Mead won't start to ferment and separate.

[jd8222]

Hello, i am kinda new when it comes to brewing mead (it's my 4th batch) and i am having a weird issue with it.

In short the mead does not start to ferment and is separating.

Its been 48h and it simply separate everytime i shake it.

I have no clue how to handle this.

Here is the receipe it's for a 1 gal jar:

-600g (1.2 pound) of frozen mango, peach, strawberry. Mashed them by hand
-1.5 kg (3 pounds) of honney
-Half a packet of yeast k1-v1116
-3g of fermaid O
-2g of pectic enzyme

The initial gravity was 1.140

And that's pretty much it, i have no idea how that happened or no idea on how to fix it.

Some help on insight would be appreciated. Thank in advance.

 

[Maylar]

No water? 1.140 is very high, even for K1-V

 

[jd8222]

No water? 1.140 is very high, even for K1-V

I did add water, i just don't have the exact amount since i just filled the remaining space in my fermentation vesel.

Anyway, thanks for answering. I will try to dilute it to a lower gravity.

 

[MightyMosin]

-600g (1.2 pound) of frozen mango, peach, strawberry. Mashed them by hand

I would suggest a very light crush next time if it was whole fruit... basically enough to make it easier for the juice to get into everything else. I would also suggest placing the fruit in a sanitized brew-bag to make it easier to remove later and contain some of the stuff you see separating there. All of that pulp there is going to really reduce your final volume if you want to get it all clear.

If your airlock has been bubbling then it is likely fermenting.

While it is extra steps, with that high of a gravity you are better off rehydrating your yeast separately with some Go-Ferm or similar yeast energizer and then after ~30 minutes, adding some of that honey-water must to the yeast to acclimate them to the high gravity and acidity. Let them build a larger colony and then add to the overall mix.

 

[Maylar]

^^^ Good call on the bag. Strain the fruit pulp out and put it in a cheesecloth bag. Start with maybe 1/2 gallon of honey/water at about 1.100 SG and when it's fermenting underway add the fruit bag and all.

 

[keystonehb]

Have you tried taking another gravity reading? Unless the jar was recently shaken up it does look like there are small bubbles at the top of the pulp as well as the airlock. With such a high amount of sugar it may be slow to start.