yeast in your meads?

[acesover]

just wondering what kinds of yeast everyone uses in their meads? and any benefits you have noticed from different kinds.

 

[Wade E]

I havent ventured from the Red Star Montrachet or the Premier Cuvee but want to try Sweet Mead liquid yeast next time.

 

[Dean]

I've used bread yeast, Lalvin D47, Lalvin 71B-1122, Lalvin K1V-1116, and Lalvin EC-1118.

Depending on what mead I'm brewing, I think I like D47 the best. Of course, Joe's Ancient Orange works best on bread yeast. Just plain old Fleishmans is what I use, but I make sure to avoid rapid rise, or bread machine yeast. Just the regular is what works best for that. I've also tried it with wine yeasts, and the wine yeasts made me have to age it out much longer. Rapid rise yeasts, I think will not take the alcohol levels very high, but plain fleishmans will take that mead to about 12-14% ABV.

I personally haven't used liquid mead yeast, but I did try a yeast done with the sweet mead yeast, and it was very nice! It kept all the floral notes of the honey. It was actually almost too perfumey. But for the meads that I usually do, D47 with yeast nutrients split up in 3 batches provides great results.

 

[meadlips]

I use 71b, d47 and champagne yeasts for mead. I'm actually doing an experiment with all three yeasts with otherwise identical contions. All I know so far is that the d47 must smells a lot better.

 

[meadlips]

d47 must smells better than the others (by far).
They are all fermenting quickly, though.
Champagne yeast must smells the worst at this time.

 

[masta]

I have used D-47 for all my meads except for my Ancient Clementine (my twist on Joe's Ancient Orange)

 

[Wade E]

I typically use Montrachet with mine but would think that 1116 would be a good choice as it says its good for low nutrient wines.

 

[Coaster]

...and it was very nice! It kept all the floral notes of the honey. It was actually almost too perfumey.

You know when you see a waitress and she looks kinda familiar but you can't pin it down and you ask you wife if we know her and she says no, but she does look a lot like Jessica Albe? That's how I feel about Dean's quote on the sweet mead yeast. That's how I would have described it if only I knew how to describe it but I didn't know it until he said it