Mead Making
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Starting the Batch
Ingredients
4L of spring water or boiled water
1000g - 2000g of honey
1-2 tsp yeast nutrient (optional)
1 tsp yeast
any extra flavourings (oranges, raisins, raspberries etc.)
Equipment
glass Demijohn (or 5L water bottle)
huge pan (or clean Sink)
air lock (or Balloon with a hole pricked in it.)
solid stopper
funnel
teaspoon
hydrometer (optional)
sample tube (optional)
basting pipette (optional)
measuring jug
chopping board & Knife (if needed for extra ingredients)
sterilising powder
Preparation
Make 10L of sterilisation fluid in the pan or sink
Measure 4L into the Demijohn and mark this level with a pen then pour liquid into the pan
Sterilise all the equipment
Prepare Must
Warm the honey jars/bottles in a basin of very hot water
Chop/blend any extra ingredients
Pour this mix through the funnel into the demijohn
Measure out the honey into a measuring jug in 500g batches
Add a little boiled water to the honey and stir
Pour the honey through the funnel into the demijohn
Add spring (or boiled and cooled) water up to the 4L mark on the Demijohn
Put the solid stopper into the demijohn then shake well to mix
Testing the Must gravity (Optional)
Use the Pipette to draw enough Must to half fill the hydrometer sample tube
Use hydrometer to test specific gravity
A rough scale for initial gravity is:
Dry Mead : 1.100 to 1.110
Medium Mead : 1.110 to 1.120
Sweet Mead : 1.120 to 1.130
Dessert Mead : 1.130+
More honey can be added or the must diluted with more water to tailor this value
Make a note of the Gravity reading for later
Adding the Yeast
add 1-2 tsp yeast nutrients to the Demijohn (optional)
add 1 tsp yeast to the Demijohn
put the solid stopper into the demijohn then shake well to mix and aerate
put the airlock onto the demijohn
place the demijohn in a warm dark place. (I use a heater belt on my Demijohns as my flat is quite cold)
I prefer a weaker yeast as they stop brewing at 12 - 13% without any additions needed to stop things.
Stronger yeasts will stop naturally, but will need more honey to get the same sweetness and they will be more alcoholic.
Young's Brew Dried Active Yeast is a good yeast I have found.
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Primary Fermentation
The Mead should start bubbling within 24-48 hours - maybe 1 bubble every 30-60 seconds.
Over next 1-3 weeks bubbling will get vigorous - more than 1 bubble a second
If these things don't happen you will need to troubleshoot
After around 1 to 2 weeks rack the mead.
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Racking
Ingredients
1L of spring water or boiled water
0g - 1000g of honey
Spices etc.
Equipment
2nd glass Demijohn (or 5L water bottle)
huge pan (or clean Sink)
air lock (or Balloon with a hole pricked in it.)
syphon Tube
solid stopper
funnel
teaspoon
hydrometer (optional)
sample tube (optional)
basting pipette (optional)
measuring jug
chopping board & Knife (if needed for extra ingredients)
sterilising powder
Move the mead to a table or raised worktop
Tilt the demijohn as much as you can without it wanting to spill out
Sterilise all the equipment
Syphon the mead into this demijohn ensure not to pick up the sediment or aerate the mead.
Calculate strength and sweetness (optional, see below)
Top the level in the Demijohn up to about 3cm below the bottom of the airlock.
Retest the gravity and take a note of it for later. (optional)
Calculating the alcohol level and sweetness (optional)
Draw enough must to half fill the hydrometer sample tube
Use hydrometer to test specific gravity
Take your hydrometer reading and subtract this from the original reading and divide this by .00736
The answer is your alcohol content in percent.
Look up this second gravity reading
Dry Mead : 0.090 to 1.010
Medium Mead : 1.010 to 1.020
Sweet Mead : 1.020 to 1.030
Dessert Mead : 1.030 +
You can add more honey now to increase the sweetness or increase the strength of the mead.
Most yeasts die off at 12-16% alcohol so don't add too much honey or it will end up sweeter than you planned.
Sweetening
Sterilise a pan
Warm a bottle of honey in hot water
Syphon or pour about 500ml of mead into the pan
Add about 125g of honey per 0.01 you wish to raise the gravity
Pour this mix back into the demijohn and mix gently
Retest gravity of the mead (optional)
Replace the air lock and wait for a week to ensure fermentation has not restarted.
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Secondary fermentation and maturing
Leave the Demijohn in a dark cool place for a couple of months
Add any herbs or spices you desire, but go easy on the amounts
When you think fermentation has ceased sample and sweeten the Mead if desired
Leave a week to see if fermentation restarts
One option is to decant a batch of Mead into 1L bottles and add a different spice to each bottle.
These bottles can then be used to spice other batches by blending.
This gives far better control of the final flavor but is a bit of a hassle.
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Bottling
Rack the mead avoiding sediment
Pour the mead into bottles
Seal and place bottles in a dark cool place to mature for 1 to 24 months
Taste test a small amount from a sample bottle to check on progress.
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Recipes
Basic Mead
2000g Honey
20 raisins finely chopped
2 tsp Yeast nutrient
Mix 1700g Honey + Nutrients + Raisins in initial must.
Add remaining Honey at 1st Racking.
Orange Blossom Mead
1900g Orange Blossom Honey
1 tsp Yeast nutrient
1 large Orange, peeled and blended
200ml fresh orange juice
Mix 1500g Honey + Nutrients + Blended Orange in initial must.
Add remaining Honey + Orange Juice at 1st Racking
Spiced Mead
2000g Honey
20 raisins finely chopped
2 tsp Yeast nutrient
1cm Cinnamon Bark or 3cm cinnamon stick
1/4 grated nutmeg
3cm shredded ginger root
Mix 1700g Honey + Nutrients + Raisins in initial must.
Add remaining Honey and spices at 1st Racking.
Raspberry Mead
2000g Honey
300g Raspberries, Blended
1 tsp Yeast nutrient
Mix 1700g Honey + Nutrients + Raspberries in initial must.
Add remaining Honey at 1st Racking.
Apple Mead
2070g Honey
650g Cooking Apples blended, skins on.
1 tsp Yeast nutrient
Mix 1700g Honey + Nutrients + Apple in initial must.
Add remaining Honey at 1st Racking.
Maple Mead
1860g Maple syrup
500g Honey
25 Raisins
1 tsp Yeast nutrient
Mix Maple Syrup, 300g Honey + Nutrients + halved raisins in initial must.
Add remaining Honey at 1st Racking.