How about a simple Ginger mead. I have a ginger mead in primary right now that smells so awsome. I went light on the ginger but you can go with more if you like that taste. here is the recipe:
5 gallon batch
12 lb of Honey with two small bricks of honey comb from the raw honey
2oz "4 TBS" of crystallized ginger
1 TBS of powdered ginger
50 golden raisins cut in half
2.5 tsp of yeast nutrients
2 tsp of yeast energizer
Lalvin K1V-1116 Yeast
1) Mixed everything lack yeast and energizer together at room temp "No Boiling of the honey and no real heating of any kind"
2) Whipped the heck out of it with my home made wine whip.
3) Rehydrate & then pitch yeast
O.G. should be arount 1.085ish. Honey comb is optional and not really needed, I just thought it was cool. If you want more ginger taste then you can substitute the ginger I used with some fresh sliced ginger. Leave the skin on the ginger root and probably start with 8oz in primary and if you want more taste after the mead is cleared and racked off the lees then add another 8oz. The 1116 yeast will take this dry so I plan on back sweetening a little with splenda and then priming with sugar to bottle carbonate.
