To Swirl or not to Swirl that is the question...

[CallMeKiupid]

Hello fellow mead makers,

I have been monitoring my first brew and already from the odd ways it behaves, I know it will have fusels and im sure the mead is stressed. That being said, time will fix all. Although one question does escape me. After the first 5 days, do any of you continue to swirl, shake, aerate the mead? Initially none of the tutorials/ guides mentioned doing this, but i found several sources claiming it should be done 2ce a day initially and atleast once a day throughout fermentation to get rid of CO2 and give the yeasties some love.
I have been swirling it at least once a day for the last week since the initial pitch.

For Reference. 3lbs blueberry blossom honey, water to 1 gallon. D47.

 

[lumpher]

Time won't fix fusels. It may reduce them, but there is no guarantee there, either. Continued shaking and swirling only leads to oxidation. The only reason you'll ever see me swirl my brews is if there is a stuck fermentation.

 

[CallMeKiupid]

Time won't fix fusels. It may reduce them, but there is no guarantee there, either. Continued shaking and swirling only leads to oxidation. The only reason you'll ever see me swirl my brews is if there is a stuck fermentation.

dont we want oxidation because its good for the yeast? and also to dissipate the CO2? but i do find it conflicting to swirl and release the stopper a littel because the point of having and airlock is supposed to be to keep air out so very conflicting information out there.

 

[SimPilot]

I like to keep lazy yeast working....so mixing is what I do.

 

[lumpher]

You want oxygen in there early, but not later. Yeast needs oxygen to multiply. Once it's multiplied to the saturation level, which can take anywhere from a few hours to a couple days (about the time it starts the actual fermentation), it becomes an anaerobic process, where oxygen is no longer needed or wanted. Get oxygen in there at the start, then leave it alone. Adding oxygen later makes it taste like cardboard.

 

[DBhomebrew]

Degassing isn't a thing for beer brewers. For wine, many makers do degas a lot further into the process than brewers might think. It's all about getting the acidic CO2 out.

With a 1G batch you can pick up the whole thing and gently, GENTLY!, swirl it. With airlock still installed and everything. CO2 will come out of solution and exit the fermenter. No oxygen will ingress.

Note. It's about getting the CO2 out. A gentle swirl is all you need. No shaking, no whipping, no whisking, no aerating, just a gentle no-splash swirl.

 

[CKuhns]

I have found D47 benefits from stirring / swirling up to 1/3 sugar break. I aerate well at pitch using a pump and diffuser stone. Then stir or swirl up to 1/3 sugar break when adding nutrients. Stirring does add a little oxygen but honestly i dont think much at all. The benefit is keeping the yeast and nutrients in suspension. Again not sure how much benefit but i do find it seems to reduce off flavors. After 1/3 sugar break I only stir if it stalls.

 

[lumpher]

I do degas my wine, but only once. I'll step back and let more experienced meadmakers run with this, since I do wine but not mead.

 

[D the Catastrophist]

I stir gently morning and night for at least the first week, then drop to daily. You can hear when fermentation stops and slows, that is when I check s.g. and transfer to secondary.

 

[MightyMosin]

3 pounds of honey for a 1 gallon batch and we are at ~14% ABV.
D47 can be finicky with odd flavors if you don't keep it in the lower 60's for temperature. Might be fusel or just D47 doing its thing. You didn't mention your nutrient regime and if you didn't use any, then it is likely fusels.

At that higher OG, you absolutely want a lot of 02 in there when you pitched the yeast and you would want another healthy addition of O2 again 12-18 hours later. I generally degas up until the 1/3 sugar break. Once I pass this point then I am a lot more careful about adding O2 and don't open the lid. I will still swirl it around to help force CO2 out of the must and I am trusting that the airlock is doing the job that it is there to do.

The big key for O2 is that you want a lot of it there at yeast pitch; that will be depleted in about 30 minutes by the yeast. Adding it again at 12-18 hours later let the yeast have another good growth spurt which is important with higher gravity meads and will result in a cleaner ferment as well as a faster ferment; up to 30% faster.

 

[CallMeKiupid]

Degassing isn't a thing for beer brewers. For wine, many makers do degas a lot further into the process than brewers might think. It's all about getting the acidic CO2 out.

With a 1G batch you can pick up the whole thing and gently, GENTLY!, swirl it. With airlock still installed and everything. CO2 will come out of solution and exit the fermenter. No oxygen will ingress.

Note. It's about getting the CO2 out. A gentle swirl is all you need. No shaking, no whipping, no whisking, no aerating, just a gentle no-splash swirl.

well that sucks because no matter how gentle i am, theres a big sploosh. Apparently, I have the dexterity of a brick. I can make the tiniest movements super slow and it still happens.

 

[amber-ale]

Hello fellow mead makers,

I have been monitoring my first brew and already from the odd ways it behaves, I know it will have fusels and im sure the mead is stressed. That being said, time will fix all. Although one question does escape me. After the first 5 days, do any of you continue to swirl, shake, aerate the mead? Initially none of the tutorials/ guides mentioned doing this, but i found several sources claiming it should be done 2ce a day initially and atleast once a day throughout fermentation to get rid of CO2 and give the yeasties some love.
I have been swirling it at least once a day for the last week since the initial pitch.

For Reference. 3lbs blueberry blossom honey, water to 1 gallon.

What is the odd way your mead is behaving? Why is your mead stressed?
What recipe are you using?

 

[Rish]

If you are keeping the airlock in place it doesn't matter if you sploosh when you swirl. The CO2 will come out and no O2 will go in.