Will my yeast go full "beast mode?"

[BWRIGHT]

Been making more meads lately and came across an old Curt Stock recipe i found somewhere years ago. I trust that the recipe is good as he clearly knows what he is doing, I'm just concerned with pushing the yeast to its alcohol tolerance as I've never done it. My concern is that with the new(er) TOSNA protocol (which I intend to use) that the yeast will chew through all the fermentables and I'll end up way higher than intended and will have to age the mead for an extended period. Neither of which i want to do. Anybody have any experience with pushing 71B to it's listed ABV tolerance? I know that it is not an exact science; his listed FG is actually a range of 10 points. If all goes according to the recipe plan, great. But if I baby the hell out of this yeast and it goes full beast mode, I'm going to be disappointed. I also considered maybe using a yeast with a lower ABV tolerance and lowering the SG to achieve a lower FG but that may be another topic all together. FYI, all the fruit goes into primary for this one.

FWIW, here is the recipe:

21 lbs Wildflower Honey
12 lbs Triple Berry Mix (Blackberries/Raspberries/Blueberries)
6 lbs Strawberries
96 oz Black Currant Juice (free of preservatives)
2.3 gal Water
3 tsp Yeast Energizer/Nutrient Blend (Fermaid-K and DAP)
10 g Lalvin Narbonne Yeast (71B-1122)

Approximate OG 1.158
Target FG 1.030 to 1.040
Estimated ABV 15.8%

 

[CKuhns]

If that ferments dry - Your looking at somewhere north of 20% potential alcohol. Assuming my MN public school math is accurate and with an estimate for the sugars from the fruit. (71B shouldnt be able to get there but who knows....

71B has a 14% tolerance but with good fermentation conditions pH adjustment, early aeration, temp mid range to higher end and TOSNA 3.0 you certainly can have a good shot at pushing it to at least 16 maybe higher. (No guarantees and might have a little lag up front and or stall around 2/3 or 3/4 sugar break as well)
https://www.lallemandbrewing.com/docs/products/tds/TDS_LALVIN_71B_ENG_DIGITAL.pdf
If your afraid of going past your target FG just watch it and at 1.030 rack and cold crash to knock those little buggers out then clarify bottle and pasteurize. (Just a thought.)

 

[BWRIGHT]

Not necessarily concerned that it wall go all the way to dry. More curious how reliable this technique is. I'm wondering how much variance there can be as to when the yeast craps out and if anyone out there had consistent results with this or if it was more of a crap shoot.

 

[Ty520]

I find that yeast strains in the 14-15% range never exceed more then about 1.5% above their stated tolerances

 

[Redeemer]

I find that yeast strains in the 14-15% range never exceed more then about 1.5% above their stated tolerances

I can consistently push EC 1118 to 20% and KV 1116 to 18% and they don't taste bad with step feeding and SNA. YMMV.

 

[Ty520]

I can consistently push EC 1118 to 20% and KV 1116 to 18% and they don't taste bad with step feeding and SNA. YMMV.

1116 and 1118 both have nominal alcohol tolerances of 18% so that isn't unexpected

 

[Redeemer]

1116 and 1118 both have nominal alcohol tolerances of 18% so that isn't unexpected

You are correct sir, and I misread your post cause I was drinking mead.

 

[Ty520]

You are correct sir, and I misread your post cause I was drinking mead.

No worries. I do that all the time