Exploding mead...

[lexuschris]

Had some *fun* tonight with an older bottle of mead I made last year. I like them sparkling, so I typically bottle them with some fermentation left to go. Let them age at room temp for a day or two, then store them in the fridge until ready.



Why you laughing?


Yeah, so this one had a bottlecap on it, and it was bulging a bit ... but nothing I haven't handled before. I started releasing the pressure a bit at a time.. just enough to get the bubbles roiling and the sediment bouncing ... then wait. Again.. then wait.

Then my wife called me away to IT her laptop. I came back an hour later and figured I was close enough, so *pop* goes the cap.

The mead must have decided all at once that being inside that little bottle was a bad thing. It shot left. It shot right. Up my nose. On the window. On the mirror. On my bottles. WHHHOOOOSH! ( and not even a cool fountain like champagne ... i mean like 95% of it escaped as if gaseous... )

So another hour of mopping up, cleaning bottles, windows, walls, etc. I have not had a bottle go like that since the very first time I made mead. Anyways, just wanted to share the laugh!


--LexusChris

[backyard brewer]

That's funny!

[lars]

Reminds me of my very first batch of beer. I bottled way too soon and used too much sugar. I had to open the bottles in a sink underwater for fear that they would explode. The caps were bulging, and the beer was pretty bad anyways. Hope the cleanup didn't take too long! Watch out for the next few bottles...

[brew captain]

When I was judging the Sam Adams comp in San Diego a few years back we had an entry that literally escaped the bottle and turned into meringue the instant the bottle was opened. There was not a sigle drop of liquid beer left to sample in the bottle (not that anyone was keen on the idea of judging the entry at that point)...


Cheers!

[dhempy]

I guess I need to be careful when I go to make my first sparkling mead ...

Dan

[backyard brewer]

Did you open more of these from about 1:30 this morning until about 2:30?

[brew captain]

I heard it too!!! Mega priming!!!


Cheers!

[Oskaar]

Had some *fun* tonight with an older bottle of mead I made last year. I like them sparkling, so I typically bottle them with some fermentation left to go. Let them age at room temp for a day or two, then store them in the fridge until ready.



Why you laughing?


Yeah, so this one had a bottlecap on it, and it was bulging a bit ... but nothing I haven't handled before. I started releasing the pressure a bit at a time.. just enough to get the bubbles roiling and the sediment bouncing ... then wait. Again.. then wait.

Then my wife called me away to IT her laptop. I came back an hour later and figured I was close enough, so *pop* goes the cap.

The mead must have decided all at once that being inside that little bottle was a bad thing. It shot left. It shot right. Up my nose. On the window. On the mirror. On my bottles. WHHHOOOOSH! ( and not even a cool fountain like champagne ... i mean like 95% of it escaped as if gaseous... )

So another hour of mopping up, cleaning bottles, windows, walls, etc. I have not had a bottle go like that since the very first time I made mead. Anyways, just wanted to share the laugh!


--LexusChris

Funny indeed!

On a more practical note, this is a very dangerous way to go with mead especially since a sparkling mead will generally clock in at 6 ATM and can explode those bottles into little glass sliver grenades. Basically you're playing Russian roulette with capping before fermentation has completed with a mead, since honey-must is a very different beast than wort.

Honey, due to it's acidic nature has a different reaction during fermentation than other mediums. It will cause a buffering effect in order to compensate for quick drops in pH, which in turn will cause the yeast to go somewhat dormant and cause the fermentation to slow. For all intent and purpose the observer will be tricked into thinking the ferment is near completion. Trust me when I say over the last thirty years that I've been making mead I've seen ferments kick back up with a vengeance. I personally know three other meadmakers that have done the same as you with early capping. They suffered the consequences.

Now hold on before you say I've done this a lot and never had problems because I'm not telling you what to do, I'm just telling you how it is. Bottom line is that you may never have this issue, but, rest assured that you're running on borrowed time and luck if you've done this for awhile.

Using the standard Methode Champagnoise for carbonation is much more reliable, gives consistent carbonation level results, is safer and will actually yield better tasting and better aging sparkling mead. If you would like additional details on how to do so please feel free to post up in these forums and I'll be happy to elaborate.

Cheers,

Oskaar

[lexuschris]

On a more practical note, this is a very dangerous way to go with mead especially since a sparkling mead will generally clock in at 6 ATM and can explode those bottles into little glass sliver grenades. Basically you're playing Russian roulette with capping before fermentation has completed with a mead, since honey-must is a very different beast than wort.
...
Now hold on before you say I've done this a lot and never had problems because I'm not telling you what to do, I'm just telling you how it is. Bottom line is that you may never have this issue, but, rest assured that you're running on borrowed time and luck if you've done this for awhile.

I do not doubt you at all. I fully agree that my method was crude & asking for trouble. I am very much looking forward to trying better methods for mead, both still & sparkling, in my future! I'm glad to have found some folks who know the details and are willing to share!

I'll post a message before I start on my next mead project...

Thanks!
---LexusChris