Anyone make Mead.

[ccomstock001]

I just ordered a small mead kit just for kicks and was wondering if anyone here makes it. I got a small one gallon kit to start. If you have any tips or good recipes that would be great. I will most likely end up buying a few more carboys and even make some hard cider as well.

 

[1DOWN4UP]

Never made Mead.Make 30 gallons wine every year or so.Ready to rack it all for the last time.It is about 11 or 12 %.
I use the 5 gallon food grade{triangle with no. 2} orange buckets with sealed lids fron Home Depot . $ 5.00 each.
.

 

[gwingo]

I make mead. I refer to it as hard cider, but it is technically a mead because I use honey as an adjunct. I get fresh sweet cider from the smallest local orchard I can find in the late fall and add 1 lb of honey per gallon. Proper sanitation is a must.

 

[ccomstock001]

I make mead. I refer to it as hard cider, but it is technically a mead because I use honey as an adjunct. I get fresh sweet cider from the smallest local orchard I can find in the late fall and add 1 lb of honey per gallon. Proper sanitation is a must.

There is a local orchard not to far from me that I like to go to that makes good cider that I plan to use. Also the Rural King here started selling local made honey as well.

 

[pudly]

You might be interested in this Youtube series: Meads of the Week

 

[Leadeye]

Check your cider seller for sorbate, it's a preservative that throws a wrench into fermentation. Last time I bought there Tuttles orchard still preserved theirs with UV and it makes good apple wine. In a pinch you can use the Old Orchard frozen stuff from the store.

 

[Leadeye]

Never made Mead.Make 30 gallons wine every year or so.Ready to rack it all for the last time.It is about 11 or 12 %.
I use the 5 gallon food grade{triangle with no. 2} orange buckets with sealed lids fron Home Depot . $ 5.00 each.
.

Home grown grapes? My vines are two years old, got enough last year to make 4 gallons.

 

[danmdevries]

I've made a half dozen 5 gallon batches. Some turned out better than others.

Only tip I'd offer is be patient, can take upwards of a year to finish and be ready for drinking. I usually make it around new years, and bottle around Thanksgiving.

 

[JettaKnight]

First, allow me to get pendantic:
1. {triangle with no. 2} is not necessarily "food grade". It's a code for recycling denoting that is high density polyethylene. Which, yes, is quite suitable for brewing. I would avoid long fermentation in these vessels as they are oxygen permeable (which results in wet cardboard aromas).
2. Cyser is the correct term for a beverage made from honey and apple cider. "Hard Cider" is a chiefly North American term; the rest of the world simply knows it as "cider".



Both of these products are highly dependent on finding a good source for the raw material and will vary much more based on the climate than barley.

Unpasteurized and preservative free unfiltered apple juice (i.e. apple cider) is becoming more prevalent. Expect the trend to continue as growers replace some of their "mass market" dessert apples for cider varietals.

I have made cider, but not mead - I don't have the patience.

I do occasionally judge both in BJCP competitions.