Tuesday, August 2, 2016

First "Large Batch" Mead

Mead No. 9

2 gal. Spring water
5 lbs. Pure 'n Simple honey
1 tsp. Pasteur Blanc yeast
1-1/2 tsp. Yeast energizer
1-1/2 tsp/ DAP
4 gal. Pail

OG 1.073

My idea with this mead batch was to make a large amount and then after the primary fermentation, divide it into two individual one-gallon batches that I could then amend with other ingredients. So rather than one gallon of mead a week, I'd be making two-plus.

I warmed a small dish of water to just under 100F and added the yeast to rehydrate. I've since read on the yeast packet 100-105F is the preferred temp, so note to self, heat it a little more next time. The yeast was very clumpy in the water despite attempts to mix it, but after sitting for a time it seemed to "dissolve" and it looked like it was coming alive.

The packet of Pasteur Blanc yeast, however, was the same one I used for Mead No. 7. I wanted to see if it was true that you could keep the yeast opened, but in the refrigerator, for at least a short period of time. It was about two weeks and I wonder if that affected the yeast's vitality at all because although it did begin to ferment the must, it didn't seem particularly active in the airlock. I'm also wondering if that was because of the volume of space it needed to fill up in the bucket.

I used one of my 4-gallon buckets I had gotten from the bakery that had been cleaned and sanitized. I drilled a 1/2" hole in the lid and inserted a bung. It all seemed to fit. Between the water, which used a full 2 gallons, and the honey, which seemed to add about a gallon more, there was a large head space of air.

Whereas in the one-gallon jugs with very little headspace there seems to be fairly vigorous fermentation within hours, it took between 12-24 hours for the airlock to show activity. It kept up a good pace for a day, but after that day it had slowed considerably. As I said, I'm not sure if it's the yeast having been open, the amount of headspace that needed to be filled, or even the bucket that I used. We'll check back within a week and get another gravity reading then, and see what's happening at that time.

Speaking of gravity reading's, I was a little surprised at how seemingly low this one was. According to the yeast alcohol tolerance chart, Pasteur Blanc is supposed to be both vigorous (see concerns above) and have a tolerance of 18%. Next time I'll take a temperature reading of the must too, but the 1.073 starting gravity seems to suggest an ABV of around 9.5%, which seems low, no?

UPDATE (9/4/2017): No. The tolerance of the yeast doesn't mean the ABV will rise to that, just that the yeast can go that high. ABV is determined by how much sugar (honey) is present, so the gravity readings give you how much alcohol is ultimately present.

I'm also not expecting this one to taste great. It has sat for over a year on the lees without ever having been racked so I'm guessing it may have off flavors to it.

UPDATE (9/16/2017): I racked the mead into a 2-1/2 gal carboy and backsweetened with 1.3 lbs (21.1 oz) of honey, which raised the gravity to 1.014 (just above my 1.010 target) and markedly improved the taste. I'll let it sit for a week or two before splitting into two 1-gal. carboys for possible fruit additions.

No comments:

Post a Comment