How to make Mead (honey wine) at home - Part 4

Freezing to Stop Secondary Fermentation:
Since the vast majority of the alcohol is produced in the first 30-40 days and most wine is drinkable at that point the main purpose of secondary formation is to wait for the yeast to consume all available sugar and die so the product can be safely bottled. One method of speeding the process up is to freeze the wine. This ruptures the yeast cells and stops fermentation. However, alcohol that is in the batch to be frozen may gather together in the freezing process and create an unfrozen pocket of liquid in which a few of the yeast cells may be able to survive. It only takes one or two yeast cells coming into contact with sugar to kick off fermentation again once the mixture is thawed.

Therefore, freezing the mead in small batches (2 liters to a gallon size at a time) at very cold temperatures (deep freeze) for several days in a row is recommended. Remember to leave a few inches in the freezing container for the water in the mead to expand as it's frozen. Once the mixture has been frozen for several days, remove and let thaw with a tight lid on the bottle to keep the wine from being infected with air born bacteria. Let the wine thaw completely and rack off the sediment (discussed below) and attach and air lock. Wait a few days and watch the pressure in the bottle by monitoring the water level in the air lock.

If pressure begins to build up in the container again it's a sign that fermentation has begun again and the batch needs to be frozen again. This may take several freezing rounds for some wines but is much faster than waiting a year for the fermentation to end naturally and has absolutely no effect on the flavor. In fact, freezing improves the flavor by helping to remove solid particles suspended in the mead from fermentation. Once the frozen mixture is thawed, the solid particles float to the bottom of the container where you can rack off sediment. Sediment suspended in mead is the #1 cause of bad / off wine flavor.

Beyond Fermentation
After fermentation the mixture is sanitized to kill all microbes, including yeast, and sweetened to taste or left as-is for an un-sweet or "dry" flavor. The wine is usually stored in a wooden cask/barrel to age. Aging wine is a fine art in itself apart from mixing the ingredients in the original recipe and controlling the fermentation process. It can also be done quite successfully by the hobbyist in a wine aging container known as a carboy, which is essentially a large water bottle that varies in capacity from one to ten gallons, or even larger. The wine will usually be filtered mechanically or siphoned from one container to another to remove any sediment that's collected as a result of the fermentation process. Bottling and further aging is usually the last step in the process.

Taking out the sediment - Racking
The mixture is allowed to ferment until either fermentation has ended or drastically slowed (the air-lock stops bubbling) and is then siphoned into a carboy (another container) and allowed to age and sit so the sediment created during the fermentation process can collect at the bottom of the container. The top wine is then siphoned into another container leaving the sediment behind. This process continues until no sediment collects on the bottom of the carboy. This siphoning process is known as "racking."

There is some debate as to whether leaving the sediment in the fermenting batch during primary and secondary fermentation will affect taste. Many brewers leave all sediment in the bottom of the batch of mead throughout the entire process with no ill effects on taste. However, the process of racking often stirs up the sediment to a small degree. Because of this it's recommended to rack the clear mead off the top of the sediment once the sediment level reaches ¼ to ½ inch in depth. Refer to the section below about "fining" the wine to force sediment to the bottom of the container.

Getting a clear product - Fining
Additional substances can be added to the wine at this point to capture any remaining particles suspended in the wine, forcing them to the bottom of the container for one final racking. The addition of additional substances to produce a clearer wine product is known as "clarifying" or "fining" the wine.

Two main products are popular for this among hobbyist wine makers today. The most effective is a clay known as Bentonite. The clay comes in granule form and must be mixed with boiling water. The mixture is then mixed with wine (chilled wine for best results). The clay has a naturally occurring negative ionic charge which bonds with particles / sediment suspended in the wine. The clay is heaver than the particles so it drags the sediment down to the bottom of the container so that the clear wine can be racked off the top. Once the mixture has been added to the wine, stir with a large spoon until the entire mixture becomes cloudy and let sit for at least 24 hours (48 recommended). The wine may be treated with bentonite as many times as needed without harming the quality or taste of the finished wine. Two to three treatments are usually required to get crystal clear wine, especially if fresh fruit was used as an ingredient.

Bentonite is most effective when wine is cooler than 70-75 degrees and the bentonite mixture is as close to boiling as possible. The temperature variation makes a dramatic difference in the effectiveness of the treatment and may mean the difference between one treatment and three or four being required. Bentonite is relatively inexpensive so it may be more practical to repeat treatments rather than chill a large container of wine.

The other popular fining agent for wine is Sparkloid which is used in much the same fashion as bentonite but with not quite the dramatic result. If bentonite is not available at your local brewing store then feel confident is using Sparkloid but you may want to increase the wait time to 6-10 days before racking and re-treating. Other traditional fining agents include eggshells, bulls blood and egg whites.

Bottled or aged for quality
The wine or mead is then usually sanitized one final time using a sanitizing chemical available at most home brew shops and then bottled in an appropriate container. The wine can be consumed immediately or allowed to age to improve flavor. Wine bottles with corks are preferred by most serious hobbyist brewers, as the corks will allow for a very slow oxidation of the wine over time, greatly improving the quality of the flavor and aroma.

What does aging a wine do?
The process of aging a wine is a slow chemical reaction in which the wine or mead is allowed to rest and slowly oxidize in a container. Wooden containers are often used for aging because the wine will take on the flavor and aroma of the wood. The wood allows for a slight amount of oxidation of the wine which can improve flavor. Oak is especially prized in the wine industry for this purpose. New wine can have a harsh and distinctly different flavor and aroma from wine that has been well aged.

Aging in Wood
Serious home brewers can also purchase wooden barrels or casks to age their wine but this is often reserved for individuals who can make a substantial $200+ investment in their hobby. Anyone else wanting the wood flavors from aging wine can obtain wood chips from a local brewing store and age the wine in the carboy with the chips to produce a flavor similar to that of aging wine in traditional wooden barrels at a fraction of the cost.

Mead or Wine
Wine is any sugar based fermented beverage. Mead is a specific variety of wine made from honey. Mead is a type of wine but no wine may wear the label of mead unless it's primary ingredient is honey.

Other Sources:

http://www.SimpleHomeBrewing.com
http://www.squidoo.com/easybeermaking
http://www.squidoo.com/honeymead