Mead Instructions/ Recipe
Honey-water was probably one of the first fermented beverages (once fermented, it is called mead) ever brewed by man. If you add fruit to the honey-water, ferment, you get a melomel. If you add grapes, ferment, you get a pyment. If you infuse herbs and/or spices, ferment, you get a metheglin. If you add apple juice, ferment, you get a cyser. If you add spices to a pyment, ferment, you get a hippocras.
Generally, 2 1/2 to 4 pounds of honey is used to make one gallon of mead. Yeast nutrient and a small quantity of acid blend ensures that the mead will take off in fermentation and reach a nice balance.
Here is a one gallon recipe:
- 3 lb. Honey
- 1 tsp. Acid Blend
- 1 tsp. Yeast Nutrient
- Dry Champagne Yeast
Nina's Advice: Begin Yeast Starter: Rehydrate the yeast in a covered cup of room temperature water with the yeast nutrient and some dissolved honey. This allows the yeast to begin working
Directions:
Add honey, acid blend and Irish moss in 1/2 gal water and bring the water to a boil for 15 minutes. Then, skim off any foam and place your pot in a bath of ice water for 10 minutes (or until water is between 70-80 degrees).
Add to primary fermenter, mix in yeast starter, seal lid, fill airlock half-way with water, and allow fermentation to begin. Let your mead sit in the primary fermenter for 7 days. Then, rack mead into your secondary fermenter.
Allow your mead to sit in the secondary fermenter for anywhere between 6mo-3yrs (the longer the better) racking occasionally.