Recycling mead

[Anon111]

Okay, this is the situation. I have 3 liters of plain mead bottled, very sweet, no Campden or sulphate used, 9% ABV. It's not a clear mead.
I had a successful 1-gallon JOAM and want to make a 5-gallon one.
Is it possible to make the 5-gallon JOAM and halfway fermentation add the 3 liters of plain mead? Is it risky, or stupid, or weird?
It looks like a way to turn 3 liters of ubersweet meh mead into something better.

 

[bernardsmith]

Interesting question, GerritT. Blending wines and mead has a very , very long history so there should be no problem with blending, though what I might do is blend the mead when the five gallon batch is ready to bottle.

BUT...

You say that the mead is sweet and that it is at 9% ABV AND that you have not stabilized this. Does that mean that it stalled? If it stalled then it may restart when you blend it... and the 3 quarts (OK , liters) of sweet mead that you add may turn out to be 3 liters of dry mead. You really need to have a good handle on why the 3 L batch is sweet (and perhaps you do... )

 

[Anon111]

You say that the mead is sweet and that it is at 9% ABV AND that you have not stabilized this. Does that mean that it stalled? If it stalled then it may restart when you blend it... and the 3 quarts (OK , liters) of sweet mead that you add may turn out to be 3 liters of dry mead. You really need to have a good handle on why the 3 L batch is sweet (and perhaps you do... )

It was my second brew ever, and my best guess is that the yeast gave up. It was nearly 3 months in primary, gravity showed 1040 at 2 measurements with a week inbetween, no funny smells.
Ingredients (and topped up to 1 gallon):
3 pounds honey √
1 apple, chopped √
½ cup chopped raisins √
juice of 1 lemon √
champagne yeast √
yeast nutrient √

from Richard Hood,Nick Moyle. 'Brew It Yourself'.

The champagne yeast should be able to withstand 15%.

 

[rlmiller10]

I would not add that bottled mead to the JOAM. For whatever reason it stalled. If there is any live yeast in there when you add it to a batch of JOAM it will now be in a new environment it might thrive in. if it does you run the risk of it fermenting and turning you wonderful, slightly sweet JOAM to a less wonderful, very dry JOAM.

If it were mine, and assuming you don't like it so are willing to take a chance, I would get see if I couldn't find a 96 oz or jug so I could play without much head space. Then I would add fruit juice is that is something you might like. Or with that residual sweetness, adding nutmeg, cloves and cinnamon for a Christmas mead would be nice. Then see if fermentation starts. If so, let it finish. If not a little meta-K would not hurt before bottling again.

 

[Anon111]

I would not add that bottled mead to the JOAM. For whatever reason it stalled. If there is any live yeast in there when you add it to a batch of JOAM it will now be in a new environment it might thrive in. if it does you run the risk of it fermenting and turning you wonderful, slightly sweet JOAM to a less wonderful, very dry JOAM.

If it were mine, and assuming you don't like it so are willing to take a chance, I would get see if I couldn't find a 96 oz or jug so I could play without much head space. Then I would add fruit juice is that is something you might like. Or with that residual sweetness, adding nutmeg, cloves and cinnamon for a Christmas mead would be nice. Then see if fermentation starts. If so, let it finish. If not a little meta-K would not hurt before bottling again.

Handful of cranberries + some juice + bottle of sweetiemead in a larger bottle + nutrient and some fermentis yeast: yup, sounds good! Thanks!

 

[Drewed]

More Than a hand full of cranberries, more like a bag per gallon- depending on the size of the bag.

 

[Anon111]

More Than a hand full of cranberries, more like a bag per gallon- depending on the size of the bag.

Bags are 12 ounces, on average. I haven't got a gallon though.

 

[Anon111]

So: I put the meads back to work. From left to right: cranberries, cherries and pineapple. That was about 10 days ago.

 

[Anon111]

Bottles after a day of inactivity. Cranberries turned out pretty tart, and lighter. The cherries are somewhere around that sweetness in cherry bonbons. But with a lot more oompf. I estimate them to be around 14% ABV. Pineapple is still active: no bottling yet.

 

[Drewed]

Those have not settled and cleared yet. I'd be worried about some fermenting still going on. You might want to pop the bail lock on the bottles and instead hold the tops down with a rubber band for a few months yet, unless you are going to toss them in the fridge and drink them soon.

 

[Anon111]

Those have not settled and cleared yet. I'd be worried about some fermenting still going on. You might want to pop the bail lock on the bottles and instead hold the tops down with a rubber band for a few months yet, unless you are going to toss them in the fridge and drink them soon.

Thank you for your concern. Mead can take years to clear, if one doesn't use clarification agents or coldcrash or the like.
And swingtop rubbers are flexible enough to function as a valve, as has been proven by my lavender wine (don't ask).
The bottles are in a liquid proof box, in a closet behind a lot of things. If the worst happens, the smell of sweetness will fill the house and I'll prepare for a spill cleanup in Closet 7
But I'm positive about these meads, it'll work out.

 

[Anon111]

Aaand here's the last liter chugging away. Starting to look like a Rumtopff

https://photos.app.goo.gl/s1LNzlETQeUHNdcJ2

 

[curtisbrewer]

bro just use beer smith..... duhhh it has all the answers to your problems

http://beersmith.com/blog/2013/09/20/making-mead-for-home-brewers/

 

[Anon111]

bro just use beer smith..... duhhh it has all the answers to your problems

http://beersmith.com/blog/2013/09/20/making-mead-for-home-brewers/

No it has not. Are you ****ing stalking me?!

 

[OHVolsfan23]

I agree. I wouldn't add it to your good stuff. I would back-sweeten and add flavoring and make a new batch of good stuff.

We had some blueberry maple that we left sitting way too long on the must and it turned to rocket fuel. But we tweaked it until it ended up pretty yummy!

 

[voltron]

Okay, this is the situation. I have 3 liters of plain mead bottled, very sweet, no Campden or sulphate used, 9% ABV. It's not a clear mead.
I had a successful 1-gallon JOAM and want to make a 5-gallon one.
Is it possible to make the 5-gallon JOAM and halfway fermentation add the 3 liters of plain mead? Is it risky, or stupid, or weird?
It looks like a way to turn 3 liters of ubersweet meh mead into something better.

I blended wines before that came out super sweet. What i did was ferment a second batch but dry. after it was finished and at the day of bottling i added the very sweet wines and ended up with something nice. I dont see an issue with blended except the halfway fermentation part. if you stop fermentation early, you will get something very sweet unless that is what your are going for. If your goal is to reduce the sweetness then you may need let it ferment to dryness and then add your very sweet wine to it. so it is is nit weird nor stupid. risky yes if your goal is to get less sweet and that is only bc your stopping fermentation early. not risky if you let it ferment to dryness and then add your sweet wine to it at bottling day.