[From nobody Mon Jul 18 15:50:43 2011
From: AlannnnT@aol.com
Return-path: <AlannnnT@aol.com>
To: cucymry@mnic.net
Subject: Re: hist-brewing: First mead
Date: Wed, 6 Jan 1999 21:26:57 EST
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Hi Gary,

May I share a few things? The yeasts character or style has nothing to do with
the bottling explosion. Using champagne yeasts will give you a dry mead (or
beer or wine for that matter). Champagne yeast is used for mead a lot since it
tolerates alcohol content higher than some other wine yeasts might.

Your bottles are fizzy because you bottled your mead before fermentation was
complete. There was still unfermented simple sugars left in the mead at
bottling. 
The yeast still works at eating the sugar in the bottled mead. The yeast's
eating process- called fermentation- creates alcohol and carbon dioxide. The
CO2 builds up in the bottle, and pow!

When you make a sparkling mead, first the fermentation is completed. Then at
bottling time, you add a precise measured amount of sugar (honey) to the mead.
This gives you a predetermined amount of carbonation (sparkle) in your
finished mead.

Tips for future meads;

Buy a hydrometer and learn to use it.
Be patient, good mead can not be rushed.
Experiment all you want- but don't bottle your mead, beer or wine before it's
finished.

Alan Talman
 
]