The myth of sodium metabisulfite

[Johnny2]

Sodium metabisulfite doesn't make mead taste salty, when it's used correctly

Why do people still believe in this myth and https://meadmaking.wiki/en/home even spreads this misinformation.

Sodium metabisulfite is as viable as k-meta. If you disagree with me, then let's have an actual discussion about it and not like in reddit where they ban you instantly for disagreeing with the status quo. 1 campden tablet per gallon of must, and any sodium taste is not possible to be tasted. This same myth still alive in reddit.

 

[Hoppy2bmerry]

I’ve never heard this myth before, but wiki is a place that doesn’t always get things right.

 

[Johnny2]

It's in here: https://meadmaking.wiki/en/process/stabilization#via_chemical_additives /r/mead's bible.

You may find Campden Tablets that are made with sodium metabisulfite. Check the packaging carefully and avoid these. They work the same, but will leave sodium in your mead instead of potassium, which may affect the flavor in undesirable ways.

Some there tell as a fact that sodium metabisulfite makes your mead taste salty.

 

[dmtaylor]

Salt tastes salty when too much is used. Don't stray from the 1 Campden per gallon thing and all should be fine. Unless you are perhaps a supertaster, or delusional, or both.

 

[Johnny2]

Well, I calculated that any more than 3x the dose in a 0.44g campden tablet per gal would start to be in a threshold for detection, and that's in plain water.

Yet, some people use baking soda for pH control which adds a lot more sodium than a campden tablet.

 

[Yooper]

Well, I calculated that any more than 3x the dose in a 0.44g campden tablet per gal would start to be in a threshold for detection, and that's in plain water.

Yet, some people use baking soda for pH control which adds a lot more sodium than a campden tablet.

I seriously don't know of anyone who uses baking soda for pH control in meadmaking (or wine or cider making). Is that really a thing?

I've been making wine about 30 years, and only have used calcium carbonate and potassium carbonate for reduction of excess acids in must and even though, it's not that commonly done.

 

[Johnny2]

I seriously don't know of anyone who uses baking soda for pH control in meadmaking (or wine or cider making). Is that really a thing?

I've been making wine about 30 years, and only have used calcium carbonate and potassium carbonate for reduction of excess acids in must and even though, it's not that commonly done.

Some people have used it on a "soda mead" recently, I think mostly after Golden Hive Mead used it in a video.


Few people used it in skeeter pee, as can be found in this topic. I don't remember what page it was.
https://www.homebrewtalk.com/threads/skeeter-pee.195681/

City Steading Brews also used it in theirs


Personally, If I only had baking soda, I would turn it into sodium carbonate by heating it in an oven.

 

[lumpher]

I seriously don't know of anyone who uses baking soda for pH control in meadmaking (or wine or cider making). Is that really a thing?

Someone here posted the other day that he used baking soda in his Nitro Mtn Dew Mead, and had questions. My response was basically the same: "Who did what to who???" I believe my wording was basically "if it even works...". I've never used baking soda to alter pH in anything, but to stay on track with OP, I've never noticed any salty taste from metabisulfite.

 

[Yooper]

Someone here posted the other day that he used baking soda in his Nitro Mtn Dew Mead, and had questions. My response was basically the same: "Who did what to who???" I believe my wording was basically "if it even works...". I've never used baking soda to alter pH in anything, but to stay on track with OP, I've never noticed any salty taste from metabisulfite.

I HAVE used baking soda in seltzer, along with some other things, to make a topo chico clone or other fizzy waters but seriously never heard of using NaHCO3 in wine or mead. Weird for sure.

Anyway......sorry to derail. But to use so much Na Meta as to have a salty taste would make it so sulfury as to be undrinkable for a few years.
I do use K-meta but that's just because it's available and I have it on hand. I do have a few campden tablets of Na-meta but I don't have a preference. I make a LOT of wine- and truly that's a new one on me.

I make far more wine than beer. And I do make my share of beer.

(When I say I make a lot of wine, that does not mean that I ever have gone over the legal limit of 200 gallons of beer, wine, mead or cider in any given year of course! I just mean over the course of 30 years I've made no more than that. I swear. )

 

[lumpher]

(When I say I make a lot of wine, that does not mean that I ever have gone over the legal limit of 200 gallons of beer, wine, mead or cider in any given year of course! I just mean over the course of 30 years I've made no more than that. I swear. )

Since we're all perfect law-abiding citizens here, we would NEVER break the 200 gallon per month year limit for beer or wine...