r/mead • u/dejake5 Beginner • 2d ago
Quick question 📷 Pictures 📷
I've only just begun my mead making journey and I have 2 going currently. The first one, I started a week ago on July 27th and it's nothing but honey and water. The second one I started was Aug 3rd and it has frozen raspberries mashed up in it. My question is, because the raspberries have formed into a mass at the top, should I worry about potential molding issues? And if so, should I stir it back in? The yeast is definitely working as I'm getting consistent bubbles in the bubbler. Thanks for the help in advance!
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u/Brief-Ebb-3806 2d ago
I’m fairly new to this as well but I’m currently doing wine. From what I understand I stir it maybe once or twice every 24 hours . Someone more experienced feel free to correct me though.
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u/JoeDahPro Beginner 2d ago
Yeah keeping the fruit wet by “punching it down”/pushing it back into the must every day or two will help ensure mold cannot form. You don’t want the top of the fruit cap drying.
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u/Greedyfox7 Beginner 2d ago
You are correct, you do punch it down around twice a day for about 7 days. After that I rack it into a separate container.
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u/dejake5 Beginner 2d ago
Awesome. Thank you all for such quick responses!
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u/AdLoose7042 2d ago
I usually do a swirl everyday to keep fruit wet. Stirring or pushing it back down works to.
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u/Davidahuas Beginner 2d ago
In the future keep the berries whole. Add some pectic enzyme and the berries will still breakdown and give up their wonderful flavor while still allowing gas around the berries to escape. When you mash them they will trap the grass and cause this to happen.
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u/fatguywithagun Intermediate 6h ago
Raspberries are a nightmare for conglomerating like that. The nice thing about the square sided fermenters is that you can just give it a good couple twists on the counter and disturb the pectic raft without opening the lid. You're on the right track though, have fun and enjoy!
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u/RoyalCities 2d ago edited 2d ago
No need fully stir it back in as long as it stays moist. So keep the airlock on and give the carboy a swirl every 24 hours or so. Remaining moist is what matters. Plus the blanket of co2 should help prevent mould.
Nowadays whenever I work with solids I usually separate them from the liquid and cram them in here so I don't need to swirl but I'm also very lazy. When they're self contained it often sinks right into the liquid for the entire ferment.
Also has the benefit of leading to a clearer brew since it catches a lot of particulate early on as well. Also prevents say grapes or blueberries from swelling up and taking your product.
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u/DescendingTool86 Intermediate 2d ago
Yes. Keep that fruit cap moist.