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When I first starting investigating mead making, the only thing I knew about yeast was that it was what made bread rise. What I sooned learned was that yeast had a second, much more interesting, use. It makes alcohol.

Yeast is a single celled fungus. It requires oxygen to survive. Typically it gets it from the air, just like most living things, but, when starved of atmospheric oxygen, it has a special ability. It can survive by extracting oxygen from sugars. This process produces two by products: carbon dioxide and ethanol. Ethanol is the kind of alcohol that we can drink. There are many species of yeast, but of particular importance is one called saccharomyces cerevisiae and another called saccharomyces uvarum.

Saccharomyces Cerevisiae

Saccharomyces cerevisiae is the most common form of yeast used in both baking and brewing. It can be found on the skins of grapes where it appears as a white film and has been used since ancient times. Non-scientist types call it by several names including Baker's Yeast, Brewer's Yeast, Ale Yeast, and Top Fermenting Yeast. That last name refers to how it floats to the top of the wart or must while it does it's magic

Saccharomyces Uvarum

Saccharomyces uvarum is much less common than cerevisiae, but it still has it's uses. Rather than floating to the top, this yeast sinks to the bottom of the must or wart during fermentation. As a result it is sometimes called Bottom Fermenting Yeast. The much more common name though is Lager yeast. Yep, you guessed it, you make lager style beer with it. I've been experimenting with it for making a sweet mead.

Choosing a Yeast

Much of how a mead turns out depends on the yeast. I had not realized until I started making mead, just how diverse yeast could be. Various types not only affect taste but also alcohol content (dryness), clarity, ester content, and even effervescence. Different types are recommended for different climates. Certain varieties require less monitoring. It is possible to use bread yeast from your local supermarket, but what the experienced hobbyists and professionals use is brewer's yeast. When buying yeast, I found it necessary to learn about the various properties of yeast:

Packaging

You can buy yeast in two different forms: dry or liquid. The dry form comes as a power like substance in a foil pack. There are usually instruction on the pack for rehydrating the yeast before adding to you must, though some say you can just dump it right in. The nice part about dry yeast is that it is cheap, easy to transport, and easy to store. The drawback that I have found to dry yeast is that is is difficult to find one that produces sweeter meads in a short amount of time with a lot of clarity.

Liquid yeast comes in little vials. Usually you don't need to do anything but dump it in to your must. It's easy to use and provides more options than the dry yeast, but it must be refridgerated, is expensive, and is more difficult to ship than dry yeast. As a result, most mead recipes you find on the web call for dry yeast.

Fermentation Temperature

You have to be really careful when buy mead that you get a type that will work in your environment. They all have and optimal temperature range under which they work. I've discovered that my options are limited a bit by where I live. Many yeasts require the temperature to be less than 68 degreed Fahrenheit. The problem is that I live outside of Atlanta. During the warm half of the year, temperatures average in the mid to high eighties. This is what the Atlanta area is like for six months. It would cost too much to keep my house that cool during those times. So, I look for yeasts that work at warmer temperatures.

Activity Level

Activity level refers to the speed at which a yeast ferments the must. High activity level yeasts can make alcohol faster, but some complain that they can produce funny flavors.

Alcohol Tolerance

The alcohol tolerance of yeast is the point at which the must becomes too alcoholic for the yeast to stay awake. Usually you hear this term when looking at wine yeasts. These yeasts range from 13% to 21%. Now, in wine, you usually don't hit this limit. The reason for that is that fruit juice only contains so much sugar. It winds up all getting converted before the alcohol tolerance is reached. But in mead making the must has a MUCH higher sugar content than fruit juice. I've never had a batch not reach the alcohol tolerance. (The highest AT of a yeast that I have used is 18%)

Attenuation

Attenuation refers to the percentage of sugar a yeast will convert to alcohol. You hear this more when talking about beer yeasts. Generally, it's around 70%.

Flocculation

Flocculation referres to the clumpiness of the yeast. Yeasts with higher flocculation tend to clear sooner as the clumps sink to the bottom faster.

Yeasts That I have used

Red Star Bread Yeast

Yes, I have tried making mead with bread yeast. The result was bitter tasting and watery. On the positive side, it was easier to drink in big gulps (thirst quenching factor) and it came out crystal clear.

Lalvin EC-1118

This is a good beginners yeast. It ferments fast and strong, with an alcohol tolerance of 18%. It works in warmer environments and rarely gets stuck. It clears pretty well, too. I've probably used this the most. It's available at every home brew and wine making store I've visited. The taste in the final product has always been good. The only personal problem I have with it, is that it is sometimes too fast. I've been trying to make a sweet mead by interrupting the fermentation, but I keep blowing past the 12% I want and find that I'm up to 16-18% in just a few days.

Red Star Pasteur Champagne

I made my first mead with this. I went to the local brew shop and asked the store manager for a good yeast that would produce a sweet mead and would be easy to use. He obviously identified me as a noob and gave me Red Star Pasteur Chanpagne. It DOES NOT make a sweet mead. The resulting mead was so dry and bitter that I had to cut it 50-50 with honey water to be able to drink it. I never got it to clear either.

Fermintis Safbrew T-58

This is an Ale yeast that I figured I could give a try. The result so far has been a sweet mead pretty close to my goal. According to the Fermintis web site, it should be about 11% alcohol. I got exactly 10% with my hydrometer. The initial fermentation took about two weeks. I'm a little troubled by the clearing as the mead is still pretty hazy after several months of aging. I've bottled it anyway on top of some carbonation drops to see if I can get that fizz I want. I have to wait a few weeks now to find out though.