Mead Checklist

Checklist

Create a Base Mead

• 1 gal. spring water
• Pour off water into sanitized container
• Reyhdrate Bentonite: Add 1/2 tsp Bentonite to 1 cup hot (140F) spring water and shake vigorously. Allow to swell for at least 4 hrs.
• Add 4c to electric kettle, let brew for 1 min then turn off. Temperature should be 113F (1-1/2 min is 130F)
• Fill a saucepan with tap water, bring to a boil, then turn off heat. 
• Insert honey bottle into the water to liquefy.
• Make yeast starter. 1/2c warm water plus 1 tsp GoFerm. Add 2g yeast per gallon. Let sit for 15-20 minutes. 
• Add 2c hot water to fermenter
• Using funnel, pour liquefied honey into fermenter
• Add small amount of hot water to honey bottle and shake vigorously to get residual honey from bottle
• Add 1c hot water to fermenter and shake vigorously to dissolve honey
• Add remaining hot water to bottle and shake vigorously 
• In 1c of reserved water, mix 1 tsp wine tannin. When well mixed, add to the fermenter
• In 1c spring water, mix 1/2 tsp yeast energizer and 1 tsp yeast nutrient (Ken Schramm recommends using DAP). Mix and add to fermenter (alternatively you can use step feeding regimen below - NOTE: Schramm is not a fan of the various step-feeding methods)
• Fill fermenter with as much of the reserved water as bottle will allow leaving enough room for fermentation (about 2")
• Take temperature reading of the must (around 75-80F is appropriate for adding yeast)
• Take hydrometer reading for starting gravity (reading will need to be corrected for temperature of must - Calculator: https://www.brewersfriend.com/hydrometer-temp/)
• Test pH of must, add calcium carbonate if low (>3.0)(NOTE: Denard Brewing recommends using potassium bicarbonate instead of calcium carbonate and to always add at the start regardless of pH reading).
• Temper the yeast before adding to must. Add 1/4c of must to yeast slurry every five minutes. When the temperature of the yeast slurry is within a few degrees of your must, pour the yeast slurry into your must.
• Gently swirl must to incorporate yeast
• Add bung and airlock filled with StarSan
• Store in cool, dark location
• Degas daily for first week, even twice a day
• After 7-10 days, recheck pH and add potassium bicarbonate if low (>3.0)
• Once fermentation has stopped, rack to a secondary container.
• Add 1 tsp acid blend
• Age until clear, or add a clarifying agent (if Bentonite hasn't cleared the mead enough)

Mead Checklist

• 1 gal. spring water
• Remove 1/2c to rehydrate yeast
• Mark level on spring water jug
• Rehydrate yeast (check package for preferred temp, heat water in sanitized container to appropriate temp, add yeast, stir)
• Remove enough water equal to amount that honey will displace (honey weighs 0.75 pounds per cup. Example: If you are adding 3 pounds of honey, then remove 4 cups of water; 2.5 lbs honey = 3.5 c water) Pounds to Cups Calculator: http://calculator-converter.com/converter_c_to_lb_cups_to_pounds_calculator.php multiply result by .75
• Add honey back to line drawn above
• Add 1/4 tsp potassium carbonate (K2CO3 or KHCO3)
• Add 1/4 tsp DAP
• Add 1/2 tsp Fermaid K (or energizer)
• Shake until honey is dissolved
• Take gravity reading
• Add yeast
• Add bung and airlock

Day 1-14 Fermentation Management

There are few things you need to do for the first week or so:

1. Gently swirl without the airlock once a day for the first week or so. What does this do? First, it stirs the yeast off the bottom to keep them from getting lazy (read “make more alcohol”). Second, it adds some oxygen into the must which is good for the yeast early in fermentation. Third, it removes some CO2 gas from solution that both drops the pH and prevents the yeast from flocculating.

2. Don’t forget to add the staggered nutrients from step 6! More importantly, be sure to swirl first, then add the nutrients SLOWLY while the jug is in the sink. Ever seen a science fair volcano blow up? Same thing will happen if you aren’t careful adding the nutrients. By the way, this explosion is called a Mead Explosion Accident (MEA). It is a mazer’s rite of passage.

3. Add sanitized water or vodka to the airlock after the mead drops below 1/3 of your SG. After this point, it is not necessary to swirl after this point.

After Day 14 – Post-Fermentation

The goal is to get the mead to a gravity of 1.000 as fast as possible. At this point, you have many options. You can leave it as it is, or you can use one or more of the following methods to customize the mead to your preference:

1.  Backsweetening – Most people like some sweetness to the mead. Something about a dry beverage with a honey smell messes with the mind. Two methods: The first is to stabilize with potassium metabisulphite and potassium sorbate, then backsweeten with honey. Warning! If you have an allergy to sulphites, this is not a viable option. The second method is called step feeding. This method requires you to add honey to your desired sweetness and allow the yeast to ferment further. This process is repeated until the yeast give up due to high alcohol.

2.  Oak – Mead and oak are extremely complimentary. You can use American, Hungarian, or French in any number of toasts. I do suggest cubes over chips. Chips impart flavor too fast and easily over oak the mead. Additionally, the flavor profile is very one dimensional compared to oak cubes.

3.  Spices – If you add spices, your mead is considered a metheglin. Go easy on how much you add. You can always add more, but you cannot take it away!

4.  Fruit – if you add fruit to mead, it is called a melomel. Generally, 2-4 pounds of frozen fruit per gallon is a good range. Adding fruit to primary tends to give a more wine-like effect. Adding to secondary tends to capture the fruit essence better. If you want a fruit bomb effect, add some fruit to both primary and secondary!

Another Method

http://www.meadmakr.com/meadmakr-guide/part-iii-the-basic-recipe/

The Process

The following steps will guide you through everything you need to make your first batch of mead on brew day.

1. Sanitize Everything

Sanitize everything that may come in contact with your hands or your must before doing anything else. This means all equipment, external surfaces of honey jars, kitchen counters, etc. Starting with a clean surface and clean equipment should ensure your yeast are the only microbe active in your must.

2. Dissolve your Honey

Dissolve your honey in a small amount of water in your mixing pot. The volume of this mixture should be less than your expected batch volume at this point. We recommend not heating your must to help dissolve the honey. This will help preserve the delicate flavors and aroma of your honey. Boiling is an option, but understand you may lose some of that precious flavor.

3. Add Water to Batch Volume Minus 1 Cup

Pour the honey-water mixture into your fermenter. Add water up to about 1 cup below your target must volume. The extra space will allow you to add your rehydrated yeast back into the must.

4. Aerate the Must

Aerating your must is required to provide oxygen to your yeast. Early in the fermentation stages, yeast use oxygen to help build cell walls and reproduce. Stir the must in a bucket fermenter or heavily swirl it in a carboy with the top exposed. This will allow oxygen to dissolve into your must, giving the yeast exactly what it needs. It is recommended to do 15 minutes of aeration. Any more and you reach diminishing returns.

4. Rehydrate your yeast

We will go over two options for rehydrating dry yeasts. Liquid yeasts are not as common in making mead, so they will not be covered here. Smack Packs are a good option for liquid yeasts. Further reading can be found by searching for yeast starters.

Instructions for using Go-Ferm

Multiply the weight of your Go-Ferm dosing by 20 to get the total amount of water you will need to rehydrate your yeast. If using a single 5 g packet of yeast and 7.5 g of Go-Ferm, you will need 150 mL of water, or a little more than a half cup.

Heat the water to at least 120 degrees F. Add your Go-Ferm. When this mixture is between 104 and 109 deg F (approximately 40 deg C), add the dry yeast. Swirl the yeast in the mixture, then let it sit for 15-20 minutes to rehydrate. Do not stir in the yeast at this point. Now you are ready for tempering the yeast.

Instructions for dry yeast only

If rehydrating your dry yeast without Go-Ferm, you will need 5 times the weight of your yeast in mL (5 g yeast = 25 mL water). Heat your water to 104-109 deg F (40 deg C) and add the dry yeast. Give it a quick swirl and then let sit for 15-20 minutes. On to tempering the yeast.

Tempering Yeast

When you are done rehydrating your yeast, it is important to bring the yeast to the temperature of your must gradually. Pouring warm yeast directly into a cold (or room temperature) must will shock the yeast to detrimental effect.

To temper your yeast, add 1/4 cup of your must to your yeast slurry every five minutes. When the temperature of the yeast slurry is within a few degrees of your must, pour the yeast slurry into your must.

5. Top Off Remaining Batch Volume

Add any remaining water to your must to meet desired batch volume. Note, you will need some headspace for the foam created during the fermentation process.

For carboys it is recommended to only fill to the shoulder. Leave at least two inches of clearance on the edge of your bucket fermenters.

6. Record Specific Gravity and Temperature

In order to understand exactly how much sugar made it into your must (all honeys are not created equal), it is recommended that you take a specific gravity (or Brix if using a refractometer) reading. You will need to correct for temperature, so also jot down the must’s temperature at this time.

The specific gravity, also referred to as original gravity in this context, can be used to approximate your potential alcohol by volume. If you used the BatchBuildr or some other calculator to estimate your required honey, note that your expected values may be wrong (and likely are). Use your measured values to estimate and track your fermentation progress.

7. Apply Airlock

You have now successfully started your first batch of mead. It is time to apply your airlock and let it sit for 24 hours until after the lag phase of the fermentation is over.

8. Aeration and Dosing

Following the guidelines above, add your yeast nutrients and energizer at the stated hour marks after pitching your yeast. It is important to degas your mead prior to adding the nutrients to avoid mead eruption accidents (MEAs). It is also helpful to siphon 1/2 cup of your must from the fermenter for dissolving the nutrients before adding them back to the mead.

Between the 24 hour mark and your last nutrient addition, degas and aerate your mead at least twice daily. Your last nutrient addition should occur at the 1/3 sugar break; that is, when one third of the total sugars you provided have been converted to alcohol, you no longer want to add nutrients or aerate your must (if your SG started at 1.120, the 1/3 break will be when your SG drops to 1.080 [dropped one third of 0.120]). At this point you would just degas (similar to aeration, but leave your fermenter capped).

9. Racking

When your must has finished fermenting, noted by no changes in specific gravity over multiple days in a row, rack your mead from your primary fermenter into a carboy for extended aging. Be careful to avoid the sediment layer at the bottom of your fermenter. The cleaner the mead the better after racking!

If sediment appears after racking, it is advised to rack within 3 weeks of noticing the sediment layer unless you are attempting sur lie aging. This will ensure you avoid autolysis.

10. Bottling and Enjoying

After 2-3 months in secondary, your mead may start to turn into something tasty. If it isn’t ready by this point, be patient. Meads get better with age, and it is common to age mead for 1-2 years before drinking.

When you are happy with your mead, go ahead and bottle it. Give it a week or so before drinking after you bottle for the mead to settle back down. Then pour yourself a healthy glass and enjoy. You’ve earned it!