Pineapple mead problem

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G259

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I wanted to make a pineapple mead (1 gal.), put 3 cans (46 oz.) of Dole pineapple juice into bucket, and about 30 oz. honey added as well. I went to the fridge to get yeast, I forgot that I used the last package, and my supply store is relocating, and is closed for a few weeks. Ok, I snapped the lid shut, and added an airlock, I figured it might keep it away from SOME air. I ordered some yeast online (Sun.), and quick shipped it. It came in today.

Last night I heard something that sounded like a constant drip, and was searching high and low for it. My pineapple mead was fermenting, fairly quickly (3/sec. in airlock), that was my 'drip'! Here's my problem: I will assume, after thinking about it, that the yeast was in the honey, as I sanitized everything, and the juice was pasturized. Now I have no way of knowing what this yeast will do, should I:
A. Roll the dice and let it go, not knowing the alcohol tolerance of the yeast.
B. Use campden, and start over with a fresh packet of yeast, I have a variety of Red Star, what kind?
Note: I didn't use campden in the beginning, figuring that pasteurization would suffice, And I thought that 'honey is pretty pure.
C. Put an aggressive yeast in to take over the ferment, like Premier Blanc.

Any help would be appreciated, Thanks.
 
I recall the first mead I made many years ago was prefemented (my honey got water in the container where it was stored). I just added more yeast and it was fine. I would go on and pitch your fresh yeast into the fermenting must. Some people speculate that the stronger yeast will win out.
 
Smells fine. That was my first choice, to pitch a fresh packet of yeast. I was just looking for some insight, as I'm sure that something like this has happened to someone else. Do you think that the yeast came from the honey?
 
Maybe. Yeast is in the air, everywhere. More so if you have been making wine, beer, bread... Who knows? I think it will be fine. Keep us posted. Remember, some people are doing natural fermentation.
 
Ok, it's 1 gallon, I have decided to just let 'er go then. If it stops early, because the yeast is done, then I'll pitch a packet of Cote des Blancs. It won't have to compete with the dead yeast.
 
If you are considering reinnoculating do it now while the yeast has oxygen available to reproduce.
The chances are that the current ferment is good, , however as with any wild fermentation it could stop early. @G259 you have been making wine for a while so you are fairly well colonized with yeast. (dry yeast survive quite well, remember dry packets say 2 year shelf life) The honey probably did not contribute live yeast. The pineapple was commercially sterile, ie no yeast.
IF you face a must without a yeast packet consider inoculating with one of your wines racked to a secondary. Any batch under 6 months should have live yeast. If the temp is cool to frozen in the garage I would extend live yeast to a year.
 
. . . so you're saying that it's wine yeast in the air then, ok I could see that. bshef, said that as well, so I"ll go with it!
 
Sorry, coming late to this party, so this may be irrelevant for this batch but taste it. If a wild ferment tastes OK and you like the way it is going then let it go (as you say you intended to do). If you don't like it, you have a couple of options. The first is to toss the batch. It's a gallon not a barrel. OR you could simply pitch some lab cultured yeast and they will almpost certainly dominate the indigenous yeast and then you will have a quite unique wine with flavor notes from the indigenous yeast.
 

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