I have only been brewing beers for about 6 months. This time around I
thought a mead would be a nice change of pace, but I am not exactly sure
what to expect. I used the Antipodal Mead recipe from the Joy of homebrewing
book. and I am using a 6.5 gallon plastic primary. My question is simply how
long should I expect it to continue bubbling for primary fermentation? So
far it has been bubbling steadily for 8 days.
thanks for your help
Marcus

--
Biblioholism: The habitual longing to purchase, read, store, admire and
consume books in excess.

"fortune teller" <marcusm@oasis.novia.net> wrote in message
news:3f307563$0$61637$45beb828@newscene.com...[color=blue]
> I have only been brewing beers for about 6 months. This time around I
> thought a mead would be a nice change of pace, but I am not exactly sure
> what to expect. I used the Antipodal Mead recipe from the Joy of[/color]
homebrewing[color=blue]
> book. and I am using a 6.5 gallon plastic primary. My question is simply[/color]
how[color=blue]
> long should I expect it to continue bubbling for primary fermentation? So
> far it has been bubbling steadily for 8 days.
> thanks for your help
> Marcus[/color]

It will probably continue bubbling for a month and a half or thereabouts. I
used the same recipe. It's worth the wait! Delicious!

--
Dave
"Just a drink, a little drink, and I'll be feeling GOOooOOooOOooD!" --
Genesis, 1973-ish

There is a rec.craft.meadmaking ng they may be able to give you a better
answer but my understanding is that mead needs to ferment for a very long
time

"fortune teller" <marcusm@oasis.novia.net> wrote in message
news:3f307563$0$61637$45beb828@newscene.com...[color=blue]
> I have only been brewing beers for about 6 months. This time around I
> thought a mead would be a nice change of pace, but I am not exactly sure
> what to expect. I used the Antipodal Mead recipe from the Joy of[/color]
homebrewing[color=blue]
> book. and I am using a 6.5 gallon plastic primary. My question is simply[/color]
how[color=blue]
> long should I expect it to continue bubbling for primary fermentation? So
> far it has been bubbling steadily for 8 days.
> thanks for your help
> Marcus
>
> --
> Biblioholism: The habitual longing to purchase, read, store, admire and
> consume books in excess.
>
>[/color]

"fortune teller" <marcusm@oasis.novia.net> wrote in message news:<3f307563$0$61637$45beb828@newscene.com>...[color=blue]
> I have only been brewing beers for about 6 months. This time around I
> thought a mead would be a nice change of pace, but I am not exactly sure
> what to expect. I used the Antipodal Mead recipe from the Joy of homebrewing
> book. and I am using a 6.5 gallon plastic primary. My question is simply how
> long should I expect it to continue bubbling for primary fermentation? So
> far it has been bubbling steadily for 8 days.
> thanks for your help
> Marcus[/color]

It's gonna be a while, I'd recommend getting it out of the plastic and
into glass as soon as fermentation slows somewhat. My meads normally
bubble a lot for 3 months or more into the fermentation. Your yeast,
recipe, and a lot of other things like temperature and the like will
determine how long it will take. Expect it to be at least 4 months
before you think about bottling it. If possible, bulk age it in a
glass carboy for a few months before you bottle. Plastic is good for
short fermentations like beer, but it will allow oxygen through over
time, that's why I'd recommend racking it into glass for the long
haul.

Rack it into a glass carboy after 3 weeks to avoid oxidation through the
plastic, then start a second batch. If you wait until you taste the finished
product you can only make 2 batches a year! :)
The use of yeast nutrients and good agitation prior to pitching can speed up
the primary fermentation.

Keep Brewing!
-Bubble-

My question is simply how[color=blue][color=green]
> > long should I expect it to continue bubbling for primary fermentation?[/color][/color]
So[color=blue][color=green]
> > far it has been bubbling steadily for 8 days.
> > thanks for your help
> > Marcus[/color]
>
> It's gonna be a while, I'd recommend getting it out of the plastic and
> into glass as soon as fermentation slows somewhat. My meads normally
> bubble a lot for 3 months[/color]