First mead
  • BenvarineBenvarine
    Posts: 1,606
    Ferming my first mead with help from Frydogbrews. How do I know when it is done? Is there a FG I am looking for? Started on 9/25. Racked to secondary after 48 days, SG 1.003. Been in secondary since. Ferming at about 64F for a few weeks or more, but raised to 66F now, pretty steady, a little fluctuation each day. I am giving some away in June, but when do I bottle?
  • frydogbrewsfrydogbrews
    Posts: 44,679
    what yeast did you use?
  • BenvarineBenvarine
    Posts: 1,606
    Lalvin K1-V1116 dry yeast. 2 packets. I added at 117F but not all died. Only the strong survived.
  • frydogbrewsfrydogbrews
    Posts: 44,679 Accepted Answer
    why was your mead must at 117F? wait, i remember something about this but i thought it was beer.
    anyway, that is a fine FG for a K1V mead. anything under 1.005 is totally safe to be bottled in a wine bottle with a cork, anything under 1.010 is fine to be bottled using beer bottles and a crown cap.

    i would just bottle it once it was totally clear in the carboy. it should be clear enough to make you go "wow, that's pretty" that's when you are ready to bottle. the risk you run is a slightly carbonated drink, what the french would call pettilant. personally, i love that.

    K1V can be really hard to get to drop below 1, its just the nature of the yeast. i would just bottle at that gravity when clear. if you want it more dry, now is the time to lightly aerate and sprinkle in some EC1118 to try to draw it down below 1. can be risky to aerate at all at that gravity though, not a risk i would run personally.
  • BenvarineBenvarine
    Posts: 1,606
    Cool. Thanks and I will bottle soon then.
  • ceanntceannt
    Posts: 53,828 Accepted Answer
    I normally rack my Meads at 2-3 months. Bottle at 6-months.
    Never attribute to malice, that which can adequately be explained by stupidity.
  • frydogbrewsfrydogbrews
    Posts: 44,679
    ceannt said:

    I normally rack my Meads at 2-3 months. Bottle at 6-months.



    usually the time frames that Benvarine is working in would be much too quick, but the K1V yeast works miracles on the mead. it doesn't throw off methyl acohol flavors like most other yeasts do in the presence of that quantity of honey. the downside is that it tends to finish just a hair sweeter, for whatever reason that yeast can't seem to pull it down much below 1.000

    either way, it you need a mead drinkable and tasty in 3 months, go with K1V yeast
Add a Comment