My brews always started back up during secondary. As far as the hydrometer i bought the wrong kind. I need to get one just been lazy about it. Spend all this time, money, and energy youd think id get one by now. Ive made two meads which turned out really good.
How well do you aerate before pitching yeast? That’s very important once fermentation is done it shouldn’t start back up unless more sugar is added. Checking hydrometer levels will tell you when it’s done, here’s the kind you need. I use it to measure alcohol.
Hydrometer https://www.morebeer.com/products/triple-scale-hydrometer.html
You’ll also need one of the hydrometer jars for samples, I use this instead. I put the hydrometer in it after sanitizing, dip it in the fermenter to fill it up, then empty it back after reading. Works like a charm. https://www.morebeer.com/products/sample-taker.html
Well i did add some more sugar. As far as aeration i shook it up pretty good at the initial start to get the yeast going. this is probably why all my brews burn like hell
I use a tool similar to this for aerating all my brews, you can also use it to degas before bottling also. https://www.morebeer.com/products/lees-stirrer.html
As for the burn, if it’s over 10-12% I’d hold a bottle or two for a year and see how much the burn mellows, age really helps. I age all my meads about six months before trying the first one, but usually about a year before I start drinking them since they burn a bit.
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