Not sweet enough!

[junglebill007]

This may be a no brainer, but, can you sweeten the lot before bottling by adding more honey?

Or would that cause the fermentation to start over?

[nursebee]

Yes you can and yes it will. Or else use potassium sorbate to inhibit the yeast. Be careful, with the amounts they add to cider I get the worst headache of my life.

[Aspera]

For alcohol contents >16%, you can probably just sweeten and bottle IF 1) the fermentation stopped long ago AND you keep the bottles cool. Otherwise I would rack the mead to a new container, add about 2 lbs of honey, and 1/4 teaspoon each of sorbate and sulfite to your mead (5 gal batch). Store in a cool place and you should see no new fermentation (bottle after 1-2 weeks). Some people will also add vodka or brandy with the honey to prevent refermentation. Your final option (the one most beer brewers prefer) is to rack the mead and keep adding honey and a rate of 1-2 lbs per a week until fermetation stops. This can result in a very "big" sweet, alcholic mead that requires a year or more of aging. "Big" sack meads should probably have warning labels as they cause mammoth hangovers and likely led vikings to rape and pillage.

[junglebill007]

Aspera,

Option #3 sounds way to dangerous for me, the second one sounds ok, but I think I'll go with the first one!

Nursebee, thanks for the warning on potassium sorbate.

Can't wait to see how this turns out!

[ScadsOBees]

Aspera,
Doesn't it depend on the alcohol tolerance of the yeast that is used?

For example if I were to use a D-47 which is reported to be tolerant to 14%, won't it all die or remain dormant as long as the alcohol is at that level regardless of the amount of sugar present? Is this what you are describing in option #3?

Or is there a possiblility of a more alcohol tolerant yeast being present somewhere in there?

-rick

[Ben Brewcat]

Alcohol tolerances are not an exact science unfortunately, though generally they're pretty close. One definitely risks an unplanned sparkle (ranging to bottle grenades) when hoping that the yeast read the same spec sheet you did smile.gif . I like Aspera's recommendations, and if I want a little extra confidence I'll chill assertively before racking. I do usually stabilize with sorbate if it's close to (within a couple points) the yeast's tolerance; a 14 or 15% mead with a 14% strain would be a risk IMO.

Aging more in the carboy will prevent surprises. It'll either stabilize fine and you bottle later, or it doesn't and burps out harmlessly.

[BWrangler]

Hi Guys,

I added a little honey to sweeten a mead that hadn't shown any signs of fermenation for about a month. I was aging it in a carboy and two months after adding the honey, it blew it's cork! The cork blew one week before I had planned to bottle it. So, it's got an airlock on it and I will let it go until it's finally done. I hope :>)

I've learned, when adding honey, give the stuff lots of time.

Regards
Dennis

[nw bee]

the other way would be bottle it dry like it is and a day or two befor you plan to drink some add the honey and let it sit. you will have to play with it to see how sweet you want your mead.

[ScadsOBees]

I've never tried it yet, but how do you add honey to the mead? Do you stir it until it is incorporated or do you just let it sit on the bottom and let it dissolve slowly?
I will be adding some to mine, and just thought I'd find out what happens before I try it.

[Ben Brewcat]

I usually siphon out a bit of mead, dissolve the honey into that by gently stirring, and return.

[Aspera]

Scads,

Sorry for the late reply, I was away at a conference for a week. Yes, the type of yeast does matter, but very few yeasts can ferment past 17% and still generate enough pressure to cause any problems or even carbonation. Wyeast Sweet mead and KV1-1116 have been the primary culprits for me. If you are really worried, bottle in small bottles such as 7-12 oz beer bottles. I should add the disclaimer that I usually use crown caps on bottles design to handle pressure. A tiny bit of sorbate/sulfite never hurts.