Help me organize my brewing after last blunder

[KKtheMeader]

Hello all.
Thanks for all the help you gave and are giving to newbies like yours truely.
I completely messed my last batch, it got contaminated with bacteria and got closed to becoming vinegar.
This time I am giving it another try.
Firstly I have realized that having a hydro meter is a must and I have ordered one.
I also ordered a siphon pump for racking.
Also a bottle of rinse free brewing sanitizer.
What I now wish is to know just a few things.
Firstly, how and when to take the reading from the hydro meter?
Secondly, during later testing sessions with the hydro meter, how do I prevent contamination?
I have a brewing jar with an air lock and sure enough I could remove the lock put the siphon tube in and get the must sample in the measuring glass.
My main concern in all this is to keep it clean and free from contamination.
I was going very well in the last batch and just when the time came for racking this entire batch got messed up.
I have 1 KG of raw forest honey and brewing yeast from arishtum.
For one KG how much water is correct?
Should I have 2 L or even 3 L will do?
Should I boil the water and let it cool totally before adding honey?
Any other suggestions please?
Thank you in anticipation of making this a success.

 

[CKuhns]

Taking hydrometer readings:
1st time to establish the Original Gravity (OG). Taken after you mix your honey and water and before adding yeast, fruit, etc.

Then whenever you want to check how your ferment is coming along do another. When two succesive readings a week or so apart without change your ferment is done.

How much water for 1 Kg honey:
It depends on what ABV your targeting.

What i consider "traditional" mead is roughly 3 pounds to make 1 gallon total volume or 1.4 kg to make 4 litres total volume.

I also have done as little as 2 pounds and as much as 4 for a total 1 gallon.

How to keep it clean?
Sanitize everything (including your hands) that touches your must any time you open the container.
That will not guarantee you wont have another problem but sure will minimze the chance.

Water?
I purchase bottled spring water.

Yes you can boil tap water to remove most of the water treatment chemicals that inhibit the yeast. Be sure to let it cool to near room temp before pitching yeast.

Read this. Its a zip file and will need to be unpacked. .... Full disclosure, this is only my thoughts and personal practices. Others will have their own protocols and practices that work for them. This is what works for me. What may work for you could be slightly to significantly different.

Good luck let us know how it turns out.

 

[KKtheMeader]

Thank you so much CKuhns
You had helped me in that last batch as well and it was very valuable.
It is just that some thing went wrong and the batch got contaminated.
I actually noticed it a bit late perhaps.
Being totally blind I rely on my nose all the more and it was only until my wife noticed an uncommon foam even when the smell was pretty much all right.
Any ways I would ideally not want to have more than 8 or 10% ABV.
So I currently have around 1 KG raw forest honey.
I plan to mix it with 3 L water from my purifier.
Needless to say it is not direct tap water but electrically treated and will boil it as well.
Will this proportion be fine?
As a curiosity I am wondering if the reading must be taken in 10 days and then again after a week?
Of course as you instructed I would take the reading before pitching yeast.
Again the hydro meter which I bought has different scales as my wife just told me, so which reading should I rely upon?
Awaiting your valued guidance.

 

[KKtheMeader]

Hi again CKuhns
Just went through your article which you had attached.
It's really wonderful and I want to thank you on behalf of all those who must have benefited by reading it.
Just one thing I forgot to mention.
I have 2 packets of yeast, one is a wine yeast and other a specific honey meed yeast.
The latter is close to being finished (I guess 2 grams left ).
Besides I feel the packet has caught some moisture in the fridge.
I felt it was a bit sticky. Do you think the yeast might be contaminated?

 

[CKuhns]

@KKtheMeader You have a triple scale hydrometer. A brix reading, a specific gravity (SG) reading, and an approximate alcohol. You can use all three. However the easiest to understand is the specific gravity.

Yes 3L water with 1Kg honey and yeast will work. ( See my tgoughts below)

Attached link is a white paper from Milehigh distilling describing the different measures and how they are used.
https://milehidistilling.com/how-to-use-a-hydrometer/
Your call on the yeast, if it were me i would not use it. If you were inclined to do so i would start it a good day or so ahead with some small amount of as near a SG as your must will be. To see if its ok to use.
Note: The wine yeast will work just fine.

3L water and 1 Kg honey will give you a total volume just under 1 US gallon. (Sorry struggling with the metric to US conversion.) But the math works this way. 1 pound of honey in a total volume of 1 US gallon water gives you 0.035 gravity ponts. So 2.2 pounds (1Kg) honey gives you something near 0.080 gravity points. On your hydrometer on the SG scale it would read 1.080 plus or minus a bit.

And 0.080 is the amount of fermentable sugars available for the yeast to consume and turn to alcohol. Assuming both you and the yeast do their job then your SG when complete should be near 1.000. With wine yeast dont be surprised if its a little less. Knowing starting gravity and ending gravity we can calculate the potential alcohol.

The math is this.
starting gravity minus ending multiplied by 131.25 as a constant.

In your case will be something like
1.080 - 1.000 = 0.080
0.080 X 131.25 = 10.5% Alcohol By Volume

This is not perfect nor is it completely linear but gets you within a few tenths.

With all that said, yes 3L water plus 1 Kg honey and wine yeast should be easily fermented and in a range that can make a tasty mead. My meads starting gravity fall anywhere between 1.060 and 1.130. Lower on the scale are a lot easier to manage and are drinkable sooner.

Phew - kind of long winded. Sorry. Hope that helps.

 

[CKuhns]

One final thought. I noticed you said you thought your last batch was contaminated "wife noticed an uncommon foam even when the smell was pretty much all right." (Ignore this if you already know.)

Foam (krausen) is common while fermenting. If the foam has white stringy material in it or has huge white bubbles or gets colored (blue, orange, green etc) furry / hairy patches your in trouble for an infection.

A layer of an inch or two of small off-white, tan to light brown bubbles are common early in the process.

 

[KKtheMeader]

Thank you again CKuhns
I got a new packet of meed yeast from the same brand so the yeast issue is resolved.
I now have two final questions.
As I already mentioned I will use 3 L water with 1 KG honey.
Will 2 tea spoon of yeast be sufficient?
Shold I add more or less?
If there is no accurate answer then I guess shure the more is better.
So correct me if I am wrong.
Secondly, how often and till what day should I degas the must?
I think answer to these two final queries will get me going.

 

[CKuhns]

The amount of yeast used or recommended varies wildly on the forums. Two teaspoons is a good starting point. One or three tsp would work as well. For reference I use 10 grams per 5 US gallons but start them 24 to 48 hours prior and they reproduce a LOT in that time.

To clarify: The term degassing is often used on the forums to release the CO2 during your primary ferment. Wine makers use the term once the wine is complete and clarified to release any residual entrained CO2. (I assume your refering to releasing CO2 during your ferment.)

To degas during fermentation. Actually what your doing is releasing the CO2, perhaps adding a little air and suspending any lees. I believe all are beneficial early in your ferment. I stir it 2X a day for the first 3 days with a sanitized long handled spoon. For small batches like yours I would just remove the airlock and just swirl it.

BE CAREFULL. Start very slowly as the CO2 could release and foam a LOT and often is a little delayed. Mead fountains are not fun to clean up. (Dont ask how i know.) Think mentos and diet coke.

The thought behind this technique follows.
- First its optional.
- Some would suggest its not really needed as there are some risks and has minimal impact. Anytime you open your fermenter you take the risk of introducing some contaminate like bacteria.

So why stir or swirl it?
- CO2 is known to inhibit yeast production. Releasing the CO2 should be beneficial. However in an active ferment it will be replaced very quickly. So, the benefit is likely not very large.
- Yeast up to 1/3 to 1/2 sugar break (Roughly 3 days) like a little air to reproduce / bud and up to that point are in an aerobic phase to do so. Beyond 1/3 to 1/2 sugar break they go anaerobic and air will cause off flavors.
- Lees - Yeast, solids etc settle out over time. Suspending the yeast kind of puts them back in the game for a bit. ( This is probably the largest benefit.)

 

[KKtheMeader]

Hi CKuhns.
So here's the update.
I have finally gone ahead with the batch.
3.2 L water and 1 KG honey.
I can't exactly remember the hydrometer reading ut it was pretty much high and did not sink.
Reading was about 1.120.
I am very sure that the measuring cylinder was well sanitized (dipped in brewing sanitizer solution and rinced in clean water ). So I also added back the sample to the must after measurements.
Guess I was a bit too greedy and should not have done it.
I have about 2.5 g of yeast in it.
I put a tea spoon of yeast nutrient 12 hours later.
But I had a small accident. I happened to drop the tea spoon on the ground when the jar was open.
I immediately ran to wash the spoon and got back again.
The jar was open for 1 or so minute.
All seems to be well, but I don't know if that has caused contamination.
It is just 12 hours into the batch so I can't see any good or bad signs.
I added the nutrient and closed the jar immediately.
I gave it a shake as you had suggested.
How soon do you feel I can see if there is contamination?
My sence of smell is very sharp so that's one way I can find out.
And if it does contaminate (which I hope not ) then what immediate steps can I take?

 

[CKuhns]

Sounds like you are well on your way. As long as you have good sanitation practices and dont open it too often i wouldnt be too concerned.

At this stage it could throw some off flavors or aromas. Especially if the yeast get stressed. As mentioned above foam is expected. Check it daily if there is foam or small floating tan rafts (yeast) then your fine. If there is orange, green or pink blobs that get furry your likely in trouble.

Your likely going to want to age this one a good bit as this one could taste pretty strong young. Age ( months) helps a lot.

 

[Raptor99]

When you say that you rinsed with clean water after washing or sanitizing, what do you mean by "clean water"? You do not need to rinse after santizing, but if you do you should use boiled then cooled water. Tap water might contain bacteria.

 

[Dan O]

When you say that you rinsed with clean water after washing or sanitizing, what do you mean by "clean water"? You do not need to rinse after santizing, but if you do you should use boiled then cooled water. Tap water might contain bacteria.

I was going to ask the same question about the rinsing after sanitizing.

 

[KKtheMeader]

Hi again CKuhns
So here's the update.
3 days into fermentation and it is pretty active.
I swirled it 2 times a day by just removing the air lock so as to avoid opening the lid.
However I indeed had to open the lid to add nutrient.
Now fine bubbles have developed and there is a nice aroma.
I feel fruity (some what like pineapple with some floral notes ).
The temperature is around 20 degrees C.
My only remaining concern is that I don't have a fridge dedicated for keeping the jar.
So I have to wrap it in wet cloth and put on the AC to keep things down.
Hope this won't be a problem?
Another question, so far it's good.
But if I discover early signs of contamination, how can I stop or manage it?

 

[CKuhns]

Glad things are going wel. Good fruity smell is really encouraging.

20C for most yeast is a pretty good temp to ferment at.

Dont stress too much about contamination. Let it ride. If you did well with sanitation. Shouldnt be a problem.

If infected not much that i know of that you can do to fix it. I honestly have never had one. (Maybe just lucky.) Others may be able to offer some advice.

 

[KKtheMeader]

Hello again CKuhns.
So here's the update.
I have attached a few photos for your reference.
It's been 9 days now and the bubbling has reduced.
There is surely foam on top as you can see.
I just wish to know if this is fine.
The activity in the air lock is also less.
The smell is still nice but the intensity has reduced and it is faint as compared to the start.
Does this mean that fermentation has slowed down?
Is it anything to worry about?

 

[CKuhns]

@KKtheMeader looks perfectly normal. The foam has subsided and the white "rafts" are either left over foam or yeast rafts. Nine days in i would let it go for another couple weeks and check the gravity.

 

[KKtheMeader]

Thank you for the assurance, very glad that it is working.
So if it's left over yeast, is it still active?
Do I need to do anything to get it back in the game?

 

[CKuhns]

It is generally considered a good practice to swirl it once in a while (once a day) to suspend the yeast / lees that are settling in the bottom. It should also break up thoee "rafts". I personally believe it helps, but not sure it makes much of a difference later in the ferment unless it stalls.

 

[KKtheMeader]

Sure enough CKuhns.
I think you are right on the spot.
I did as you said and the bubbles have re-appeared and the foam has almost diminished.
I again feel the fruity aroma becoming more evident.
I will swirl it again today and tomorrow as well.
Thank you for this tip.