Noob with a problem...

Homebrew Talk - Beer, Wine, Mead, & Cider Brewing Discussion Forum

Help Support Homebrew Talk - Beer, Wine, Mead, & Cider Brewing Discussion Forum:

This site may earn a commission from merchant affiliate links, including eBay, Amazon, and others.

MustaphaMond

New Member
Joined
Jul 14, 2005
Messages
2
Reaction score
0
I started brewing mead about 7 months ago. My first was a medium sweet orange blossom mead which turned out well and was recently kegged. My second batch is an apple (used un-pastuerized apple cider in place of water) mead and I think it's ruined.

I believe everything went smoothly up until the seconary fermenter. After approximately month 3-4 of being in the secondary fermenter, the ferment-lock opened for an undetermined amount of time (forgot to check vodka level in ferment lock). When the problem was noticed, the lock was re-sealed and has remained so until recently. I should mention that we added no sulphites.

While racking into a keg I sampled the mead and the flavor was quite off what I expected. Not poisonous but also not tasty. From the look of the mead in the carboy I don't believe there was an infection but I am worried about oxidation or other problems I may not be aware of.

What would you expecct to happen if the ferment-lock opened for a week to a month? Is there any way to correct the bad taste?

Any suggestions or info will be greatly appreciated. thanks.
 
Howdy! I've never made a mead before, so I'm no expert. I have no clue what oxidized mead would taste like, but that's a possibility. If you weren't having a really active ferment, it's possible that you lost your CO2 in headspace, and it was oxidized.

Another thing that comes to mind is the cider. Do you think it might have been something in that? Lotsa variables....additives, infection, etc. Do you think that maybe it's just the flavor you're not used to, something that might age out of it?

Just throwing out some ideas. There aren't many meadmakers on here, and I hate to see a post go unanswered!

Welcome to the forum.
 
I have to agree with Sam here,
THe fact that you used unpasturised Juice - and no sulphites - that is asking for a very very tricky brew.

I have only made 1 mead so far, and it has been in secondary for about 2 months now - can be tricky stuff.

I would try to rack it and then sulphate it - 1 camden tab (crushed ) per gallon, leave it in the secondary for another month and rack and sulphate again.

You may be able to save it - mayhaps not.

if not - Perhaps look to your Local HBS and get some mother of Vinegar, and make some vinegar out of it - that way it might not go to waste.

Kilroy
 
Thanks guys,

I posted this question over on the morebeer.com forums also and got pretty much the same advice you gave me.

I'm now convinced that if there was oxidation it was minor. My initial tasting was skewed because as you said, I didn't really know what to expect and... it's still quite young and needs age. My first batch of Medium sweet Orange Blossom is great and I think I was expecting it to taste more smiilar to that. But I used cider instead of water so what I made is technically a cyser not a mead.

I added 2 campdem tabs, added some pectic enzyme, and then let it sit for a few days. Then I ran it through a plate filter, first course, then medium.

I tasted it again at this point. It defiantely tastes as though a hard cider fermented longer (quite alcoholic) and has a nice light honey aftertaste. It is slightly astringent and leaves a small bitter aftertaste. This bitter is what I think I was detecting the first time I tasted it. I sprinkled some citric acid in my glass and the bitter went away slightly without adding any flavor so I added a pinch more. Then it tasted great.

So I think I'm gonna add some acids (probably a citric, malic, tartaric mix), run it through a sterile filter, then presssurize the keg and store for another 6-8 months.

Thanks for the help!
 
yeah, still kicking at an old thread. How is kegged mead? That sounds really good. I want to know more.
 
kid mode said:
How is kegged mead? That sounds really good. I want to know more.
Most of our club members that make mead for events will keg with 3 gallon cornys. If they brewed 5 gallons, that'll leave them a few bottles for personal enjoyment. With kegs, you can force carb if you want it sparkling.

Wild
 

Latest posts

Back
Top