Beer Forum

Well...after MANY batches of beer I decided to make a mead (Actually a pyment with White Muscat)
I used WLP720, sweet mead....made a starter, decanted & pitched about 350-400 ml of slurry/starter.

fermentation took off in about 6 hrs and is going well....but....IT SMELLS LIKE ASS & FEET ?? normal for a mead? or did I f it up somehow.

I have had some funky smells come off of beer that turned out great, but nothing ever this nasty. Only three days in so I am not too worried yet.
It is fermenting at 66-68.

thoughts???

Let it go for a while. I used that same yeast and the primary puts off some funky smells. Meads go through a long evolution from ass to golden nectar so even if it tastes f'ed after 6 months, give it another 6 months.

A few questions. What are you smelling, the airlock? Or, are you opening up the fermentor? I had a beer recently that smelled like wet dog in the container that was at the end of a blow off tube. It worried me for a day until I cleaned it out and then it smelled fine. It's hard to expect that yeast giving off by products and esters in the beginning stages is always going to smell good. I notice when I take my lid's off primary in plastic for beers, meads or ciders that the smells are very acidic and strong odors are inside that about knock me over if I take a big wiff. I wouldn't worry too much and if it is in glass, expect that primary will lasts up to 30 days depending on how much honey and the type of yeast. Mine usually clear in secondary crystal clear by the 2nd month and that's when I like to add my German apricots. Yum!!

Good luck and let us know how it turns out. I love meads, you just have to be careful and not consume too much in one night. The stuff can sneak up on you easily. Ask me how I know? I tend to drink them after heavy Belgians and I get loopy.

Almost forgot, did you use Yeast nutrient? Very important in meads.

My first sour beer smelled like ass and lemon but eventually the flavors mellowed into a nice fruity concoction of deliciousness. You can never tell what anything is gonna taste like by the smell it gives off while fermenting.

I have not used the yeast you are using. Meads need time. Let it go and then wait about 6 months before you try it.

What was your recipe/process?

CaribouBill wrote:Well...after MANY batches of beer I decided to make a mead (Actually a pyment with White Muscat)
I used WLP720, sweet mead....made a starter, decanted & pitched about 350-400 ml of slurry/starter.

fermentation took off in about 6 hrs and is going well....but....IT SMELLS LIKE ASS & FEET ?? normal for a mead? or did I f it up somehow.

I have had some funky smells come off of beer that turned out great, but nothing ever this nasty. Only three days in so I am not too worried yet.
It is fermenting at 66-68.

thoughts???

dont judge a mead or beer before its done and in the bottle/keg. just be thankful that smell is comming out of the mead and not staying in the mead as a flavor

Thanks for all the replies and encouragement....I know mead is not beer, and I should have expected some differeneces...but wow it stunk.

As far as my process....I heated 4 gal to 180, let it cool naturally to 160, added 12 lbs honey, held at 150 for 20 min and skimmed what little surfaced.
After the 20 Min I added the muscat concentrate and cooled with a SS Immersion chiller to 65F, took about 12 minutes to get it cooled (N. Maine well water is COLD).

The smells were from the airlock, I do not like to open them until necessary when the brew area has been sanitized and is dog and wife free.

I used yeast nutriant in the starter and again in the must.

sg was 1.100, going for 1.018-1.020, ph of water was 5.4ish

BTW...the smell from the airlock is less nasty today, and more acidic fruit....going to secondary in 2-3 weeks....I'll let ya know.

Yeah my first mead tasted like hobo asshole right around the one and a half month mark and I thought I screwed it up. A couple months later it was tasty again.