I want you all to know that I was invited to a friends house and I brought all three flavors of Mead with me. My friends told me that my Mead tasted better than the wine they purchased. I brought my orange, cherry and cherry/plum Mead. It was amazing all the compliments I received. I have you two to thank for that. Thank you so much Brian and Derica for showing me the way to do it right. You two are the best and all the feedback you gave me helped me do it right. I really needed a hobby that was going to keep me busy and you two did it for me
You are so welcome! We love hearing stories like this! Our brewing is all about doing it better, doing it simpler and sharing. When you get feedback like that, it makes you want to do more. Everyone should brew their own, the big commercial operations shouldn't be the only way to get wine, cider and mead!
So let me get this straight - Let's say I consistently use 3 lbs of honey in a 1 gallon batch. My OG will be a constant 1.105. Good - I've got that. So, it all depends on the yeast that I use that will determine the outcome of both sweetness AND ABV? If I use a yeast that maxes out at a lower ABV, then I will have remaining sugars, thus a sweeter mead, but if I use a yeast that has a higher potential, my final ABV will be higher (max of 13.8%) and my mead won't be as sweet, because the yeast ate up all of my sugars. Am I close??
Omg, you brew, grow, cook, and game? I love you guys so much. I wish I had found this channel before I moved out of Florida. I woulf have loved to meet you in person. You guys rock, please keep it up.
Great video Brian! I just joined the channel a few days ago and watched all of your brewing videos. Have you two looked into doing a podcast a couple times a month? It would give you an outlet to ramble on. I’d love to see you two host a podcast with other guests that grow and brew!
@@CitySteadingBrews Nothing really but podcasts alot of people like to listen to them when they are busy and couldn't "watch" a video. I would think a live video on youtube would be cool also. Then you can interact live with your audience.
City Steading These videos I more “content” style videos. They have a purpose, specific steps and linear progression. A podcast on the other hand would be a great opportunity for you just to chat amongst yourselves in a less time constrained environment. Personally I would love to hear you sit down with other wine/mead enthusiasts or other people that have insight on other aspects we typically overlook. For example in a previous video you had said you have a local beekeeper nearby. To have an experienced beekeeper just talk about the work and effort that goes into the job and how that affects the honey and ultimately changes our home brews. That’s just one idea for a podcast but from what I see from these “content” videos is that you love to talk! And having to edit all that down to a concise video could be hard. A simple hour and a half chat with a special guest is a great way to spark inspiration for future videos and create easy simple content for the future. Thanks for listening!
A very helpful video for beginners, thanks! Kinda wish I had something like that when I made my first mead. This is alot of valuable information condensed into 17 minutes, presented by one of the most likable duos on youtube. :)
I watch at least 5 of your vids every day sometimes i watch them twice because Brian has so much wisdom to share. I wish i knew of your channel 2 years ago
Its been interesting learning all the trade-offs and compromises that we make with basic equipment. If you could filter, cold pasteurize, and force carbonate you can do anything!
This video is very helpful. I started making fruit wines last year and and have followed the recipe exactly with a very dry end product that I have to back sweeten quite a bit. I really don't like using potassium sorbate. Now I can play around with the sugar levels and not have to back sweeten as much. I like off dry to semi-sweet fruit wine depending on the fruit. I'm finally taking the plunge and going to make some small batches of mead for the first time. I like a sweet mead, so this will help me a lot. Now to wait for my niece for extract her honey. Thank you for your informative videos! I've learned so much.
Hey Brian and Derica. Brand new to brewing mead. Just started my first carbon and it smells wonderful. Can’t wait to do my first taste. Thank you so much for all the info. Super helpful. I have a couple of questions for you. 1. When calculating gravity the hydrometer calculates based on water density? 2. When you add stuff to the water it raises gravity.? 3. Yeast eats the sugar making the gravity of the solution less? 4. Pure water has a solution of 1.0 I’m guessing that’s why it’s called a hydrometer? 5. In some of your videos you have mentioned people using to much sugar. Is there a density rule you can apply? A gravity reading of x is to high? Is there a solution that’s to dense when yeast reproduction is diminished? What sweet spot should I shoot for a sweet mead but not sickly sweet?
@@CitySteadingBrews I didn't mean that you're an alcoholic. I'm sorry if I was unintentionally offending you. 😀 😀. In my other comment I never wanted people to think I'm an alcoholic when I said I want to have fun like you (since in this video you were making alcohol.)
OMG! How did I miss the D&D books in the background? I knew I liked you guys, but you're my people! Love the use of polyhedral dice to explain the dry/sweet of a brew. Thanks! Answered my questions perfectly.
Now I'm a fan of you both of you and a new sub. I have made my first 5 gallons of rum and I got a 1.060 BG . 4# of cane sugar and 1# of brown sugar and 16oz of molasses and two red 🌟 wine yeast. Trying to do the freezer and drain . Thank you for any help you can. Going to watch more of your Brew videos.
This is so helpful. Loved the dice analogy. Talks for taking the time for these explanations, I'm about to set out on my first mead (per your first mead video) and so this is really helpful.
Pasteurization is the best way to go for me. Did not add any flavor and it is easy. The only thing is you have to hit a temperature target in the middle of your vessel. Love your video! Keep going!
So many questions that you answered for me, well, a lot of them you simplified for me. Looking forward to seeing more videos and learn more as I go. You two are the best!!
Mead or cider? Well... doesn't metter actually. I made one by making a cider, then adding 2 lbs of strawberries in secondary. I didn't even chop them or anything. After a couple weeks, I racked and added more strawberries. OMG, it's the best strawberry drink ever.
you guys are the best you helped me understand Higher ABV doesn't mean better brew ! also you teached me how to pasteurize the brew so i can have the ammount of sugar, abv and CO2 i want Now i use my hydrometer every time so i know how is my brew going (and messed up a couple of batches for over measuring... but not too much, just a little bit of vinegar) City Steading is the modern alchemy school !
Thank you for your replies. I actually omitted the fact that I used a nylon mesh bag that did not allow for a seal. I took all the must out and added more cherries, honey, and a bit more yeast. Then closed fermenter properly. Ii have great bubbling action now.
I hope you’ve had sufficient coffee.... This summer was a great summer for f ox grapes here in VT. I made a LOT of jelly, but had a bit of juice left so I decided to attempt a fox grape (muscadine) wine. I added some sugar (fox grapes are notoriously tart) and pitched some starter, and had a pretty slow fermentation going for a bit. Then it appeared to have stalled. My OG was 1.012; the gravity reading I got last week was .995. I used red star premier blanc which I chose because it can tolerate a fairly high ABV (I thought) and I expected that might be what would happen because I added sugar. Mmmm...I’m not sure how much sugar I added...my bad! I determined that it is at about 2%, which seems ridiculously low. I did a little reading about stalled fermentations which is what I THOUGHT was happening. I first thought maybe I could ‘restart’ it... thinking throwing in some campden, waiting, drawing off a third of what I have in the carboy (it’s a 3 gallon) and developing a new starter with a bit more sugar and new yeast. Then pitching back into the 3 gallon carboy and praying to the wine gods. I consulted with a mead group that I am part of, and was told that the fermentation is NOT stalled. So...back to square one. Then I watched this video. Now I don’t know what to do! Is my yeast just stalled because there wasn’t enough sugar? Is it capable of more fermentation? Eeek! HELP! (Im not panicking, really, just tired of being in limbo and not taking any action!) Thank you in advance for any guidance you have for me.
I don't think you read your og correctly. Could it have been 1.120? If your final gravity was .995, it's done fermenting as there's no sugars left to ferment. More yeast or a starter will do absolutely nothing. On the plus side... you have a 16.9% wine. If you had whole fruit and added sugar, I highly doubt your gravity was 1.012. That's more of a final gravity than a beginning. 0.995 is dry, meaning no more fermentable sugars are present. That's why it's not stalled. My suggestion... taste it :) I think the numbers are pulling you away from the reality. You've made wine, and probably high ABV wine. It didn't stall. Give it a taste, you will probably realize it's wine.
So I might have missed it but do you guys have a video on safely storing brews after bottling? Like in what scenarios can I safely age for a year or even more. When do I need to refrigerate. What’s shelf stable. Etc. ps. Thanks for doing what you do. I’m obsessed and learning sooo much. Waiting on an Amazon order to start my first mead 😊
Ok, with only. 3 batches, 'm new to making wine. Kombucha and fermented veggies, sourkraut for about 7-8 years. My dad and brother make beer, and i decided to try wine. Which i do enjoy making. OK, i did a mango peach wine, from juice, and noticed the final reading was. 1.003 (I think) I understand how it could be so low. Yes the w😊ine came out very dry, butfhi did not maeke the connection. You did a great explanation
Paul, it wasn't just you... I'm sorry to take that bit of celebrity from you, but.... we have had soooo many emails, comments, messages and whatnot about these things. Thus, I made this video and bumped it ahead in our schedule!
Ohmagawd I was just telling my wife that I couldn't put my finger on why I'm so drawn to ya'lls videos and that you "felt" like gamer nerds to me. I hadn't noticed the PHB on your bookshelf. Now I get it and we must be friends. Keep up the great work! Thank you guys! You totally crit your persuasion roll on this channel!
This is a good video I've been trying to figure out a way to teach this you hit it right on the head. I might use sugar cubes and yeast packets but you get all the credit.
Hi B & D, a couple more question about my ginger mead, please. OG 1.084, went dry at SG 0.994. (12.15 ABV using 135) Back sweetening with 13.2 oz honey brought SG to 1.022. SG has remained unchanged for 2 weekly readings. Finally my question. How do I calculate final ABV? Thanks for your help. Love the channel, I spend a couple hours daily watching. I have two meads brewing, two ready to start. Will give me something more to drink while playing my banjos besides Wild Turkey 101.
Is that your personal collection of D&D dice I see on the table. Was that a nat 20 that you got before it was hidden by Derica. Also I love that you finally brought D&D into your video. Ps this video clears up a lot. Thanks for another amazing video
I would like to have a book which explains, in detail, about specific gravity, with a view to making adjustments (drier, sweeter) or developing my own recipes. Types of yeast to control the sweetness. I guess I am looking for the chemistry of wine/mead making.
I'm very grateful for you videos guys as it assisted me alot in starting my first brewing trials(considering i'm from Egypt and it's soo hard to find any help here in this field of home brewing). And i've one question for you: as you said the yeast will consume sugars till it reach it's tolerance and die so considering that i was still having extra sugar could i add more yeast to restart the fermentation process or it'll not help at this point if i wanted to increase alcohol level?
The tolerance is an alcohol level, so once they reach it, they don't die, they merely go dormant. So no, adding more yeast or sugar at that point will not further ferment it. Wines and Meads taste best at a max of about 13-15% IMO, so there's not much point in going higher. As I always say, if you want more alcohol, have two glasses instead of one!
Hey guys, love your content, y'all have given me the confidence to start brewing. Ive seen two different numbers, 135 & 131.25, and I was wondering wich is the one you have found to be most accurate as of now. Thanks in advance.
Awesome stuff! I just recently found your channel, it has been such a great source for info and inspiration. I love your honest, simple, straightforward approach. I'm currently making two batches of cider. The first is just a simple juice, sugar, and saison yeast brew with an OG of 1.055. That should produce a dry cider with an ABV of around 6.5% if I let it do its thing for a month or so? The second one has no added sugar (OG of 1.04), and I plan to back sweeten/carbonate with sugar, vanilla, cinnamon, and nutmeg. I'm super excited and can't wait to taste the results!
Hey Brian and Derica, appreciate all of the information you provide in your videos. I know you may gave covered it but i have a question? If you go too far past the yeasts threshold with your sugars in primary are you more likely to to have a stall? And does that potentially compromise your ABV potential for that brew?
THANK YOU! You guys are the best! I think I understand it a bit better now. Remember the alcohol wash I misread as having too much ABV to be possible? Yeah, the one I messed up, didn't do the OG, etc? So...I'm trying to see if I can fix it (being a Mad Scientist). It came out as 1.150 this time, down from 1.160 the last time I checked (on the hydrometer I broke, so maybe it wasn't actually...but which was not the OG but rather a couple weeks after). So that = 0.010, which is 1.3125% ABV, correct? Or maybe none since I might have misread it initially. I added 3/4tsp Red Star yeast (which is what I originally used) and shook it up good, got lots of foaming going, and hopefully it will restart the ferment. Some days, I just don't know about me, ya know? LOL. Anyway, thanks for another great, helpful video.
Whoah.... slow down, lol. I remember you had an astronomically high ABV on a brew according to your readings. Is that 1.150 your original or final gravity? I'm confused... which brew is this? I really want to help! I'm just kinda lost here!
You're not confused, I was. Yes, it was off the scale when I checked it the 2nd time...never got an OG (didn't have a hydrometer at that point). That's the one that got 9.2lbs of sugar to 1 gallon water and 2.4 tsp yeast. Well, not knowing what I was doing, at some point I added even more sugar (a bunch) and yeast (1.5 extra), and 1 tsp yeast nutrient...and of course got all kinds of foaming, for quite some time. Then I decided perhaps I'd better just leave it alone for awhile and see what happens. SO....now, about 1.5 months later, I decided to add another 3/4tsp yeast, put the airlock back on, and put let it sit. I'm just trying to see if I can get the ferment started again and save it since I just hate to waste it.
Umm. 9.2 lbs of sugar in 1 gallon. I'm shocked it's even fermenting! That'd come out at 55.5% ABV if it could ferment that far, which... no yeast can do. My suggestion is the split this into 4 batches, and dilute each with water to make 4, 1 gallon batches. That should drop the gravity significantly (since I don't know how much "a bunch" is :P). It should get you into the 13-17% range (depending on how much a bunch is :P), and maybe make something that might finish! You shouldn't need any more yeast or anything but water or juice, but juice has sugars, so.... maybe 5 batches?
Brian, I am SHOCKED you don't know that most precise of all measurements known as "a bunch"! It's that amount that gets accidentally spilled into the mix when one loses one's balance (whether due to wine or clumsiness, the measurement is the same) and "a bunch" of it gets dumped in, causing some splashing and cursing. Then there is usually muttering and confusion that follows, LOL. Good idea about splitting it up and it just so happens that I have 3 or 4 empty gallon bottles handy. My original plan with the "peculiar wine" (as PawPaw calls it) was to flavor it with organic flavors (unlike the Koolaid suggested by PawPaw)...like violet, chocolate mint, elderberry, tropical fruit mix, etc. Thanks for the suggestion, I'll let you know how it turns out.
Okay... you broke me. That was hysterical. Literally laughing out loud over here. Ahh, you're doing the sugar wash and flavoring later thing. An alternative, since you're using herbs anyway is to use brown sugar (more flavors) or a combo of sugars and add some flavorings in primary (which you're still in) and some in secondary. That way you get the melding of fermented flavors with the natural flavors all in one harmonious mixture. Easy guideline: 1 lb of sugars (white sugar, brown sugar, fruit sugars (might need to look them up, they're all different) gives you .046 gravity in a gallon brew. So... if your yeast is say a 15% tolerance and you want a slightly sweet brew, aim for 16%, confident in the knowledge that it will stop short and make a sweet brew. In this case, you'd want an OG of about 1.120, which is a wee bit over 2.5 lbs of sugar. Make sense?
Loved this video guys. Would love to play some D&D with Brian as the DM! Also, you should totally do a mead live Q&A at some point. I'v got a couple questions myself. If you have overdone it with the back sweetening, what's the best ways to dry it up a bit or take the grav down? I'm thinking of as many ways as possible so any insight would be great guys
We might start doing some live streams... just don't have a clue how to do it! Also, to 'dry up' an oversweet brew... hmm, try pitching a higher tolerance yeast to eat up some sugars?
These are great videos you guys are making. The question that I have is; if a mead reaches its alcohol potential, and still has residual sweetness, how would you go about adding some carbonation. I am not interested in chemical additives or doing anything crazy. I read in a home-brew book you can just add 3/4 cup of corn sugar before bottling the same as you would for beer. However, is this going to do anything considering the yeast has pooped out at its alcohol limit? Also since you already have residual sweetness would this (adding additional sugars) create the potential for exploding bottles. I would assume not since the yeast is dead from too much alcohol. Or is there still enough yeast to carbonate? I feel like I'm missing something here.
You both are so informative! I'm trying to figure out how I got my Fliechman Apple Grahf to render such a high ABV? I used your recipe for the bread yeast red wine, but used Apple juice in place of Grape. Started 10/09 with 1.120 and racked St 1.040 on 10/21. If my app is right, I now have 16.7%? Flavor is not bad at all. I used raisin,lemon zest, pomegranate tea, and fresh basil leaf for nutrition and tannin. These were boiled. No way outside yeast survived.
Hi. Great video, I’ve watched it at least 3 times. Would you mind doing an update with what you might know now, or with more examples and/or variables to nock the nail home. Plus I have a question - how do you find out the gravity of a honey? Do I just fill the ‘hydrometer’ tube thingie with honey and then read what the hydrometer says = gav of that honey??
Thank you for your videos. I’m a newbie-about 7 months in. I am currently making a Welches Grape Juice wine. I fermented it out to .993 final gravity. I like dry wine but wanted to add a little sweetness. (Oh by the way, I know you don’t do this but I stabilized the fermentation with chemicals mixed in a cup of water two days ago). I added one cup of Welches Grape juice to the fermented wine tonight. My question is how do I figure out the ABV with the two cups of Welches (gravity 1.064) and 1 cup of water (gravity 1.000)? By the way, my original gravity when I added the yeast was 1.091 Appreciate you both.
Good morning! Please have another cup of coffee, lol! I am attempting to brew your ginger beer. Followed all of your measurements. Started 3/27/22, OG 1.082. Today's test read 1.040, which calculates out to 5.51 about. Still really sweet! Will it spoil the brew if I let it ferment a couple of days longer? It still is pretty fizzy. Thank you for any help. I selected this brew because I wanted to be sure I was doing things correctly; before I attempted mead and could possibly waste some of my hives honey.
SO, quick question. I’m making a mead using 8.5 lbs raw red Tupelo honey, d47 yeast, tannin tea(tea, zest, raisins) and approximately 8.5 liters water. OG: 1.110 FG: 1.000 I want to backsweeten 1 gallon (of 3) with the original Tupelo Honey (no erithrotol or other non fermenting sugar) Should I slowly step feed over time in the 1 gallon carboy (after racking from the 3 gallon carboy) because fermentation is likely to begin again and just wait till the Yeast gives out around 14-15%’ish abv or with Lalvin D47 it should be pretty maxed at that point and a few months of sitting in 2nd with just a small (thinking 1/2 pound) amount of honey should top it off at 14-15 and leave enough residual sweetness that the yeast just won’t have the wherewithal to convert at that abv% after racking off the Lees… Really don’t want to be moving or messing around with it, and worry about pasteurizing a gallon to kill yeast before back-sweetening cause I don’t want to affect the flavors of the honey if possible and worry heating the brew up would affect it somewhat. Open to pointers, suggestions or advice of any kind about the best route to go forward. Thanks in advance and keep up the great work @citysteading
Low temp pasterurizing as we recommend won't alter flavors, we have tested this. However, you can step feed or try to overpower the yeast from the start. Either is fine. The only difference is step feeding has less chance of stalling.
Thanks so much. That’s good to know about pasteurizing and flavor. If the alcohol is strong enough I may try it that way before adding honey for sweetness and see how it sits with it on airlock before bottling for a bit. Appreciate the insight and help. Love the channel by the way.
I have (recently?) made my first mead started 21.09.2020. Unfortunately I borrowed what I thought was a hydrometer but turned out to be an alcohol meter so have no OG. Lesson learnt for next time! Based on your video (plus another on reading hydrometers!) would be OK to assume my mead is 'done' if my (since brought) hydrometer reading remains the same in a few weeks? It's currently 1.050 (Paranoid about bottle bombs!) Would I also be correct to approximate a abv of 11.8% I used 4lb honey for a gallon. Thanks for the video and all your other videos this has really helped my knowledge for future reference! Have also learnt about degassing which I haven't done....
Low ABV storage vs aging. You mentioned if 5% or lower you need to get it into a fridge because it does not store well. So that mean low abv cannot be aged or sit on the primary for an extend period of time like 3-4 months?? Thank you.
I'm saying the lower the ABV, the more likely it is to spoil. We've gotten a year out of some 5% beers at room temp before, but... there is the possibility of spoilage.
Hi hope you both are well. How do I measure my yeast tolerance? If I use bread yeast for example, can I read something on the packaging then calculate the tolerance? Since the whole skill around how strong and sweet you want your brew depends a lot on your yeast tolerance. Thanks for your videos, as always! Keep safe...
Hey to you St. Pete denizens! Wanted to try a concord grape wine. Looked for a gallon... Found 3 quart size. Specific gravity of the juice = 1.064. I added nearly two cups of sugar, SG = 1.100 Added yeast, an air lock and watched bubbles. Today the SG = 1.004 .096 x 131.25 = 12.6 ABV Is the yeast done? Time to bottle? Thanks!
All very simple if you listen to Brian three times and pay attention.
Hehe.
Hehe...... I'm not the only one.
I want you all to know that I was invited to a friends house and I brought all three flavors of Mead with me. My friends told me that my Mead tasted better than the wine they purchased. I brought my orange, cherry and cherry/plum Mead. It was amazing all the compliments I received. I have you two to thank for that. Thank you so much Brian and Derica for showing me the way to do it right. You two are the best and all the feedback you gave me helped me do it right. I really needed a hobby that was going to keep me busy and you two did it for me
You are so welcome! We love hearing stories like this! Our brewing is all about doing it better, doing it simpler and sharing. When you get feedback like that, it makes you want to do more. Everyone should brew their own, the big commercial operations shouldn't be the only way to get wine, cider and mead!
Cherry plum sounds amazing! If you don't mind sharing, what did you use? Juice vs fresh fruit, yeast type, sweet/dry?
Going through these teaching series, noticing you guys truly have morphed into healthy beings 2 years in the future. Inspiring.
Dungeon Master: "Roll for fermentation..."
Ok, I was liking your channel before, then you pulled out the D&D dice, and I had to subscribe. You two are my sort of people. :-)
I've been brewing since I was 12 helping my dad with his brews. I'm 37 now.
Even I love how simple you've laid this all out!
Haha, thanks!
So let me get this straight - Let's say I consistently use 3 lbs of honey in a 1 gallon batch. My OG will be a constant 1.105. Good - I've got that. So, it all depends on the yeast that I use that will determine the outcome of both sweetness AND ABV? If I use a yeast that maxes out at a lower ABV, then I will have remaining sugars, thus a sweeter mead, but if I use a yeast that has a higher potential, my final ABV will be higher (max of 13.8%) and my mead won't be as sweet, because the yeast ate up all of my sugars. Am I close??
Nailed it.
Omg, you brew, grow, cook, and game? I love you guys so much. I wish I had found this channel before I moved out of Florida. I woulf have loved to meet you in person. You guys rock, please keep it up.
Aww, thanks! Glad you're enjoying it!
Great video Brian! I just joined the channel a few days ago and watched all of your brewing videos.
Have you two looked into doing a podcast a couple times a month? It would give you an outlet to ramble on. I’d love to see you two host a podcast with other guests that grow and brew!
What would a Podcast offer that we can't do in a video? I'm genuinely curious!
@@CitySteadingBrews Nothing really but podcasts alot of people like to listen to them when they are busy and couldn't "watch" a video. I would think a live video on youtube would be cool also. Then you can interact live with your audience.
City Steading These videos I more “content” style videos. They have a purpose, specific steps and linear progression. A podcast on the other hand would be a great opportunity for you just to chat amongst yourselves in a less time constrained environment.
Personally I would love to hear you sit down with other wine/mead enthusiasts or other people that have insight on other aspects we typically overlook.
For example in a previous video you had said you have a local beekeeper nearby. To have an experienced beekeeper just talk about the work and effort that goes into the job and how that affects the honey and ultimately changes our home brews.
That’s just one idea for a podcast but from what I see from these “content” videos is that you love to talk! And having to edit all that down to a concise video could be hard. A simple hour and a half chat with a special guest is a great way to spark inspiration for future videos and create easy simple content for the future.
Thanks for listening!
I agree a podcast would be a great way to hear more about the behind the scenes. I actually kind of enjoy listening to the ramblings
"I need visual aids"
*grabs DnD dice*
"Hehehe"
I love it!
A very helpful video for beginners, thanks! Kinda wish I had something like that when I made my first mead. This is alot of valuable information condensed into 17 minutes, presented by one of the most likable duos on youtube. :)
Awwww.... Derica is the real gem here. I'm just a guy with a big mouth.
That is one of the best video on the topic of ABV
Thank you!
I watch at least 5 of your vids every day sometimes i watch them twice because Brian has so much wisdom to share. I wish i knew of your channel 2 years ago
Wow… thank you.
What a great video. This dice thing just cleared out everything in my mind.Thank you so much.
Its been interesting learning all the trade-offs and compromises that we make with basic equipment. If you could filter, cold pasteurize, and force carbonate you can do anything!
I just call it brewing.
PA. Native and D&D, no wonder my husband and I enjoy watching.
From Dunmore originally, yep.
Lehigh Valley Here
A little repetitive but you got your point across thanks I needed this video
Great and helpful visual. Thank you!
You're very welcome!
Very educational thank you
This video is very helpful. I started making fruit wines last year and and have followed the recipe exactly with a very dry end product that I have to back sweeten quite a bit. I really don't like using potassium sorbate. Now I can play around with the sugar levels and not have to back sweeten as much. I like off dry to semi-sweet fruit wine depending on the fruit. I'm finally taking the plunge and going to make some small batches of mead for the first time. I like a sweet mead, so this will help me a lot. Now to wait for my niece for extract her honey. Thank you for your informative videos! I've learned so much.
So happy to hear this!
VERY HELPFUL, THANK YOU AND KEEP EM COMING, IM LEARNING
Hey Brian and Derica. Brand new to brewing mead. Just started my first carbon and it smells wonderful. Can’t wait to do my first taste. Thank you so much for all the info. Super helpful. I have a couple of questions for you.
1. When calculating gravity the hydrometer calculates based on water density?
2. When you add stuff to the water it raises gravity.?
3. Yeast eats the sugar making the gravity of the solution less?
4. Pure water has a solution of 1.0 I’m guessing that’s why it’s called a hydrometer?
5. In some of your videos you have mentioned people using to much sugar. Is there a density rule you can apply? A gravity reading of x is to high? Is there a solution that’s to dense when yeast reproduction is diminished? What sweet spot should I shoot for a sweet mead but not sickly sweet?
practice makes perfect
Very helpful video thankyou..
0 dislikes.. You guys are awesome.. A lot of guys wants a life like this.. You guys are fun I'm not an alcoholic.
We always seem to get 1 dislike. Thanks, we try to have fun, and I am not an alcoholic.
@@CitySteadingBrews I didn't mean that you're an alcoholic. I'm sorry if I was unintentionally offending you. 😀 😀. In my other comment I never wanted people to think I'm an alcoholic when I said I want to have fun like you (since in this video you were making alcohol.)
OMG! How did I miss the D&D books in the background? I knew I liked you guys, but you're my people!
Love the use of polyhedral dice to explain the dry/sweet of a brew. Thanks! Answered my questions perfectly.
Youre both legends ! very well explained!
Just made my first two gallons. Your videos are extremely helpful
You two are wicked groovy individuals and I very much appreciate your time and dedication to the craft.
I love your t shirt collection.
I'm only a truck driver capnt, the yeast can't take nay more, you canna change the laws of brewing.
Building a T-Shirt collection should be the priority of any UA-cam creator or meadmaker.
Also, lol.
Best video ever! Derica, Brian, dice, and alcohol.
Thanks!
Now I'm a fan of you both of you and a new sub. I have made my first 5 gallons of rum and I got a 1.060 BG . 4# of cane sugar and 1# of brown sugar and 16oz of molasses and two red 🌟 wine yeast. Trying to do the freezer and drain . Thank you for any help you can. Going to watch more of your Brew videos.
Freeze distillation is illegal, just letting you know. Well, in most parts of the world it is, I'd check local laws or.... just don't tell anyone :)
Yinz are great learn so much from yinz. Dice big +++
This is so helpful. Loved the dice analogy. Talks for taking the time for these explanations, I'm about to set out on my first mead (per your first mead video) and so this is really helpful.
Pasteurization is the best way to go for me. Did not add any flavor and it is easy. The only thing is you have to hit a temperature target in the middle of your vessel.
Love your video! Keep going!
I'm thinking we might do a video on pasteurization and backsweetening.
Superb
Thank you!
this has to be the best explanation of fermentation vs abv yield i've heard.
OMG Love that y'all play D&D and used your dice to explain!
that was a great video guys. it helped clear a lot of questions I had, plus the D&D dice made my day..... oh yea... tickle away Derica lol
No tickling. :P
alright, this is my favorite channel already
So many questions that you answered for me, well, a lot of them you simplified for me. Looking forward to seeing more videos and learn more as I go. You two are the best!!
Thanks for watching! Glad we explained it well enough!
Quick question. I want to make a batch of strawberry flavored mead. Should I ferment it with the strawberries or should I back sweeten it?
Mead or cider? Well... doesn't metter actually. I made one by making a cider, then adding 2 lbs of strawberries in secondary. I didn't even chop them or anything. After a couple weeks, I racked and added more strawberries. OMG, it's the best strawberry drink ever.
Genius explanation. Thank you
Well after watching you guys i finally started brewing my first concord wine. Today in 30 mins will be 3rd day of fermentation.
Awesome!
you guys are the best
you helped me understand Higher ABV doesn't mean better brew !
also you teached me how to pasteurize the brew so i can have the ammount of sugar, abv and CO2 i want
Now i use my hydrometer every time so i know how is my brew going (and messed up a couple of batches for over measuring... but not too much, just a little bit of vinegar)
City Steading is the modern alchemy school !
my next steps are to get a degasing wand and a drill !!!
Awesome video Brian
+ROB MCGEARY thanks Rob!
Thank you for your replies. I actually omitted the fact that I used a nylon mesh bag that did not allow for a seal. I took all the must out and added more cherries, honey, and a bit more yeast. Then closed fermenter properly. Ii have great bubbling action now.
Fantastic! Glad you got it sorted!
That tickle attack looked like a crit. Glad you have lots of heal pots behind you.
Heal pots, lol.
Thanks for the simple explanation. Keep up the great work!
We get sooo many questions on this stuff! It was time to explain it :)
I hope you’ve had sufficient coffee....
This summer was a great summer for f ox grapes here in VT. I made a LOT of jelly, but had a bit of juice left so I decided to attempt a fox grape (muscadine) wine. I added some sugar (fox grapes are notoriously tart) and pitched some starter, and had a pretty slow fermentation going for a bit. Then it appeared to have stalled.
My OG was 1.012; the gravity reading I got last week was .995. I used red star premier blanc which I chose because it can tolerate a fairly high ABV (I thought) and I expected that might be what would happen because I added sugar. Mmmm...I’m not sure how much sugar I added...my bad!
I determined that it is at about 2%, which seems ridiculously low. I did a little reading about stalled fermentations which is what I THOUGHT was happening. I first thought maybe I could ‘restart’ it... thinking throwing in some campden, waiting, drawing off a third of what I have in the carboy (it’s a 3 gallon) and developing a new starter with a bit more sugar and new yeast. Then pitching back into the 3 gallon carboy and praying to the wine gods. I consulted with a mead group that I am part of, and was told that the fermentation is NOT stalled. So...back to square one.
Then I watched this video. Now I don’t know what to do! Is my yeast just stalled because there wasn’t enough sugar? Is it capable of more fermentation? Eeek! HELP! (Im not panicking, really, just tired of being in limbo and not taking any action!) Thank you in advance for any guidance you have for me.
I don't think you read your og correctly. Could it have been 1.120? If your final gravity was .995, it's done fermenting as there's no sugars left to ferment. More yeast or a starter will do absolutely nothing.
On the plus side... you have a 16.9% wine.
If you had whole fruit and added sugar, I highly doubt your gravity was 1.012. That's more of a final gravity than a beginning. 0.995 is dry, meaning no more fermentable sugars are present. That's why it's not stalled.
My suggestion... taste it :)
I think the numbers are pulling you away from the reality. You've made wine, and probably high ABV wine. It didn't stall. Give it a taste, you will probably realize it's wine.
So I might have missed it but do you guys have a video on safely storing brews after bottling? Like in what scenarios can I safely age for a year or even more. When do I need to refrigerate. What’s shelf stable. Etc. ps. Thanks for doing what you do. I’m obsessed and learning sooo much. Waiting on an Amazon order to start my first mead 😊
We don't, but this comes up enough, we might offer a brew talk.
Love the new opening and the fun stuff after the ending . Great information.
Woohoo! Someone watched all the way to the end!
Ok, with only. 3 batches, 'm new to making wine. Kombucha and fermented veggies, sourkraut for about 7-8 years. My dad and brother make beer, and i decided to try wine. Which i do enjoy making.
OK, i did a mango peach wine, from juice, and noticed the final reading was. 1.003 (I think) I understand how it could be so low. Yes the w😊ine came out very dry, butfhi did not maeke the connection. You did a great explanation
Love these videos! But I have to say the best part of the entire video is 13:33.
We actually have a few videos on that.
Another great video guys. I’m glad that my misadventure in mead seems to have made it into your video as a “what not to do”. I’ll learn yet.
Paul, it wasn't just you... I'm sorry to take that bit of celebrity from you, but.... we have had soooo many emails, comments, messages and whatnot about these things. Thus, I made this video and bumped it ahead in our schedule!
No worries at all. My celebrity status can wait lol. Either way, it was a great and informative video.
Ohmagawd I was just telling my wife that I couldn't put my finger on why I'm so drawn to ya'lls videos and that you "felt" like gamer nerds to me. I hadn't noticed the PHB on your bookshelf. Now I get it and we must be friends. Keep up the great work! Thank you guys! You totally crit your persuasion roll on this channel!
You guys are just great humans :)
Aww, thanks!
Good job Brian. Nice explanation.
This is a good video I've been trying to figure out a way to teach this you hit it right on the head. I might use sugar cubes and yeast packets but you get all the credit.
Hi B & D, a couple more question about my ginger mead, please. OG 1.084, went dry at SG 0.994. (12.15 ABV using 135) Back sweetening with 13.2 oz honey brought SG to 1.022. SG has remained unchanged for 2 weekly readings. Finally my question. How do I calculate final ABV? Thanks for your help. Love the channel, I spend a couple hours daily watching. I have two meads brewing, two ready to start. Will give me something more to drink while playing my banjos besides Wild Turkey 101.
If it didn’t change you use your og and fg before you sweetened
Is that your personal collection of D&D dice I see on the table. Was that a nat 20 that you got before it was hidden by Derica. Also I love that you finally brought D&D into your video.
Ps this video clears up a lot. Thanks for another amazing video
Also Harry Potter for the win
Hehe, thanks. No, I rolled a 2.
@@CitySteadingBrews good...that means you didn't waste a crit
awesome Firefly shirt Derica!
Thank you for some Very Good Information.
awesome video. it helped to explain a few things more clearly.
Awesome! Glad to help!
I would like to have a book which explains, in detail, about specific gravity, with a view to making adjustments (drier, sweeter) or developing my own recipes. Types of yeast to control the sweetness. I guess I am looking for the chemistry of wine/mead making.
Thanks guys - that's help my understanding a lot. Great content as always.
Fantastic! Glad you got something out of it!
DND, very nice.
Like the new opening...
Thanks! Still working on the end scenes...
thanks guys, really helped answer some question
Love your videos, you guys are awesome. Thank you for sharing your knowledge.
You are very welcome!
I'm very grateful for you videos guys as it assisted me alot in starting my first brewing trials(considering i'm from Egypt and it's soo hard to find any help here in this field of home brewing). And i've one question for you: as you said the yeast will consume sugars till it reach it's tolerance and die so considering that i was still having extra sugar could i add more yeast to restart the fermentation process or it'll not help at this point if i wanted to increase alcohol level?
The tolerance is an alcohol level, so once they reach it, they don't die, they merely go dormant. So no, adding more yeast or sugar at that point will not further ferment it. Wines and Meads taste best at a max of about 13-15% IMO, so there's not much point in going higher. As I always say, if you want more alcohol, have two glasses instead of one!
LOL! A vocab vid, I love it (and the look on Brian's face)
I'm really glad I'm watching this before I start brewing. Most others don't push the gravity measurements as much...
Gravity measurements mean the difference between guessing and knowing. :)
Hi Brian, I have been trying to find the video of where you talk about and show how to calculate step feeding
I haven't done it. Yet.
Hey guys, love your content, y'all have given me the confidence to start brewing. Ive seen two different numbers, 135 & 131.25, and I was wondering wich is the one you have found to be most accurate as of now. Thanks in advance.
I use 135. It's more accurate at wine and mead ABV ranges.
Do you have plans for a video on back sweetening?
I may. We might do something on backsweetening and bottling.
I can use some info on backsweetening to.
Ty !!! I unfortunately had a batch of cider that went WAY too dry lol....it is very slowly mellowing
Okay, you all convinced me! We will do a vid on backsweetening and pasteurizing. Just... might be a few weeks.
@@CitySteadingBrews love you
Thanks for another great video
You are very welcome!
Awesome stuff! I just recently found your channel, it has been such a great source for info and inspiration. I love your honest, simple, straightforward approach. I'm currently making two batches of cider. The first is just a simple juice, sugar, and saison yeast brew with an OG of 1.055. That should produce a dry cider with an ABV of around 6.5% if I let it do its thing for a month or so? The second one has no added sugar (OG of 1.04), and I plan to back sweeten/carbonate with sugar, vanilla, cinnamon, and nutmeg. I'm super excited and can't wait to taste the results!
Glad to help inspire you!
Great video!
Thanks!
The way you visually described the process with dice, I think will help other understand better at whats happening. Great work!
Love that after credit
Yay, someone watched to the end!
Great videos. Also, great selection of Gin & Bourbon's.
Hey Brian and Derica, appreciate all of the information you provide in your videos. I know you may gave covered it but i have a question? If you go too far past the yeasts threshold with your sugars in primary are you more likely to to have a stall? And does that potentially compromise your ABV potential for that brew?
Yes. Too much sugars can stall your brew and that will prevent the yeast making more alcohol.
THANK YOU! You guys are the best! I think I understand it a bit better now. Remember the alcohol wash I misread as having too much ABV to be possible? Yeah, the one I messed up, didn't do the OG, etc? So...I'm trying to see if I can fix it (being a Mad Scientist). It came out as 1.150 this time, down from 1.160 the last time I checked (on the hydrometer I broke, so maybe it wasn't actually...but which was not the OG but rather a couple weeks after). So that = 0.010, which is 1.3125% ABV, correct? Or maybe none since I might have misread it initially. I added 3/4tsp Red Star yeast (which is what I originally used) and shook it up good, got lots of foaming going, and hopefully it will restart the ferment.
Some days, I just don't know about me, ya know? LOL. Anyway, thanks for another great, helpful video.
Whoah.... slow down, lol.
I remember you had an astronomically high ABV on a brew according to your readings.
Is that 1.150 your original or final gravity?
I'm confused... which brew is this?
I really want to help! I'm just kinda lost here!
You're not confused, I was. Yes, it was off the scale when I checked it the 2nd time...never got an OG (didn't have a hydrometer at that point). That's the one that got 9.2lbs of sugar to 1 gallon water and 2.4 tsp yeast. Well, not knowing what I was doing, at some point I added even more sugar (a bunch) and yeast (1.5 extra), and 1 tsp yeast nutrient...and of course got all kinds of foaming, for quite some time. Then I decided perhaps I'd better just leave it alone for awhile and see what happens. SO....now, about 1.5 months later, I decided to add another 3/4tsp yeast, put the airlock back on, and put let it sit. I'm just trying to see if I can get the ferment started again and save it since I just hate to waste it.
Umm. 9.2 lbs of sugar in 1 gallon.
I'm shocked it's even fermenting!
That'd come out at 55.5% ABV if it could ferment that far, which... no yeast can do.
My suggestion is the split this into 4 batches, and dilute each with water to make 4, 1 gallon batches. That should drop the gravity significantly (since I don't know how much "a bunch" is :P). It should get you into the 13-17% range (depending on how much a bunch is :P), and maybe make something that might finish! You shouldn't need any more yeast or anything but water or juice, but juice has sugars, so.... maybe 5 batches?
Brian, I am SHOCKED you don't know that most precise of all measurements known as "a bunch"! It's that amount that gets accidentally spilled into the mix when one loses one's balance (whether due to wine or clumsiness, the measurement is the same) and "a bunch" of it gets dumped in, causing some splashing and cursing. Then there is usually muttering and confusion that follows, LOL.
Good idea about splitting it up and it just so happens that I have 3 or 4 empty gallon bottles handy. My original plan with the "peculiar wine" (as PawPaw calls it) was to flavor it with organic flavors (unlike the Koolaid suggested by PawPaw)...like violet, chocolate mint, elderberry, tropical fruit mix, etc. Thanks for the suggestion, I'll let you know how it turns out.
Okay... you broke me. That was hysterical.
Literally laughing out loud over here.
Ahh, you're doing the sugar wash and flavoring later thing. An alternative, since you're using herbs anyway is to use brown sugar (more flavors) or a combo of sugars and add some flavorings in primary (which you're still in) and some in secondary. That way you get the melding of fermented flavors with the natural flavors all in one harmonious mixture.
Easy guideline:
1 lb of sugars (white sugar, brown sugar, fruit sugars (might need to look them up, they're all different) gives you .046 gravity in a gallon brew. So... if your yeast is say a 15% tolerance and you want a slightly sweet brew, aim for 16%, confident in the knowledge that it will stop short and make a sweet brew. In this case, you'd want an OG of about 1.120, which is a wee bit over 2.5 lbs of sugar. Make sense?
More great info guys, good video!
Thank YOU for watching!
My wife got 25% once with a strawberry mead with Montrachet yeast. Using a Vinometer to measure.
Thank you Brian and Derica :-D
Loved this video guys. Would love to play some D&D with Brian as the DM! Also, you should totally do a mead live Q&A at some point. I'v got a couple questions myself. If you have overdone it with the back sweetening, what's the best ways to dry it up a bit or take the grav down? I'm thinking of as many ways as possible so any insight would be great guys
We might start doing some live streams... just don't have a clue how to do it!
Also, to 'dry up' an oversweet brew... hmm, try pitching a higher tolerance yeast to eat up some sugars?
These are great videos you guys are making. The question that I have is; if a mead reaches its alcohol potential, and still has residual sweetness, how would you go about adding some carbonation. I am not interested in chemical additives or doing anything crazy. I read in a home-brew book you can just add 3/4 cup of corn sugar before bottling the same as you would for beer. However, is this going to do anything considering the yeast has pooped out at its alcohol limit? Also since you already have residual sweetness would this (adding additional sugars) create the potential for exploding bottles. I would assume not since the yeast is dead from too much alcohol. Or is there still enough yeast to carbonate? I feel like I'm missing something here.
It won’t carbonate. Only way is to dilute it a little so there’s room for the yeast to work.
You both are so informative! I'm trying to figure out how I got my Fliechman Apple Grahf to render such a high ABV? I used your recipe for the bread yeast red wine, but used Apple juice in place of Grape. Started 10/09 with 1.120 and racked St 1.040 on 10/21. If my app is right, I now have 16.7%? Flavor is not bad at all. I used raisin,lemon zest, pomegranate tea, and fresh basil leaf for nutrition and tannin. These were boiled. No way outside yeast survived.
Just did my own math, from your video, came to 10.8%. Still pretty high, but acceptable in accordance with logic.
Yeap... was just about to say that. Someone did get it to 13.6% though!
Ack...I coulda used this three weeks ago when I ordered a “sweet mead yeast.” Thank you though. Now I know how to proceed going forward.
You'd be surprised how often I hear this.
Hi. Great video, I’ve watched it at least 3 times. Would you mind doing an update with what you might know now, or with more examples and/or variables to nock the nail home. Plus I have a question - how do you find out the gravity of a honey? Do I just fill the ‘hydrometer’ tube thingie with honey and then read what the hydrometer says = gav of that honey??
We have. ua-cam.com/video/NpBZctKaPis/v-deo.html
Thank you for your videos. I’m a newbie-about 7 months in. I am currently making a Welches Grape Juice wine. I fermented it out to .993 final gravity. I like dry wine but wanted to add a little sweetness. (Oh by the way, I know you don’t do this but I stabilized the fermentation with chemicals mixed in a cup of water two days ago). I added one cup of Welches Grape juice to the fermented wine tonight. My question is how do I figure out the ABV with the two cups of Welches (gravity 1.064) and 1 cup of water (gravity 1.000)? By the way, my original gravity when I added the yeast was 1.091
Appreciate you both.
You would need all the exact measurements and it can be figured out but in reality... close is close enough.
I like the new intro, very nice
And this is a great video
Thanks! Appreciate the feedback!
@@CitySteadingBrews Thanks! Appreciate the awesome content
Good morning! Please have another cup of coffee, lol! I am attempting to brew your ginger beer. Followed all of your measurements. Started 3/27/22, OG 1.082. Today's test read 1.040, which calculates out to 5.51 about. Still really sweet! Will it spoil the brew if I let it ferment a couple of days longer? It still is pretty fizzy. Thank you for any help. I selected this brew because I wanted to be sure I was doing things correctly; before I attempted mead and could possibly waste some of my hives honey.
Should read: calculates out to 5.51 abv.
It will not spoil the brew to let it continue to ferment.
SO, quick question.
I’m making a mead using 8.5 lbs raw red Tupelo honey, d47 yeast, tannin tea(tea, zest, raisins) and approximately 8.5 liters water.
OG: 1.110
FG: 1.000
I want to backsweeten 1 gallon (of 3) with the original Tupelo Honey (no erithrotol or other non fermenting sugar)
Should I slowly step feed over time in the 1 gallon carboy (after racking from the 3 gallon carboy) because fermentation is likely to begin again and just wait till the Yeast gives out around 14-15%’ish abv or with Lalvin D47 it should be pretty maxed at that point and a few months of sitting in 2nd with just a small (thinking 1/2 pound) amount of honey should top it off at 14-15 and leave enough residual sweetness that the yeast just won’t have the wherewithal to convert at that abv% after racking off the Lees…
Really don’t want to be moving or messing around with it, and worry about pasteurizing a gallon to kill yeast before back-sweetening cause I don’t want to affect the flavors of the honey if possible and worry heating the brew up would affect it somewhat.
Open to pointers, suggestions or advice of any kind about the best route to go forward.
Thanks in advance and keep up the great work @citysteading
Low temp pasterurizing as we recommend won't alter flavors, we have tested this. However, you can step feed or try to overpower the yeast from the start. Either is fine. The only difference is step feeding has less chance of stalling.
Thanks so much. That’s good to know about pasteurizing and flavor. If the alcohol is strong enough I may try it that way before adding honey for sweetness and see how it sits with it on airlock before bottling for a bit.
Appreciate the insight and help. Love the channel by the way.
Sir, thank you for the dice explanation... Concept cleared... Never going to forget. Could you please explain Killer Factor in such a simple way...
That's not so simple. It's also not so common.
@@CitySteadingBrews thats why was hoping if you could explain it...
I have (recently?) made my first mead started 21.09.2020. Unfortunately I borrowed what I thought was a hydrometer but turned out to be an alcohol meter so have no OG. Lesson learnt for next time! Based on your video (plus another on reading hydrometers!) would be OK to assume my mead is 'done' if my (since brought) hydrometer reading remains the same in a few weeks? It's currently 1.050 (Paranoid about bottle bombs!) Would I also be correct to approximate a abv of 11.8% I used 4lb honey for a gallon. Thanks for the video and all your other videos this has really helped my knowledge for future reference! Have also learnt about degassing which I haven't done....
Good morning! Great video! It nailed the head
Low ABV storage vs aging. You mentioned if 5% or lower you need to get it into a fridge because it does not store well. So that mean low abv cannot be aged or sit on the primary for an extend period of time like 3-4 months?? Thank you.
I'm saying the lower the ABV, the more likely it is to spoil. We've gotten a year out of some 5% beers at room temp before, but... there is the possibility of spoilage.
Hey there, I really love your videos can you do one on how to back sweeten. How to calculate amount of sugar source
Well.. yes, we are planning one. But, simply put, to backsweeten, add sweetener til it tastes how you want it! There's no rule for how much to add.
Hi hope you both are well. How do I measure my yeast tolerance? If I use bread yeast for example, can I read something on the packaging then calculate the tolerance? Since the whole skill around how strong and sweet you want your brew depends a lot on your yeast tolerance. Thanks for your videos, as always! Keep safe...
Bread yeast is experimentation. Commercial yeasts have it on the internet.
Hey to you St. Pete denizens!
Wanted to try a concord grape wine.
Looked for a gallon... Found 3 quart size.
Specific gravity of the juice = 1.064.
I added nearly two cups of sugar, SG = 1.100
Added yeast, an air lock and watched bubbles.
Today the SG = 1.004
.096 x 131.25 = 12.6 ABV
Is the yeast done?
Time to bottle?
Thanks!