I am really new to home brewing mead, but I looked up a lot of methods and thought I did pretty well up til now...
My mead has developed a slight acidic smell after three weeks, and it looks like this now.
I boiled my water (well water that is purified of metals and softened with potassium chloride pellets) and only used this water for every step. I mixed 3 pounds light honey with some water and heated that to 160 degrees and let cool. I sanitized everything with either a little bleach or 91% alcohol. The yeast I used was Lavlin ec-1118 and I started it as the packet said and added it to the must. I used a Urea yeast nutrient. I intended to make a gallon.
Within a few days I had lots of bubbling in the airlock and let that work until the bubbling slowed to a crawl, and then nothing for about 5 days. So I reracked it into another jug with a racking cane I had sanitized as well. After the transfer the bubbling started up again and I noticed an acidic smell, very light, almost like orange juice (according to someone else) and the surface looks like this.
Is this batch ruined?
My mead has developed a slight acidic smell after three weeks, and it looks like this now.
I boiled my water (well water that is purified of metals and softened with potassium chloride pellets) and only used this water for every step. I mixed 3 pounds light honey with some water and heated that to 160 degrees and let cool. I sanitized everything with either a little bleach or 91% alcohol. The yeast I used was Lavlin ec-1118 and I started it as the packet said and added it to the must. I used a Urea yeast nutrient. I intended to make a gallon.
Within a few days I had lots of bubbling in the airlock and let that work until the bubbling slowed to a crawl, and then nothing for about 5 days. So I reracked it into another jug with a racking cane I had sanitized as well. After the transfer the bubbling started up again and I noticed an acidic smell, very light, almost like orange juice (according to someone else) and the surface looks like this.
Is this batch ruined?
