# Dirty dishwater color



## Tenbears (May 15, 2012)

Meads can take months to clear after fermentation. They can also range in color from clear to golden with red, yellow or any combination of tones. I made a buckwheat mead then looked like Jim beam, while my orange blossom was yellow. What you are seeing is sediment suspended in the mead it will settle out and the mead will clear in time. just have patience, you can make good mead, fast mead, and cheap mead, Pick any two.


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## flhultra (Jun 14, 2013)

your not stirring up the Lees before you look at it are you ?
if there is any (mud) in the bottom, let it sit for a while and rack again it may take a couple of times.


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## Eikel (Mar 12, 2014)

The traditional meads are still a bit cloudy but coming around to a better color. The antique orange (oranges, cinnamon, raisins) suddenly went clear with a nice golden color. I've read "wait until the fruit sinks before bottling;" the fruit is looking rather washed out but is still floating proudly. Is waiting for the fruit to sink an accurate statement?


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## Vance G (Jan 6, 2011)

I usually rack off the fruit pretty quickly. I find it has given itsbest after ten days. Then let it spend sometime! I really dislike the batches i rushed to bottle that are delicious but too ugly to give away because of sediment. PATIENCE.


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## Eikel (Mar 12, 2014)

Good to hear Vance, everything has been fermenting for well over two months and I was wanting to rack the antique orange but didn't want to "short change" it by racking before the fruit sank.


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## Vance G (Jan 6, 2011)

It just dawned on me, are you making Joes Ancient Orange Mead? That recipe calls for waiting until the fruit sinks. What kind of yeast did you use? The bread yeast that JAOM calls for is the worst stuff in the world to get settled out.


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## Eikel (Mar 12, 2014)

Used standard baker's yeast, aggressive stuff that blew excess fermentation foam out the airlock. It was extremely cloudy until last week, suddenly everything settled out and it's very clear (with fruit still floating).


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## Vance G (Jan 6, 2011)

Sounds like JAOM. Rack it off if it is clear or let it sit till the fruit sinks. No matter what you do, good luck getting the clear wine/mead off the sediment. I thought mine was settled and the bottled product has really obcene nasty looking lees. Patience was never my strong suit.


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## Eikel (Mar 12, 2014)

The antique orange is excellent even drinking it before bottling, can't wait for it to age a year. The dirty dishwater are a nice golden color, waiting for the last one to clear a bit more before bottling


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## Vance G (Jan 6, 2011)

A caution to make sure you don't stir up the sediment. I bottled a bunch and it is pretty ugly. I thought I had waited long enough. The JAOM is really bad at not flocculating.


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## Eikel (Mar 12, 2014)

The JAOM was the great and very quick at settling once it decided to start. The traditional with fall honey is being the problem child about clearing. Plenty of lees but still cloudy, the jug is still producing some CO2 or at least keeping pressure on the airlock; so I'll wait it out.


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