To back sweeten, or finish sweet?

[spafmagic]

I've heard in passing, that starting a brew with a high enough gravity to finish sweet is not good for some reason... Is this so?

 

[Maylar]

That's exactly what the JAOM recipe does. But the finished sweetness level is very variable and not controlled. I want to decide the dry/sweet level of my meads and not leave it to the yeast. Different honeys, yeast and ferment conditions require different treatment at the end. With oaking, and use of certain adjuncts the perceived sweetness can vary a lot between batches. I'm a firm believer in fermenting dry and making precise adjustments at the end.

YMMV as they say.

 

[spafmagic]

That's exactly what the JAOM recipe does. But the finished sweetness level is very variable and not controlled. I want to decide the dry/sweet level of my meads and not leave it to the yeast. Different honeys, yeast and ferment conditions require different treatment at the end. With oaking, and use of certain adjuncts the perceived sweetness can vary a lot between batches. I'm a firm believer in fermenting dry and making precise adjustments at the end.

YMMV as they say.

Define YMMV? =^_^=

I've tended to brew so it finishes sweet... just wanted to get some clarification on it. Often with the only yeast I've been using (Lavin 71b) I've been getting around 12% at a 1.140'ish starting gravity.

If I remember correctly about what I heard... there are some byproduct chemicals the yeast makes that they "clean" up after a brew goes dry? Something about not being able to do that otherwise?

 

[CKuhns]

I too most often ferment dry and adjust after the fact.

Lately I have racked at about 1.010 (Sometimes a little higher) as the ferment slows. Then cold crash, clarify using a fining agent (KC Super Kleer) bottle in beer bottles and crown caps and immediately pasteurize.

 

[Ty520]

I am not a fan of back sweetening. For one, they taste noticeably different; second, I think it's a sign of someone who doesn't have good control of their craft