Fermentation looks like its slowed after day 3

[FoxHound]

Hey guys, i'm new to making mead and I'm currently doing my very first batch now. I added one packet of yeast nutrient at the start as the recipe i'm following said, and my fermentation was going off its brain yesterday LOTS of activity in the airlock and very big thick bubbles on top of the liquid so looked good but now it's slowed down. I gave the demijohn a good churn just before just to try and make sure the yeast stays awake. is this normal for mead to do this? also, do I need to add more yeast nutrient while i'm in the primary ferment stage? Thanks in advance. look forward to hearing from you guys =)

 

[yankinoz]

Probably nothing to worry about, but when you post questions try to include as much information as possible. Besides the use of yeast nutrients, which is helpful information, what yeast did you use (some ferment faster than others), what was the temperature (chilling can suppress fermentation), and how much honey did you use in how much liquid?

If this were a beer batch, commenters would probably tell you to check the specific gravity, see if it's stopped going down, and at what level. With beer you need to be careful not to bottle unfinished beer that might start up again and give you gushers or even bottle bombs. I've never made mead, but assume you don't carbonate it, right?

With the right yeast at the right temperatures and in a brew that is not too high in fermentable sugars, three days of visibly active fermentation is par.

 

[FoxHound]

Probably nothing to worry about, but when you post questions try to include as much information as possible. Besides the use of yeast nutrients, which is helpful information, what yeast did you use (some ferment faster than others), what was the temperature (chilling can suppress fermentation), and how much honey did you use in how much liquid?

If this were a beer batch, commenters would probably tell you to check the specific gravity, see if it's stopped going down, and at what level. With beer you need to be careful not to bottle unfinished beer that might start up again and give you gushers or even bottle bombs. I've never made mead, but assume you don't carbonate it, right?

With the right yeast at the right temperatures and in a brew that is not too high in fermentable sugars, three days of visibly active fermentation is par.

Hey thanks. ill provide a little more info.
I'm fermenting it in a 5 litre glass demijohn.
1.5kg is how much honey i used
2.6 litres is how much water i added.
Mangrove jacks mead yeast is the yeast i'm using.
5 grams of yeast nutrient is what i started with.

I currently have it in the pantry of my house where it's nice and dark. the temperature in there is roughly 20 degrees or a little less. will go a little lower than that overnight as we're in the middle of winter basically.

 

[yankinoz]

Hey thanks. ill provide a little more info.
I'm fermenting it in a 5 litre glass demijohn.
1.5kg is how much honey i used
2.6 litres is how much water i added.
Mangrove jacks mead yeast is the yeast i'm using.
5 grams of yeast nutrient is what i started with.

I currently have it in the pantry of my house where it's nice and dark. the temperature in there is roughly 20 degrees or a little less. will go a little lower than that overnight as we're in the middle of winter basically.

Then it's almost certainly all fermented. Unlike malts, the sugar in honey is nearly all readily fermentable. The reason unfermented sugars pose a risk in beer making and bottling is that along with carbonating sugar added at bottling, too much CO2 is produced.

Taste it.

 

[An Ankoù]

Why not take a hydrometer reading? If it's around 1.000 or less, then it's done. Rack it into a new DJ and put it in a cooler place until it's perfectly clear and Bob's your uncle.
I make my mead a bit different. I start as you have and then keep adding a bit more honey to start the fermentation again. When it doesn't start again, I clear and bottle it. It takes ages my way and I'm not sure there are any clear advantages except a stronger mead.

 

[FoxHound]

Why not take a hydrometer reading? If it's around 1.000 or less, then it's done. Rack it into a new DJ and put it in a cooler place until it's perfectly clear and Bob's your uncle.
I make my mead a bit different. I start as you have and then keep adding a bit more honey to start the fermentation again. When it doesn't start again, I clear and bottle it. It takes ages my way and I'm not sure there are any clear advantages except a stronger mead.

Yeah it's still fermenting its got a bit to go yet when i transfer it into the second DJ i'm going to be backsweetening it with more honey every few days i don't want a dry mead i'm going for more of a sweet mead but if it turns out say semi-dry but the sweetness is still there to a degree then that's basically what im aiming for im not flavoring it with anything fancy im just going strictly for a decent base mead, but once i get my grav down to 1.000 i know im good =)

 

[Henryshooch]

Agree with the Hydrometer reading. The most important ingredient with wine / mead musts is time. If the fermentation slows down, take a small sample and test with a hydrometer. At this stage, take a taste to see if it is at the desired sweetness. If so, you can stop the fermentation using potassium metabisulfite and potassium sorbate (preservative) or you could pasteurize. If you do this, it will lower the potential alcohol level of your brew.

TBH, I would wait until it ferments out and taste. You may find that there is some residual sweetness in the brew and you may not need to backsweeten at all. I made a Blaand mead (milk whey and honey) which took just over a month to ferment out. I waited another month (after racking to secondary) before bottling, then left to bottle age for 6 months before drinking. I found that the flavour profile had changed in that time with the honey characteristic coming through with a hint of sweetness, just beautiful.