't bag it).

Regarding priming...just be sure you are adding the right amount of sugar for the level of carbonation you want, and I think it's easier to add in bulk (into the bottling bucket) so you get a more even distribution between bottles. Personally, I kind of like mead still or petulant, but there's nothing wrong with a lightly sparking mead either...it's really personal preference.

 

[Mashline]

Ut-oh...my laziness has caused my mead to remain in a carboy to this day. I took a look at it over the weekend and noticed apprx 20 white spots on the surface. There appears to be a solid center with light clouding all around. Any insight anyone? Is it ruined? Should I risk it and bottle?

 

[MedsenFey]

It certainly could be the start of spoilage. Does it smell bad. If not, you can rack underneath and leave that stuff on the top. As long as it smells and tastes good, you'll probably be OK, but giving it a dose of sulfite would probably be smart.

There are some downsides to leaving fruit in too long. Most of the good aroma and flavor stuff comes out in a few days. After that, excessive time on the pulp can produce unwanted bitterness and astringency, vegetal odors, and sulfur odors. While this doesn't happen in every case, I prefer not to test my luck.

 

[Mashline]

Thankfully, once the fruit dropped out, I racked to another carboy to buy myself some time to bottle. Again, Ive been lazy. Ill check for a bad odor and go from there. Thanks.