Nutrient addition volcano

[Grreg2]

I started my first ever batch of mead the other day. I'm staggering the yeast nutrient additions. The nutrient I'm using states to use 1-1.5 tsp per gallon of must. I'm making a 5 g batch. Put 2 tsp in at first and then added 2 tsp at 12 hrs and 24 hrs. When I added the two nutrient additions I had a giant foam over. I haven't read anything that said this would happen. Is it normal?

 

[Strut]

Yep this is normal occurrence. Next time dissolve the nutrient in a few oz of hot water first, this will prevent, or at least minimize, the volcano effect.

 

[bernardsmith]

It's called nucleation. If you add any powder or material with rough surfaces to a liquid in which there is absorbed gas the gas will collect around those rough points and will be able - with less energy than it could without those points to gather and form larger bubbles. The larger bubbles will then be able to expel themselves from the liquid. Now if you ferment in a carboy and that carboy is pretty much full then you create a volcano as the gas projects the liquid through the neck of the carboy. If you ferment in a bucket and you have several pints of headroom you will still get this nucleated foam but you won't create any volcano... The solution, of course, is to dissolve any powder in water or the mead before you add it to your fermenter...
Nucleation is one way to degas wines.. You can add tiny sanitized silicone screws or fasteners to the carboy to help remove CO2...

 

[BrewDrinkRepeat]

You should also be stirring your mead a couple of times per day to degas (excessive CO2 is not healthy for yeast); I use a wine degasser/stirrer attached to my drill, but you can just use a large sanitized spoon or mash paddle. No matter what, start very slow and then increase speed after it stops foaming. Then add the nutrients after you degass.

 

[phil74501]

Not to thead hijack but, is there a limit to how much nutrient you can put in? I know it's supposed to be one teaspoon per gallon, but if you go over that, does it hurt anything?

 

[Grreg2]

I second the above question. Per the directions above I should add between 5 and 7.5 tsp nutrient. I have used 6 and was planning on adding one more.

 

[Grreg2]

And thanks for the responses. Good information.

 

[noblesquirrel]

Not to thead hijack but, is there a limit to how much nutrient you can put in? I know it's supposed to be one teaspoon per gallon, but if you go over that, does it hurt anything?

yes, it definitely can hurt the mead. The primary negative effect that you'll get is a character of vitamins or chemical notes as a result of the nutrient not being metabolized by the yeast. The amounts that have been named previously are the ones most commonly used for a reason. Cheers!