Hi

[spunk]

My mead first mead smells good looks good want to bottle started in Jan. But it is still has small bubbles floating to top. SG is 1.00 so do I just keep racking every few months and wait?

 

[Bob1016]

Has the gravity change in the past month? Did you add sulfites? Did you add nutrients during fermentation? What yeast was used?
Even if it's done, it will only get better with some more bulk aging. I generally try not to bottle until after a year of bulk aging; aside from giving the mead more age, it also helps force patience on you as I hope you wouldn't drink it by the gallon jug!

 

[spunk]

No SG didn't change.no sulfites.no yeast nutrient. I started with honey and molasses strong tea and lemon juice many spices 1 pk of montrachet yeast kinda has ingredients in a gingerbread cookie.

 

[Bob1016]

It's hard to predict mead ferments without any nutrients, sometimes they finish reasonably quick and taste great, other times they can drag on for months, stop and restart, and taste terrible. I would suggest a sulfite addition just to make sure the mead is sanitary and that those bubles aren't other microbes that will spoil it. I'd also say wait as long as you can to bottle it, but it is your mead, do what you are comfortable with.

 

[mjrisenhoover]

I know one thing it looks great, how's it taste?

 

[spunk]

It was not bad but a bit harsh but they that aging make it better. Maybe I should use a campton tab I was thinking about doing it today when I was going to bottle but since it was still bubbling. I left it alone except to Check SG and taste it.i really want to enjoy it. Hate all that work and it go bad.

 

[spunk]

Ok so I added a campton tab it bubbled up more. So ill let it sit some Check again next month.

 

[SouthernChemist]

Ok so I added a campton tab it bubbled up more. So ill let it sit some Check again next month.

That's not a sign of fermentation necessarily. It may just be off gassing CO2 and adding the tablet provided nucleation sites.

What kind of honey did you use and where did it come from?

 

[spunk]

Simple truth orange blossom honey 2.5 lbs .5 lbs of grandma's unsulphured molasses. If it's not fermenting what is it doing with the bubbles so will it be OK now that I put the camton tab it it. I learning as I go. Thanks

 

[BernardSmith]

I think what SouthernChemist is suggesting is that the CO2 that the yeast produced is still slowly escaping from the mead and the rough surface of the campden tablet created nucleation points in the mead that acted to further enable the CO2 to more easily form larger collections of gas that the liquid is unable to keep trapped and so they are expelled from your mead. In other words, the bubbles you are observing may have little to do with current fermentation activity and much more to do with the mead naturally degassing itself over time.

 

[SouthernChemist]

I think what SouthernChemist is suggesting is that the CO2 that the yeast produced is still slowly escaping from the mead and the rough surface of the campden tablet created nucleation points in the mead that acted to further enable the CO2 to more easily form larger collections of gas that the liquid is unable to keep trapped and so they are expelled from your mead. In other words, the bubbles you are observing may have little to do with current fermentation activity and much more to do with the mead naturally degassing itself over time.

What he said! Sometimes you'd be surprised just how tenaciously a wine/mead holds onto CO2 over time. Bulk aging alone is typically not enough. The only way to know that fermentation is complete or not is to measure a consistent SG over time.

 

[fabrictodyefor]

Many on here talk about "degassing". I had a choke cherry that continued to have tiny bubbles. Degassing is just taking the bung off the container and stirring gently, never to the point of creating a vortex, and releasing the gas. I had to do this several times with the choke cherry before I bottled it. But not as much with any other wines I have made. But I have never made a mead, so am not 100% positive you would do the same thing.

 

[spunk]

Yea I was just reading about that and maybe the temp of mead will cause more c02. So I'm thinking about trying degasing or just letting it happen naturally maybe bring it upstairs to warm up a bit. Not sure. or leave it alone. May be hard to De - gas in the gal jug.

 

[BernardSmith]

Hi Spunk, I am no expert and I may be completely mistaken but I suspect that natural degassing in a one gallon carboy is probably easier than in say a 50 gallon fermentor. I say this because I am assuming that the pressure of the column of liquid above any assembly of CO2 is going to be far less in the smaller container than in a larger one (even say, 5 gallons) so the gas has far less pressure to overcome and collect and so form a large enough volume to form bubbles ---- but my physics and chemistry is Scottish secondary school (high school) and that was a million years ago.

 

[spunk]

After the sulfite I put back to the basement maybe in Aug I will bring back up let it warm up and degas if it fits in the gal jug. I'll check the acid and SG then maybe bottle in Sept. Hope it turns out good.

 

[spunk]

Wow I just racked this mead. Cannot believe the change from the June tasting. It is great. Love it. I'm going to bottle in a few weeks. It mellowed out nice. I was worried I may had ruined it somehow.

 

[BernardSmith]

Wow I just racked this mead. Cannot believe the change from the June tasting. It is great. Love it. I'm going to bottle in a few weeks. It mellowed out nice. I was worried I may had ruined it somehow.

Way to go! Patience is the secret ingredient in every good wine.

 

[fabrictodyefor]

WTG! I am always surprised with changes occuring in a car boy when I have some patience! So far I have not had to toss any of my wines down the drain. I've just learn to wait. I'm glad this worked out for you

 

[spunk]

I bottled my mead had me a glass too. Hard to describe slight tart at first then smooth slight cinnamon. Now will the cinnamon fade or get stronger as it ages or maybe the other species show up. A bit of sweetness too

 

[spunk]

Opps spices not species. Lol...too early I quess.