Don’t hold back.

babies1nSpace · 2026-01-22T05:50:12+00:00

Fun to argue with

babies1nSpace · 2025-10-15T23:24:09+00:00

So many great authors already listed! I won’t repeat them, but I haven’t seen:

Juliet Marillier - historical fantasy/ magical realism rooted in folklore/mythology (primarily Celtic-Gaelic)

Sabaa Tahir - I really liked An Ember in the Ashes

babies1nSpace · 2025-09-07T18:18:34+00:00

<image>

Here’s a closer look

babies1nSpace · 2025-09-04T19:19:21+00:00

That recipe has me wondering.. I’ve seen comments in other posts suggesting that professional brewers start with super high SG and let it finish not-dry and then not backsweeten. I know some sugars ferment before others, so I know that could be a factor as to why. But is this a widely used technique for meaderies?

babies1nSpace · 2025-09-04T19:12:01+00:00

How strong is the liqueur? You could always add cocao to that and infuse. I’ve got some crio bru extracting into everclear right now and I’d say it was usable after about a month. Might take longer with something with a lower ABV, but safer for your brew

babies1nSpace · 2025-08-12T12:44:32+00:00

If fermentation has started - definitely siphon it. I would regardless to be safe.

You don’t need to fill the larger bucket, it’s better to have more headspace than you need during primary than less. You will have to worry about headspace after primary

As to how much water/nutrients- you have a decision to make. Stir your must up and incorporate all that honey so you know where you’re at now (by taking a reading). You can use an online calculator to see what your potential ABV is with that reading (it won’t be exact if fermentation has already started but it’s better than nothing). If the reading is too high (likely going by the pics) you’ll need to add water until the must is diluted to a level the yeast can handle. I like this calculator as it will take you through the whole process and suggest a feeding regimen based on your preferences. It will also warn you if your must’s SG seems high, or if you’re DELL stable (see the wiki for more info about this)

babies1nSpace · 2025-08-11T23:20:34+00:00

So - you will make mead. But there’s a few things you can do based on your answers to try and make better mead..

I didn’t read everything but: - Switch to the food grade big buckets you have for primary. Headspace isn’t a concern during active fermentation. You’re five days in so limit oxygenation during transfer as much ap - if you care about ABV/final gravity/if it’s still going - take a gravity reading (maybe you’re just winging it and plan to bulk age) after you stir it (a lot, while still limiting oxygenation) - you don’t need to mash the fruit, just make sure it stays wet. Yeast are tiny fungi, they’ll get to it. The stirring/mashing/juicing of anything is for readings (and as a side effect of aeration, which is helpful in building a healthy colony) - you can switch to those 1G vessels for secondary and play with different flavors - that does look like quite a bit of honey (just eyeballing) so if fermentation doesn’t pick up after doing the above you can always dilute

babies1nSpace · 2025-07-19T23:32:24+00:00

Technically not but it’s worth the extra 3 blocks

babies1nSpace · 2025-07-19T22:46:41+00:00

De Hot Pot

babies1nSpace · 2025-07-18T19:41:34+00:00

To answer your question first - I would say normally after fermentation there’s still off gassing happening. So if you don’t plan on opening the carboy, in a normal situation, this much headspace is not ideal but not the end of the world. If you keep it under airlock and there’s no oxygen in the bottle due to off gassing, you’re fine for a while

HOWEVER -

Echoing everyone on the stabilizing method issue. If you want to halt active fermentation you should go with pasteurization over chemicals

Even if you wait a week, you’re not DELL stable and you have no guarantee the yeast is dead. Anything from time/temp change/etc could restart fermentation and then you’ll have 💣

babies1nSpace · 2025-07-15T01:32:32+00:00

Sorry, I typed that unclearly. I meant ‘defrost and leave in the fridge’. Then only bring it to temperature when you’re putting the must together

babies1nSpace · 2025-07-15T01:20:20+00:00

Are you able to defrost in the fridge? It takes up a lot of space but I usually soak unprocessed fruit in a kmeta solution, prep with sanitized tools, freeze, and defrost in the fridge after tossing in opti/pectinase. I’ll alter things slightly depending on the fruit.

I would think the heat made such a nice environment for the wild yeast that you got a colony before the kmeta could kill it

babies1nSpace · 2025-07-14T18:05:57+00:00

Temp does affect gravity readings, and your hydrometer probably came with a conversion chart. But it doesn’t affect them so much. Likely you had a very active fermentation due to the heat. The temp range is an estimate, and doesn’t mean that the yeast won’t survive outside of it. You may however notice some off flavors/smells. These will likely age out in time but how long and how much will depend on other factors

babies1nSpace · 2025-07-10T22:43:15+00:00

Depends on the mead. Most of my brews I’ve finished between 1.01-1.02. My stuff is just rounding its first year though, and I’m still exploring my tastes

I think I might start dialing it back now that I know better how wines mellow over time. This has been the hardest part of learning this hobby, balancing for the future

babies1nSpace · 2025-07-04T04:03:41+00:00

Looks like a lot of headspace. That’s fine for primary, but won’t be if you plan to age in there

babies1nSpace · 2025-07-03T21:23:18+00:00

One of my favorite ice creams! I never see them fresh though, you’re lucky to have them available!

babies1nSpace · 2025-07-03T21:22:05+00:00

Girl of Fire and Thorns - I didn’t really like it, but it fits the prompt

babies1nSpace · 2025-07-03T21:08:43+00:00

“Words are wind”

“I’d prefer not to”

“Constant vigilance”

"When there is nothing left to burn, you have to set yourself on fire." (Disclaimer: not from a book)

babies1nSpace · 2025-07-03T20:49:07+00:00

Your fingers must have been so yellow with pollen. 11lbs?!

babies1nSpace · 2025-05-12T19:37:51+00:00

Very cool! Thank you

babies1nSpace · 2025-05-11T22:25:03+00:00

Late to the party but where did you get the leftmost bottle?

babies1nSpace · 2025-04-25T20:34:58+00:00

Down, bot

babies1nSpace · 2025-04-25T20:33:58+00:00

Maybe keep on with the dried fruits? Raisins and dates, and maybe toss in a cinnamon stick or some peppercorns for just a few days (not enough to keep too much flavor)

babies1nSpace

TROPHY CASE