Sour Cherry Mead

[cadwaladr]

Okay... first off, I am not a mead maker, however got bored the other day, and decided to take a run at it.

I stared with about 5.5kg of local honey, pasteurizing into 4 gallons of water. I ended up with about 4.5 gallon in my 6 gallon carboy. I used 2 packs of white wine yeast, and fermentation lagged for about 24 hours, then took off.

I am now at about 5 days, and fermentation seems to have slowed. I just dropped in my Belgium sour blend!!!!

I have a bunch of cherries to add, and will probably do this soon.

I know this is a bit of a cluster, but how long should I rack onto the cherries for?

 

[Arpolis]

I usually let it sit a long while until fruit drops to the bottom of the carboy.

 

[homoeccentricus]

For beer: anywhere between three weeks and six months

 

[cadwaladr]

is there a risk not racking it off of the yeast right away? how long is too long on yeast?

 

[homoeccentricus]

You may find some information in the "blueberry melomel" thread. I have made sour cherry wheat beer before, and left the cherries in secondary for three weeks, with good results. I also plan to do that with my blueberry melomel. But: I have zero experience with mead

 

[MarshmallowBlue]

Is there any food for your sour blend? The wine yeast will eat most of it before the bugs will get to it. You may want to add a bit of malto-dextrin, that souring bugs can eat that wine yeast can't touch.

EDIT: With my lambic mead I left the mead on primary dregs for several months without consequence.

 

[AlbertaGuy]

The last mead I finished was a sour cherry, it sat on the cherries and some yeast for 6 months and still did not take on any off flavors. I was a little light on the cherries with that batch (1.5lbs/gallon) but it still came out really nice. I would say it needs at least a month just for all the color to leach out, several months would be even better.

 

[sweetcell]

I would say it needs at least a month just for all the color to leach out,

color leeched out of my sour cherries in about 2 weeks. i'm going to leave them in for 3 or 4 weeks, total. i have a gravity sample clearing the fridge, will get to taste it tomorrow or day after... 71-B isn't very flocculant.

 

[noblesquirrel]

color leeched out of my sour cherries in about 2 weeks. i'm going to leave them in for 3 or 4 weeks, total. i have a gravity sample clearing the fridge, will get to taste it tomorrow or day after... 71-B isn't very flocculant.

Hmmm, I've never had an issue getting 71b to drop. Try adding some bentonite if you want help.

 

[Arpolis]

In my experience 71b is in the middle ground for flocculation rates compared to other yeasts but cold crashing can make it drop out over night and bentonite if mixed in hot water really really well prior to adding to the must will do the same.