Basic Mead Brewing

Origin: British      Period: Modern

Despite what most people think, mead is not a kind of beer, as the definition of a beer is an alcoholic beverage made from grains. In Europe beers were made from barley and wheat. In Japan beer is made from rice (this beer is called Sake) and for the ancients of Mesoamerica beer was made from Maize (Corn). Mead is made from water, honey and yeast; as such it is not a beer. Neither is it a 'wine' as the sugars involved in fermentation are not derived from fruit.

Mead is mead, an ancient drink much beloved of the Celts and the peoples of Europe during the Middle Ages. For mead brewing, the initial mixture of water, honey and yeast is termed a must and the yeast converts the sugars in honey into alcohol at which point the must becomes mead. It is possible to create different flavours by adding ingredients such as fruit or spices into the Must, or by putting them into the Mead when Fermentation has stopped.

To a purist, however, the various forms of products that are called 'Mead' can be broken down into the following list:

Mead and its Derivatives

Mead     Honey 'wine' made without the addition of any spices or fruit.

Metheglin     Honey 'wine' made with spices.

Melomel     Honey 'wine' made with fruit; of which there are two main types:

    Pyment     Honey 'wine' with grapes

    Cyser     Honey 'wine' with apple juice:

Hippocras     (also known as Ypocras): honey 'wine' with fruit and spices (a post-fermentation recipe for which can be found here.

Sack Mead     Very sweet honey 'wine'.

Sack Metheglin     Very sweet spiced honey 'wine'.

There are tow main styles of Mead which can be made: small mead which is fermented quickly, has a high CO₂ content and has more of the characteristics of a beer than a wine; strong mead which is far more wine-like with a high alcohol content (which may be as high as 18% by volume) and like wine can be 'sweet' or 'dry' in character depending on the yeast strain used. Beyond the basic recipe given below, the type of mead you can produce is only really limited by your imagination. It is even possible to make an ale–mead hybrid using a mixture of honey and barley extract as your sugar source. A number of authentic and derived mead recipes are given on the links list to the left. However, if you've never made mead before follow this recipe first and then start to get a little more adventurous.

First check on this page to get an idea of the equipment you'll need. Then, to begin making your own mead you will need the following ingredients:

Ingredients:

5l water (this needs to be unchlorinated). Tap water that has been boiled and allowed to cool is fine, but for your first batch you may be better using spring water.
1.5kg honey
1 tsp acid blend (obtained from home-brew shops on-line and some major chemists)
1 tsp yeast nutrient
1 packet champagne yeast (the type of yeast you use makes a huge difference to the final product but try this first)

Note that almost all the ingredients above can be obtained from any shop specializing in home brews. As honey is the main ingredient in mead making, the quality of the honey used greatly affects the 'nose' and characteristics of the final product. Fragrant, flavour-intense, single-flower honey is more expensive than the generic blended kind, but will make a real difference to your final product. If the base honey is very intense in flavour then you can mix this with cheaper more generic honey to bulk it up.

Method:

Method

As with making ale sterility is an essential pre-requisite for making mead. The usual sterilizing agent is metabisulphite which can be obtained in powder or tablet form. The usual sterilization strength is 60g in 500ml lukewarm water. Sanitise containers by swirling sulphite solution over all the inside surfaces. Sanitise things like your spoon and thermometer by dipping them into a container of sulphite solution. There's no need to rinse off the sulphite, it's a commonly used ingredient in wine and won't affect the taste of your mead.

If you are using liquid yeast then you will need to prepare it beforehand. Skip this section if you are using dried yeast. The yeast culture needs to be prepared 2–3 days before it's needed. Most liquid yeasts come in a packet. First burst the blister bubble in this to release the yeast cells into a sugar solution where they will begin to multiply. Once the packet has swelled to about an inch think, open the packet and pitch (pour) the yeast into a sterilized 1l container half-filled with water, into which about 3 tablespoons of sugar have been dissolved. Shake the container well to aerate, and loosen the lid slightly to let some air escape.

Before doing anything else prepare your yeast. If using dried yeast boil some water and pour 200ml into a shallow dish, stirring-in 2 tbsp of honey. Cover with aluminium foil and allow to cool naturally to just below 37°C. Sprinkle the yeast evenly over the surface of the water and allow to rehydrate for ten minutes. At the end of this time gently stir the yeast and set aside in a warm place for at least 2 hours.

Measure the volume of water you need by filling your demijohn (or cider jar if you're using one of those) ⅔ full of water (should be about 3.3l) and pour into your stainless steel brewing pot. Bring this to a rolling boil and take off the heat. Begin stirring-in the honey. Next add the acid blend (which gives the finished mead a subtle fruitiness and balanced taste) and the yeast nutrient (honey is a fairly sterile environment and does not contain the amino acids that the yeast need to thrive. Yeast blend simply helps the yeast develop more quickly). Be careful when adding the honey to make sure that it dissolves quickly and does not burn on the base of your pot. Also be careful that the mixture does not boil over and scald you.

Cover the pot with some clean foil and allow to cool naturally to about 37°C. Place a sterile funnel in your demijohn and pour-in the honey mixture (this is known as must). Stir your yeast starter mixture and pout this into the demijohn. Swirl this to mix the ingredients then close this with a bung and a fermentation airlock. Set the demijohn in a warm place and wait. Within the next 24 hours, the airlock should be bubbling rapidly and foam should be forming on top of the liquid. These are all signs that you have a batch of mead in progress.

[Honey because of its low sugar content is essentially sterile. If you are willing to stir for a very long time then it is possible to add honey immediately to cold water. First warm your honey by placing the jars in warm water. Pour the honey into your water and begin stirring to dissolve. This will take a very long time, much longer than you think. It is important that all the honey has dissolved or you will start killing-off the yeast. This is more troublesome that the boiling method, but may give you a finer mead as the volatile compounds which give speciality honeys their distinctive flavours are not lost during a boiling process.]

Place in a cool dark place and monitor each day to check on progress. Over the next few weeks the bubbling will slow down and a layer of sediment (mostly dormant yeast cells) will build up on the bottom of the demijohn. When this sediment layer gets to somewhere 2–3 cm deep it is time to rack your mead (racking being the process of siphoning the liquid off the sediment). This step is important as leaving your developing mead on the sediment too long can taint its flavour. Sterilize a fresh demijohn and place this on the floor. Put your original demijohn on a counter, take of its bung and place your siphoning tube into this and hold it there. Exhale to empty your lungs and place the free end of the tube in your mouth. Suck until the tube is completely full of liquid, then quickly stick a clean finger over the mouth-end and lower it into the container. If you've done it right, the mead will be flowing up the tube out of the demijohn and down the tube into the other vessel. Stop siphoning when the volume of liquid in the original demijohn is low and sediment starts flowing up the tube.

You are now ready for the second stage of fermentation. This stage should be anaerobic (have as little oxygen present as possible). During racking make sure to disturb the liquid as little as possible and when the racking is done carefully top-up the demijohn with fresh water to that it is full up to the neck. Sterilize a bung, and plug the neck of the demijohn with this and a fermentation lock. During the slower period of fermentation, your mead should be exposed to as little oxygen as possible.

Continue to check on your demijohn each day. If the layer of sediment builds up to the original level it was before racking, rack it again. If the level of liquid falls below the neck of the demijohn, top it up with water. If a week or two goes by and you don't see any bubbles in the airlock, then fermentation is over. However, don't be too impatient as this can take between two and six months.

At this stage it is best to bottle your mead and let it age. This can be done in the demijohn itself if you have a tight-fitting cork (simply rack the mead into a sterile demijohn, top-up with water, add a cork and pound it in with a rubber mallet). Store the demijohn in a dark place until you're ready to drink. Alternatively you can rack the mead into sterilized flip-top bottles (like Grolsch bottles) which can be purchased at brewing supply shops or you can use screw-cap bottles and even wine bottles (if you have good fresh corks for them).

Your first batch of mead is now ready for drinking. Enjoy...

Read: Recipe Articles and Reviews

More Brewing recipes...

More Drinks recipes...

More Modern recipes...

Are any of the terms used here unfamiliar, do you want to translate from British to American cookery terms? If so then this Glossary of US and UK Cookery Terms will help you.

Need to convert any units on this site?

As a guide 1 US cup of flour = 4 1/2 oz = 140g (this applies to breadcrumbs, ground almonds etc
1 US cup of butter/margarine or sugar = 7 oz = 200g

For temperature conversions (Celsius, gas mark, Farenheit) go to the Temperature conversion page.
For mass conversions (grammes, cups, spoons, ounces etc) go to the Mass/Weight conversion page.
For temperature conversions (litres, cups, spoons, fluid ounces etc) go to the Volume conversion page.
You can also see more cookery terms and meanings as well as ingredient descriptions at the Cooks' glossary