So What is Mead Exactly?

[billc68]

OK, OK, I know what Mead is, basically a honey wine, but I have NEVER seen a bottle anywhere, I have never tasted it but I have desire to brew some. My only issue with brewing it, is how will I know if I did it right if I have nothing to compare it to?

Can the flavour be described?
Is it generally still or carbonated?
Is it easy to make?
What is the usual %ABV?

Oh and finally, what is a good beginner, simple recipe?

 

[Shooter]

Well, I've only made a couple of batches I used enough honey so that the yeast didn't ferment it all out and left them slightly sweet. I did not carbonate it and the basic recipe I used has a flavor like a slighlty sweet white wine with just a faint hint of a honey like flavor. My wife loves it. Unfortunately I don't have the recipe in front of me, but it is not difficult to make and mine ended up with an ABV in the 12-14% range.

 

[BogusOwnz]

I tried my first mead at my homebrew club meet the other week and loved it. Regular mead is just a very sweet tasting light wine. Some people carb it, also people throw stuff in the mead. I tried a raisin mead and a raspberry one both of which were great. From my understanding they are quick to make since they are only honey water and yeast. The down fall is they take awhile to ferment and age, 4-6 months I was told.

 

[jezter6]

First, mead is whatever you want it to be. It can be strong, or it can be weak. It can be dry, or it can be dessert sweet. It can be plain, or with fruits and spices. It can be still, carbed, or somewhere in between.

How do you know you made good mead? If you like to drink it, then it's good. If you don't like to drink it, then it's bad. It's a lot like wine. Either you like the wine, or you don't like the wine. There's not a whole lot of people that like only one of the many different types of wine (although some people may prefer red or white).



Many compare straight mead to a white wine, but I think it's not the greatest of comparisons.

Start yourself off with a JOAM or Malkore's Ancient (recipe database is your friend). Make a gallon, and if you like it - make more and more until you're satisfied. If you don't like it, then maybe you screwed it up, but you can always make another batch and give it a try. Or maybe you just don't like it.

 

[billc68]

First, mead is whatever you want it to be. It can be strong, or it can be weak. It can be dry, or it can be dessert sweet. It can be plain, or with fruits and spices. It can be still, carbed, or somewhere in between.

How do you know you made good mead? If you like to drink it, then it's good. If you don't like to drink it, then it's bad. It's a lot like wine. Either you like the wine, or you don't like the wine. There's not a whole lot of people that like only one of the many different types of wine (although some people may prefer red or white).



Many compare straight mead to a white wine, but I think it's not the greatest of comparisons.

Start yourself off with a JOAM or Malkore's Ancient (recipe database is your friend). Make a gallon, and if you like it - make more and more until you're satisfied. If you don't like it, then maybe you screwed it up, but you can always make another batch and give it a try. Or maybe you just don't like it.

A slightly sweet white wine I think I would like. I think I will go straight to 5 gallons, I would hate to love it and only have a gallon, lol.

I guess I will try it. I checked out the recipes you suggested and they are both an orange mead, what is a good basic straight mead recipe? after that I may try adding flavours.

 

[jezter6]

3# honey per gallon...so 15# honey. D47 or Cotes De Blancs yeast.
Nutrients per Hightest's SNA in his sticky (or just use the recommended dose of nutrients if you buy just a random "yeast nutrient" at the store).

Ferment approx 1 month, or when fermentation is stopped. If it's at your desired sweetness, then just bulk age and rack every month or so when the yeast layer gets about an inch or so. Top up with water or water/honey mix. Headspace minimal is key here.

If it's dryer than you like it, hit it with some sorbate and sulfite, then backsweeten to taste. Bulk age and rack every month or so when yeast gets about an inch or so on the bottom.

You can bottle when clear, or - if you're ok with cloudy mead - when it tastes good enough to drink. Sweeter wines hide some of the alcohol burn and are drinkable a little sooner.

Good luck.

 

[George7845]

do Joe's quick grape mead or joes ancient orange mead, both simple meads that dont need a year to age and probaly taste great after 6 months. I started joes quick grape mead 2 weeks ago, just racked to secondary, and i intend to start a batch of the orange too.

 

[billc68]

Can I make teh exact same recipe and leave out the orange or grape?

 

[George7845]

talking to me? whats would you replace the juice with?

 

[billc68]

talking to me? whats would you replace the juice with?

More honey and water???

 

[George7845]

the juice you would be replacing water with has nutrients needed, and im not sure how much honey you would need to make up for that loss, i would look for a just honey mead recipe in the database.

 

[George7845]

https://www.homebrewtalk.com/f80/basic-mead-50180/

take a look at that, and here is the mead recipe link.

https://www.homebrewtalk.com/f80/

 

[billc68]

i would look for a just honey mead recipe in the database.

Thanks, that's kind of what the original post was about, wanting to know what mead was like and what is a good basic recipe. I would definitely love to try the others if I like the basic mead. OH and I just found out as of this year there is a local producer selling mead in our liquor stores, so now I can taste before I brew.

 

[billc68]

So should I order a proper yeast online or go with what's available locally? I can get Cooper's Ale Yest, and two types of Lavlin Wine yeast.
However the place I am getting my honey from does make mead, maybe I can get some yeast as well.

If I use the basic mead recipe and X5 of everything (except yeast) will that make sense or is that too much nutrient etc?

 

[malkore]

coopers ale yeast is not tolerant enough. you'd end up with a super super sweet, thick, lower abv mead.

a few ale yeasts are up to the job for a 14% abv mead, but its normal to stick to wine/champagne yeasts for meads.

for a basic mead, be sure you use some yeast nutrient and energizer. Honey is just sugar water, really low in nitrogen and trace minerals yeast need to stay happy.

 

[billc68]

coopers ale yeast is not tolerant enough. you'd end up with a super super sweet, thick, lower abv mead.

a few ale yeasts are up to the job for a 14% abv mead, but its normal to stick to wine/champagne yeasts for meads.

for a basic mead, be sure you use some yeast nutrient and energizer. Honey is just sugar water, really low in nitrogen and trace minerals yeast need to stay happy.

Thanks, our LHBSs have very few specialty items but yeast nutrient, energizer and Champagne yeast, they do have. For the most par they just sell kits but I guess there is enough fruit wine makesrs around to carry the odd item.

 

[George7845]

i used Lalvin EC-1118 for my grape mead and im sure it would work good for normal mead. In two weeks exact it dropped my og of 1.120 right down to 1.000, thats like 16% abv.

 

[KCWortHog]

I'd stay away from 1118. It ferments kind of harsh/sharp. Try D47, 71B, or R2. Those give off a bit more esters and profile the honey flavor more.

If you make it, some key things to know:

- Use Go-Ferm to rehydrate your yeast. Follow rehydration instructions.
- Use stepped nutrient addition & degass your mead by stirring. Use both Fermaid-K and DAP as nutrient additions.
- Remember that sanitation is KEY. And fruit flies LOVE mead and will acetobacterize your mead in a heartbeat. Use tight bungs and reliable airlocks. Always.
- Measure the pH of your mead for the first few days and adjust accordingly. Mead is commonly acidic until it contains a decent amount of alcohol, and too much acidity will make an unpalatable mead as well as stop fermentation.

Have fun!

 

[Shooter]

- Use Go-Ferm to rehydrate your yeast. Follow rehydration instructions.
- Use stepped nutrient addition & degass your mead by stirring. Use both Fermaid-K and DAP as nutrient additions.

Did both of these on my second batch and it was a much faster and steady fermentation than the first batch, used D47 both times!

 

[billc68]

I don't have access to many of the specialty product you are referring to, I can get yest nutrient, but what is go-ferm and what does it do?

And if my PH goes iout of whack, what do I do to balance it?

I haven't tested teh PH of something since High School, I don't even know where to get the strips, lol.

 

[George7845]

idk if ph is a big deal, i havnt been testing it lol. But im sure one of these guys will tell you if it is.

 

[biochemedic]

For a good basic mead, start with a fresh unprocessed honey that has some nice floral/fruity aromatics and a medium color; ie, you don't want clover honey from Costco. Many wildflower honeys will meet this billet, but many varietals such as Sourwood and Tulip Poplar honeys make awesome straight meads. Where you are geographically may dictate what's available to you, but now is a good time to be looking for honey; many regions harvest around May/June/July.
3# per gallon is indeed a good starting point, and should give you an OG around 1.110 give or take, and a FG around 12-13%.
Personally I like the Wyeast Dry Mead yeast, and use it for all my meads, usually make a 1/2 gal starter w/ a cup of honey and a tablespoon of yeast nutrient. They also make a Sweet Mead yeast, but I've not used it, as I tend to like dryer meads.
One thing about mead you shouldn't forget...you have to be patient! Don't Rush Mead...give it at least a month in primary, perhaps two, and once you rack to secondary, put it away in a cool corner and forget about it for a few months. Mead ages impeccably, so it's a good lazy/busy brewer's friend.

 

[billc68]

Well, I tasted a locally made commercial mead and I liked it but to be honest, to me it didn't taste a whole lot different than white wine. I amy just try making a flavoured mead after all, I can get wildflower honer from teh same farm that makes the mead for a reasonable cost (about half the cost of a decent wine kit)

Now what flabours work well with mead? I see a few fruit flavoured meads, I wonder if a Vanilla bean in the primary or secondary would be a nice addition? Or even vanilla and orange, what about spiced meads?

I spoke to the mead maker/bee keeper and he does use a Lavlin Champagne yeast (can't remember the code) What differences will I notice with a proper mead yeast?

 

[biochemedic]

I'd have to say you can make a mead with just about any combination of fruits and/or spices... I personally make a pyment (grapes -- in my case muscadines), a cyser (apple cider), pomegranate, chocolate, and metheglin (generic term for spiced mead) with two different hop profiles (American and British). I've had a cinnamon/vanilla metheglin that was out of this world, and I think melomels (fruit meads) with rasberries are really good too, though I haven't made one myself. I've been thinking of making a cinnamon chipotle mead...I did a stout with that combo that was awesome and thought it would go well in a mead too...

In terms of the various yeasts, I think you'd probably get good results with many common wine yeasts - Red Star champagne and Lalvin D47 are very commonly used. I'm not exactly sure what the lineage is on the Wyeast mead yeasts is, but I've had such good luck with them that I haven't felt he need to change.

 

[billc68]

I've had a cinnamon/vanilla metheglin that was out of this world,

This I am very interested in, I sthere a recipe in the database? or do you have one?

I already made a mistake boiling part of my apple juice (20% of it) when making cider, can I boil my honey water when adding flavours?

Also any mead makers have any idea if I can clarify my cider as mentioned above? I got no replies to my post in the cider forum. I did buy some clarifying agent from the LHBS, but not sure if it works in this case.

 

[malkore]

Bill,
as an aside, you should see if you can score a copy of Ken Schramm's book, the Compleat meadmaker.

its THE printed resource right now and is worth having in your library if you become a meadmaker...worth reading at the brew store if you're just debating mead making.

I wish i Had the book when i started 16 years ago.

 

[Shooter]

Bill,
as an aside, you should see if you can score a copy of Ken Schramm's book, the Compleat meadmaker.

its THE printed resource right now and is worth having in your library if you become a meadmaker...worth reading at the brew store if you're just debating mead making.

I wish i Had the book when i started 16 years ago.

Absolutely, it is a VERY good book if you're getting into mead making.

 

[biochemedic]

This I am very interested in, I sthere a recipe in the database? or do you have one?

I just e-mailed the guy...I'll post his reply when he gets back to me

 

[fatbloke]

For the easiest possible start, you should follow (well google for it first) the Joes Ancient Orange recipe.

Don't change anything as all of the ingredients are there for a reason i.e. don't do **** like using wine yeast instead of bread yeast. Wine yeast will ferment it dry and it's not nice dry.

Then move on to Joes quick pyment recipe. The same applies.

That way you'll have a benchmark to work from.

There's a mountain of recipes over at Gotmead, plus a ****load of ideas, guidance and other info.

Me, I mainly make traditional meads as I'm still messing with what I like as the honey base flavour.

If you do dig through gotmead, then you'll often find different yeasts mentioned - a lot that are "outside the usual suspects". Most of the ones mentioned are available at Morewine! as is the nutrients etc......

It's either that, or you'll have to look for what you think might be "interesting" honey and then just find a recipe for a traditional mead. You'd need to pay special attention to the amount of honey per gallon (gravity and that ****) as it would affect the performance of the yeast, as well as the other elements.

If you get a copy of Kens book it's very helpful, but not necessarily for the faint hearted as he does get into some detail quite quickly. Though it's full of brilliant advice, guidance and there's even a few recipes (he occasionally posts at gotmead and a few other places). It is a very good book.....

regards

fatbloke

 

[billc68]

Ok, so after tasting a naked mead, I think after all I will make the JAOM, I read the "rules" and don't want to change anything... However I might have to change a few things.
His recipe calls for Clover honey, I can get bulk Wildflower honey, any issues? Also I read how many people don't like the "pithy" taste form the white part of the orange. I am guessing if I zested the orange instead, I shouldn't use the whole thing as the zest gives off a lot more flavour than an complete peel. Might just be easier to follow the "rules"

And for the final question, I am thinking, I want to make a full 5G batch and really would rather use a bucket then a carboy or jug for cleaning purposes, any issues there? It would be a closed system.

 

[biochemedic]

This I am very interested in, I sthere a recipe in the database? or do you have one?

I already made a mistake boiling part of my apple juice (20% of it) when making cider, can I boil my honey water when adding flavours?

Also any mead makers have any idea if I can clarify my cider as mentioned above? I got no replies to my post in the cider forum. I did buy some clarifying agent from the LHBS, but not sure if it works in this case.

Bill, here is the recipie for cinnamon/vanilla metheglin that my friend just sent me:
6 gal recipe
1pk Dc-47 yeast
1pk EC-118
22lbs Wildflower honey
3 tea yeast nutrient
3 tea yeast energizer
6 madagasgar vanilla beans
6 3in cinnamon sticks

I'm not sure why he used 2 different yeasts, but I suspect that he didn't dry out enough with the D47 -- note the rather large amount of honey even for a 6 gal batch...as I recall, even with the 1118 there was still residual sweetness.
I'm also not entirely sure where the vanilla/cinnamon were added; ie, was it in primary, or in secondary, or for how long. (I've got an e-mail out to try to figure out the answers to these questions.

BTW, regarding your cider question, I'm not sure if I understand what you mean by "clarifying" Generally speaking you don't need to boil cider or mead, although I do boil some of my cider (about 1 gal) to do a mulling spice infusion. I'm not sure what you did really counts as a 'mistake,' and I'm sure you didn't ruin anything...
It just occurs to me regarding clarification and boiling cider...you might have "set pectin" by boiling, which can produce a haze...I always use pectic enzyme with fruit, which should help with some of that problem. I'm not sure whether or not pectin haze can be removed with fining agents or not...
That being said, probably the better way to add spices to a mead is to put in secondary, or to make an extraction of the spices with alcohol and then add to taste at bottling. Different people seem to have preferences for one technique over the other...I tend to just add to secondary, but you do sometimes need to keep a taste bud on things to make sure you don't overshoot the amount of flavor you want. This is especially true of peppers (I made a chipotle stout once that I overshot a bit)!

 

[Hethen57]

I made that recipe about 6 months ago and it is still not very good. I wouldn't waste all of that honey on a 5 gallon batch until you know that is something you would like to drink. I made two 1 gallon batches and gave quite a few bottle to my kid in college to use as mixers (the alcohol is there, but it's not smooth yet)...I'm still keeping some in hopes that it will get better. There is a recipe called "No Age Sweet Mead - Ready in 3 Weeks" which came out good tasting and sweet. This came out good enough to offer to friends and they gave it good reviews for a desert type wine with a hint of honey.

Here is the link to the full recipe:
http://www.gotmead.com/index.php?option=com_rapidrecipe&page=viewrecipe&recipe_id=119&Itemid=459