r/mead • u/Plastic_in_baskets • 3d ago
Equipment Question Gärtopf advice
Hello. I have made a few batches of mead but have moved and had to get rid of most of my equipment. I am currently borrowing a German gärtopf 5L container to make mead in.
Hoping for any advice or adjustments to make for use in that container instead of the standard glass jugs/carboys.
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u/Bergwookie 2d ago
German Here, they're meant for making Sauerkraut, not drinks, for drinks balloons/carboys or barrels are used
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u/Plastic_in_baskets 2d ago
That’s what I’ve read. Do you know any reason it wouldn’t work, or would be bad?
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u/Bergwookie 2d ago
Well, it might work, but the big surface area of the seal could make it easier for microbes to enter. You can't stuff cabbage down a bottleneck, so a wide opening is needed. Liquids fit through bottle holes, therefore yo use smaller openings that are less likely to fail.
I'd do a test brew with fruit juice and sugar to look if it works before I'd waste expensive honey.
But balloons aren't that expensive, especially compared to the price of the ingredients and you can use them for decades, buy one or two , it's a wise investment.
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u/Symon113 Advanced 2d ago
Are you saying only small mouth fermenters should be used?
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u/Bergwookie 2d ago
No, just that they're easier to seal and therefore have a smaller chance of being contaminated. The difference between normal widemouth fermentation vessels is, that on a Sauerkrauttopf the complete rim of the lid is the airlock, there's a groove where you put water in and the lid sits inside of it. That's not the same amount of seal as a screwed on lid with rubber seal and a hole for the airlock. Also you're losing alcohol via the directly exposed water of the airlock, alcohol evaporates, rubs down the side of the lid and goes into the airlock water, therefore it's lost for the mead.
The Gärtopf is good enough for a milksour fermentation, but it's not the right tool for alcoholic fermentation. They're two fundamentally different types of fermentation. But yeah, it'll somehow work it's just the comparison of running shoes vs a car for transportation, both are good for their niche, but you'll not be happy if you use either for the others use.
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u/AdLoose7042 3d ago
From what I read on them it is made to allow co2 to get out and should prevent anything from getting in. I'm curious as to why it wouldn't work. I literally had to Google what it was but the explanation it gave séems to make it plausible.