Question

[1up23]

I finished making mead and dodnt have appropriate sized bottles to store it in, so i used 2X 1gallon jugs. Could i siphon the mead from the gallon jug to an air tight 40 oZ bottle, or will it go bad?

 

[bernardsmith]

You finished the mead? Not the one you just started with 24 lbs of honey in 5 gallons? Assuming you are referring to a very different batch that you may have started some months ago.. as long as the mead is no longer producing CO2 and as long as the CO2 in the mead has been out-gassed then you can use anything that you can fill to bottle as long as the material is glass or some other material that will not leach chemicals in the presence of alcohol /acid and as long as the molecular structure is such that it will not allow in a great deal of O2...

 

[1up23]

Yes, haha. I am indeed referring to a different batch. I used gallon sized glass containers to let the finished mead age for a while. My friend told me once i open the container, i have to drink it in roughly a week or it will go bad. I guess my question is can i re-bottle the mead when i'm happy withView attachment ImageUploadedByHome Brew1421084597.280788.jpg its age progression.

 

[RegarRenill]

You should be fine. If you start seeing any sediment in the jars I'd transfer off of them after 60 days or so, but otherwise I don't foresee any problems as long as you added kmeta when you racked, 1/4 tsp for 5 gallons or 1 crushed campden tablet per gallon.

 

[1up23]

I did not add kmeta or any campden tablets. What do they do? And what does it mean for my mead if i did not add them?

 

[sanguine]

K-Meta and Campden tablet are two different ways of adding sulfite to a wine/mead/must/etc. Sulfite stops bacteria and oxidation, so it helps keep the wine/mead/whatever from going bad. However, bacteria are unlikely to be a problem at this point, and oxidation is, unlike with wine, rarely a problem with mead, so you'll probably be fine as it is. I personally never add any sort of chemical additives to anything I make, and I never have any problems.

That said, you could certainly siphon what's left to a bottle if you wanted to, assuming that the bottle is well sanitized and assuming you haven't made the 1 gallon container all dirty by drinking out of it directly or something like that.

 

[1up23]

Thank you for the answer! And no, i haven't drank out of the container or anything. Just bottled it up and let it sit there. I think i'll open up a gallon in April (after it's aged for 6 months). And i'll open the other gallon at a special event, maybe a wedding or a child's birth or something. (I'm 19, so that'll be aging for quite some time).

 

[fuelish]

(I'm 19, so that'll be aging for quite some time).

Not to be nosy, but am assuming you don't live in the US, beings as you're making "adult beverages" at the age of 19???

 

[1up23]

To my understanding, As long as i'm not pitching the yeast, there's no illegal activity in minors home brewing.

 

[sanguine]

Hey, I was barely even 19 when I first started brewing...it was classier, cheaper, and more fun than having someone else buy beer for me.

To be honest, in this case you probably don't really have to pay attention to what's technically legal or not legal, it's not like the cops are gonna kick in your door so they can search your fridge for beer.

 

[1up23]

Right, i figured. In all honesty, i'm just fascinated in the chemistry aspect of the process. Getting to drink delicious mead is just an added benefit.

 

[passedpawn]

Sorry pal, but you have to be 21 to be a member here. I've put your account in cold storage for 2 years. See you then.