What now?

[buenaventura]

Hi all . . .

Short time lurker and short time member . . . also short time brewer.

So.

I am making a variation of a Barkshack Gingermead from the Holy Book of Papazian with the addition of loads of grape concentrate.

To make a long story short . . .

Things were going well. I had a healthy primary fermentation. However, I think I racked it in the secondary too soon (after about three days) and the yeast pooped out.

I left it for a couple days when it was stuck, then tossed in a fresh packet of champagne yeast with a quarter ounce of yeast energizer. Nothing happened.

I left it for a couple more days and then tossed in another fresh packet of champagne yeast with a half ounce of yeast energizer and sat the carboy on a heating pad . . . and then proceeded to feel a bit like Dr. Frankenstein (It's alive!!!).

So . . . two days later and a notice it's not so active anymore, plus, I touch the thing and it's clearly hotter than the upper 70 degree range. I think I may have killed the yeast and undone what progress of recitation I had begun . . .

Then again, I won't know for sure what the gravity is until later today after I've run to the store to snag a thief.

So, anyway . . . I guess the real question is:

Have I really damaged the mead and would adding more energizer and yeast (again) if I realize it hasn't finished fermenting cause further damage? (By damage I mean taste . . . I hear yeast energizer can affect taste)

Thanks all.

b

 

[shawnbou]

I've only done one mead myself, so I'm not the most experienced. But I know racking to secondary can potentially confuse the yeast for a little while, but it should only be temporary and fermentation should have started again soon.

Just how hot did your heating pad get? Upper 70's is probably not going to kill most yeast, it will just likely stress it to produce more off-flavors. But if your heating pad got really hot, like 110F, and all the yeast was at the bottom, you might have killed some of them. Pitching more yeast again might help.

It's hard to say whether you'll need more nutrient/energizer. In the last mead I made, I used just about 10 g of Fermaid-K yeast nutrient and about 10 g of diammonium phosphate, just under 20 g total throughout the course of primary using the staggered nutrient schedule referenced in the FAQ to this forum. You mentioned adding a quarter and then a half ounce, which I think converts to about 21 g of energizer already. I'd think that would be enough, but it may depend on exactly what's in the energizer you're using.

Have you checked the pH of your must? I've never made pyment or used grape juice in anything, but I believe it's acidic. Maybe by adding a lot of grape concentrate you made your must too acidic, and your yeast can't tolerate a pH that low. If that's the problem, try adding some potassium carbonate or calcium carbonate to raise the pH. But add it sparingly, especially if you use calcium carbonate (which is basically chalk), because that can definitely impact your flavor.

Other than that, I'll have to defer to someone more experienced who can tell you more clearly what's going on. Good luck!

 

[shawnbou]

It's hard to say whether you'll need more nutrient/energizer. In the last mead I made, I used just about 10 g of Fermaid-K yeast nutrient and about 10 g of diammonium phosphate, just under 20 g total throughout the course of primary using the staggered nutrient schedule referenced in the FAQ to this forum. You mentioned adding a quarter and then a half ounce, which I think converts to about 21 g of energizer already. I'd think that would be enough, but it may depend on exactly what's in the energizer you're using.

Just correcting myself: The nutrient schedule I used in my mead added a little over 9 g each of the Fermaid-K and the DAP. So it was just over 18 g total throughout the primary, not 20 g.

It still seems like the 21 g you've put in so far should be plenty.

 

[buenaventura]

Thanks for the insightful info.

I bought a thief and was planning to measure the gravity, but I couldn't help myself and had to taste a little bit first. ZING! It's dry as a bone and I'm thinking that what I thought was a stuck fermentation was actually the fermentation being done . . . I hadn't expected it to go so quickly!

The last time I made mead it took months of bubbling . . . this time around, I used nutrient, so I think that's what made it go into hyper-fermentation mode.

Thanks for the heads up about the pH level . . . I hadn't though of that at all . . . Not only did I add citric acid to the batch, but loads of grape concentrate as well . . . I'll have o pay closer attention to such things in the future (like maybe the added citric acid could have been overkill).

All the best!

b

 

[buenaventura]

Another question . . .

I am not a bit concerned that there won't be any yeast left alive for carbonation. I plan to prime with corn sugar and age for 6 months . . .

It would be a bummer to open one and not hear it hiss at me . . .

Is there any safe way to add just a little yeast along with the priming sugar before bottling, or will that just make bottle bombs?

Thanks!

b

 

[3 Dog Brew]

Thanks for the insightful info.

...
The last time I made mead it took months of bubbling . . . this time around, I used nutrient, so I think that's what made it go into hyper-fermentation mode.

...

Also the addition of fruit or juice adds tons of nutrients that honey just doesn't contain.

One more thing, from another mead maker on this forum, is that you may want to experiment with adding tannins to your Pyment to add some background and complexity. According to what I've read, it can take a good mead and make it a great mead.

Good luck and let us know how it turns out.

 

[buenaventura]

Thanks for the heads up, 3DB. I will have to do a little tannin research . . .

unless, of course, those are what give some people red wine headaches . . . in which case . . . I am one of those people and I might skip it . . . of course, I did use regular grape concentrate and not the white grape concentrate (crap!)

In other news, any word on my priming concern?

Thanks,

b

 

[gratus fermentatio]

Another question . . .

I am not a bit concerned that there won't be any yeast left alive for carbonation. I plan to prime with corn sugar and age for 6 months . . .

It would be a bummer to open one and not hear it hiss at me . . .

Is there any safe way to add just a little yeast along with the priming sugar before bottling, or will that just make bottle bombs?

Thanks!

b

If you feel the need to, you can add a few granules of unrehydrated dry yeast to each bottle when you're filling them. As long as your ABV isn't too high, it should work. I've actually done this with a sparkling waine I bottled in champagne bottles, worked just fine. Bottle bombs are due to too much sugar, not too much yeast. Regards, GF.

 

[fatbloke]

If you feel the need to, you can add a few granules of unrehydrated dry yeast to each bottle when you're filling them. As long as your ABV isn't too high, it should work. I've actually done this with a sparkling waine I bottled in champagne bottles, worked just fine. Bottle bombs are due to too much sugar, not too much yeast. Regards, GF.

If it's definitely finished the ferment, then just rack it off and leave it under airlock to clear (or you could use finings - I like to leave it and let time do it's thing). I also tend to age it in bulk, rather than bottle it and age it that way......

Then when it's had a year or so ageing, bottle it with some priming sugar and a few grains of yeast......

In champagne/sparkling wine bottles - as they're designed to take pressure and I understand that method champenoise can generate like 4 or 5 bar pressure......