sulfite / campden question

[Kyle]

I have a mead, O.G. 1121, F.G. 1004. As I was transferring into secondary today there was a solitary fruit fly hovering, and then it "went away" - I doubt, but possibly into the mead. Since the mead is still below the 18% alcohol tolerance of the mother of vinegar ickiness carried by fruit flys, I'd like to nuke it with something to be on the safe side. Would the campden tablets be useful for this?

Also, I'd like to back-sweeten, so will the stuff I add to kill the yeast also kill every other spoilage potential?

Is campden the same as sulphite?

[Richard]

Campden is a mixture of sulphites, and at the right level (1 tablet per gallon) will sanitise. Chuck five or six in (crush & dissolve in hot water first), mix in, and leave 24h. That should sort the problem out, but you might want to rack first just to be sure the critter isn't floating around in there.

Campden does not kill yeast (especially wine yeast), but annihilates bacteria, so it's a real good choice in your situation.

If you're back-sweetening you might want to use potassium sorbate too, but if you just use the campden and refrigerate you'll probably be fine.

You will probably want to rack after another couple of days to try and remove any remaining sulphur dioxide from the campden.

[Richard]

You might be able to get "Wine Conditioner" too - it's basically a one-shot sweetener/stabiliser/sanitiser for wine; I suspect it'll work for mead too (although I've not tried it). I've seen it at Scoop & Save before.

[Richard]

Found the site where I read this stuff originally:

http://winemaking.jackkeller.net/finishin.asp

This site is superb for all things wine-making.

[Kyle]

thanks