Hi all,
I have a unique mead issue and haven't had much luck finding answers.
So my first ever gallon of pear mead fermented nicely to 17% and had been racked once with potassium sorbate added to stabilize. Because there was still a lot of sediment, I decided to rack again last night into a 3 liter jug. I tested for taste and added about 6 oz honey and a tbsp of vanilla extract. My well meaning but somewhat drunk boyfriend decided to shake it violently to mix the honey He removed the rubber stopper to degas, shook it again, removed the stopper a second time, and shook less hard the third time, at which point he put it in the refrigerator.
After 2 hours of fretting, I took it back out and hid it in my liquor cabinet (ambient temp is generally 70° ish).
Since I'm new to mead making and he's been doing it for years, I didn't question his methodology at the time but I'm very worried.
1) Could that much oxygenation damage a mead that's already done fermenting? I will keep an eye out for bubbles in case it starts to ferment again but I'm worried about foul tastes.
2) Did cooling it drastically for a few hours cause any reactions I should worry about?
3) We were discussing carbonation prior to the shaken baby incident, should I leave the stopper in place and let it age or switch back to an airlock?
4) Is a campden tablet necessary now?
Please don't be too harsh with the judgement, he meant well. Any answers are very much appreciated!
I have a unique mead issue and haven't had much luck finding answers.
So my first ever gallon of pear mead fermented nicely to 17% and had been racked once with potassium sorbate added to stabilize. Because there was still a lot of sediment, I decided to rack again last night into a 3 liter jug. I tested for taste and added about 6 oz honey and a tbsp of vanilla extract. My well meaning but somewhat drunk boyfriend decided to shake it violently to mix the honey He removed the rubber stopper to degas, shook it again, removed the stopper a second time, and shook less hard the third time, at which point he put it in the refrigerator.
After 2 hours of fretting, I took it back out and hid it in my liquor cabinet (ambient temp is generally 70° ish).
Since I'm new to mead making and he's been doing it for years, I didn't question his methodology at the time but I'm very worried.
1) Could that much oxygenation damage a mead that's already done fermenting? I will keep an eye out for bubbles in case it starts to ferment again but I'm worried about foul tastes.
2) Did cooling it drastically for a few hours cause any reactions I should worry about?
3) We were discussing carbonation prior to the shaken baby incident, should I leave the stopper in place and let it age or switch back to an airlock?
4) Is a campden tablet necessary now?
Please don't be too harsh with the judgement, he meant well. Any answers are very much appreciated!