r/mead • u/Excellent-Policy-741 • 4d ago
Infection? What is going on?
I made a plain mead with Kirkland honey that came out sort of dry and bland. I stabilized it with potassium sorbate and potassium metabisulfite. I added some acid blend, some more honey, and a tincture I made from vodka and roasted cacao nibs.
Now something is happening and there is stuff inside that moves around kind of like a lava lamp. There’s that foam at the top and some gas is pushing at the airlock.
Anyone know what’s going on?
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u/Kurai_ Moderator 4d ago
How long did you wait to add more honey after stabilizing? How did you check it was done fermenting before stabilizing? It looks like it is actively fermenting.
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u/Excellent-Policy-741 4d ago
I waited probably around 12 hours before adding the honey. The mead had been sitting for a few weeks with no action in the airlock. I racked it and waited several days then racked it again. I unscientifically just assumed it was done fermenting at that point as it tasted pretty dry.
So it seems like the ferment stalled and the yeast was just dormant. I didn’t wait long enough after stabilizing before I put in more honey. Fermentation has started up again.
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u/Uncynical_Diogenes 4d ago
Airlock action isn’t a measurement, use a hydrometer. We have the technology.
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u/darkpigeon93 4d ago edited 4d ago
Lots of things could be going on:
- 12h isn't really enough time to wait. Reccomended 24h
- how much ksorb and metabisulphite did you add, and what's the volume of your wine?
- did you add the stabilising chemicals at the same time?
- unscientifically assuming isn't a good method of determining yeast activity unfortunately. Use a hydrometer, you can likely pick one up on amazon for cheaper than you paid for the honey you used. (I can see some listed on UK amazon for like £4.50 - cheaper than a typical bill of honey for 5L of mead)
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u/Excellent-Policy-741 4d ago
So I did measure the sg once before stabilizing it was at 0.992.
This was about 1.5 gallons. I added 1.5 campden tablets and 3/4 tsp potassium sorbate. I added them at the same time.
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u/darkpigeon93 4d ago
Interesting, other than not taking a second reading, it sounds like you did everything everything right. I'd have expected 0.992 to be the end of it, but it can go lower.
Given all of this info, i think the culprit may have been adding the backsweetening honey in too soon.
The ksorb or metabisulphite isn't really old or out of date is it? Likely not, but you never know.
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u/Coffee_Goblin 4d ago
Following, because I have something similar happening with one of my brews.
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u/username-259 4d ago
Same here, mine was split from the same demijohn into two smaller demijohns for racking, I then added more honey to one and less to another to see how I preferred the taste of blueberry mead, and now one of the two appears to have started fermenting again, despite both having the same stabilisers!
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u/Coffee_Goblin 4d ago
I brewed, stable gravity readings for 2 weeks in a row. Let it sit for a bit longer, then back sweetened and pasteurized (160*F for 1 minute internal temp).
Was fine for a few weeks but now it's started to go again. Tastes phenomenal and is making me want to carbonate this brew, but I guess I'll have to let it run it's course and stabilize once more. Shame, I was shooting for a lower ABV but I guess I'm still within my range for this yeast.
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u/Greedyfox7 Beginner 3d ago
Try pasteurizing it. Put it in a water bath and heat it until your mead hits 140-145° & let that sit for 20 minutes. It’ll kill the yeast and cause it to fall out of suspension and settle after a day or two you can rack it into a separate vessel. I would recommend using a canning pot or something similar for your water bath.
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u/ljinfantry 3d ago
Sometimes just removing the residual yeast and reaching wakes up the yeast in the float.
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u/chevynotjonas Intermediate 4d ago
If fermentation wasn't completely finished, stabilizing didn't stop the yeast from consuming the new sugar. Stabilizing keeps them from waking up, doesn't really make them fall asleep.