guide to making mead

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A Quick Guide to Making Mead.

Mead is an ancient drink made from fermented honey and water. It is simple to make and easier to enjoy. It only requires the patience to let it age for better flavor. An endless variety of meads, both sweet and dry can be made using different honeys, fruits and spices. To make a sweet mead use 3 pounds of honey per gallon of mead that you are making. For a dry mead you only need about 2 pounds per gallon. Wine, champagne or beer yeast may be used.

The Basic Procedure For 5 Gallons:

1. Boil 1.5 gallons of water in a large stock pot (anything over 12 quarts will work).

2. Add honey and bring back to a boil for 15 minutes. During this boil, proteins will coagulate on the top of the must (the honey-water mixture). Scrape these off using a straining spoon. The proteins should start to occur a few minutes into the boil. After 10-15 minutes they should stop forming. Add 2 tsp. yeast nutrient and 2 tsp. of yeast energizer and then turn off the heat. You can steep fruit in the near boiling must for 15 minutes. Spices and herbs can be added just before the end of the boil.

3. Add your must to 2 gallons of chilled water and top off to five gallons in the fermentor.

4. Add your yeast and shake the must to aerate it. A starter culture is always a good idea.

5. Let honey ferment 4-6 weeks in primary. Rack into secondary fermentor for another 4-6 weeks. You can add 1-4 tsp. of acid blend or citric acid into the secondary fermentor or at bottling time to balance the sweetness. The mead should clear in about 8-10 weeks. The mead will benefit from aging but will be ready to bottle at this point. Age one month in the bottle before drinking. For a sparkling mead add 1 cup of corn sugar or 2/3 cup of honey at bottling.

6. Drink deeply and enjoy your homebrewed mead.

Another method is to simply heat water to 180 degrees and add your honey. Steep this mixture at 160 degrees for 5 minutes. Add nutrients and cool down as before. The advantage of this method is that no flavor or aroma compounds are boiled away. The American Mead Association recommends this method. Just don't expect your mead to clear as well.

A final option that most wine makers will be familiar with is the use of campden tablets. The metabisulfites in the tablets dissolve into your must and kill any wild yeast and bacteria. No heating is required, though it is much easier to dissolve the honey in warm water. Use 1-2 crushed tablets per gallon of must. Let the treated must sit for 18-24 hours before adding your yeast. This method also leaves the proteins in your mead and does not help it clear. Acton and Duncan, authors of the British book, Making Mead and both winemakers themselves, believe this is the best method. However, be aware that a small percentage of people are very sensitive to sulfites.

For more information on the process of making mead:

Making Mead by Roger Morse. A well-written in depth look at all aspects of making mead.

Zymurgy, Spring 1995. The AHA research department looks at mead, yeast and honey.

Brewing Mead. A wonderful history of mead in Europe with a short chapter on how to make mead by Charlie Papazian. The appendix of the NCJHB, however, has more helpful information.

Most homebrewing books will include a chapter or a few pages on mead. Just check the index. Any materials on honey or beekeeping can also be great resources for mead info. Anyone interested in Medieval life or the SCA (a medieval society) and mead can find many resources on the web.

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