Making mead (From Smallholder)

Making mead

7:10am Monday 21st November 2011 in Bees and Honey

This year, due in part to the all-pervasive credit crunch, I’m making most of my gifts for family and friends. Trying to use as much of our home-produced goods as possible, I’ve already made raspberry jam, mincemeat using our own apples, (complete with copious amounts of brandy!), raspberry and blackberry wine, and, of course, as a beekeeper, I have bottled honey in fancy jars, and made mead.

Mead-making appears to have some mystique about it, even among those that make their own fruit/hedgerow wines.

However, if you have ever made wine, and so got the basic equipment, it is not hard to do, though it does take a lot longer to ferment out than traditional types of fruit wines, that normally take about eight weeks.

Usually, I make my mead from honey washings, (a by-product of extracting the honey from the comb.) But it can be done much less messily from jars bought from local beekeepers, or, even, dare one say, from imported honey from supermarkets, though the flavour of the finished product, because of the blending and heating processes involved, is guaranteed to be more bland.

My favourite honey for mead-making, is our Autumn honey, which, I discovered, as a result of a microscopy session, run at our local Association, is a rich blend of heather and blackberry: Full-flavoured, and a deep golden colour, this honey really does lend itself to the fermentation process, and turns out some jolly alcoholic liquor.

Mead comes in two basic types, dry, and sweet, though you can end up with anything along the spectrum, according to your personal taste. Being a person who adores honey, preferably straight from the comb, I prefer sweet, though I do make both types for showing.

Basic equipment * At least two demijohns, (as you will need to decant the liquid from the sediment at the bottom several times). The older type are glass, but you can buy plastic ones these days that are safer to have around if you have small, curious children in the house.

* Solid rubber or cork bungs * At least one fermentation lock * Plastic tubing (for decanting the liquid from the sediment or lees.

* A funnel and a large saucepan with lid/ beer or honey bucket with lid * Coffee filter papers to clarify the finished product * Sterilising tablets/powder Dry mead recipe The recipe I use is based on one of Gareth Davies’, which he kindly passed on while speaking at a winter meeting. Expert beekeeper, and mead Guru, Gareth gave the talk with the idea that it might stimulate new beekeepers into the art and science of mead-making: Without a doubt, he inspired me to try my hand. It’s great fun, so have a go.

Ingredients For each gallon of mead, you will need: The juice and zest of two large lemons 3lbs honey 6 pints of water 1 cup of strong tea 2 teaspoons yeast nutrient Yeast (I have experimented with everything from the all-purpose compounds to the ‘high alcohol resistant yeasts’. The latter are definitely the best.) Campden tablet (optional: see method) Method * Thoroughly clean and then sterilize all equipment to be used.

* Either dissolve the honey in the water in a saucepan and add a crushed Campden tablet to sterilize the must, or heat honey and water until the mixture begins to simmer, (both methods destroy the wild yeast in the honey). If you are using heat, do not bring to the boil, as this will spoil the flavour of the honey. And before proceeding to step three, leave to cool.

* Add all the ingredients listed above, but not the yeast at this stage, stir, cover and place in a warm spot.

* Leave for forty-eight hours.

* Stir vigorously to get rid of the sulphur dioxide and to introduce plenty of oxygen into the must.

n Add the activated yeast , following the manufacturer’s instructions, and leave for a further thirty-six to forty-eight hours in a temperature of about 15°C (60°F).

* When there are signs that fermentation has begun, (ie froth on the surface of the must), pour into a clean sterile demijohn. At this stage do not fill the demijohn completely in case there is a very active fermentation causing an overflow. Put the airlock on the demijohn.

* After the initial vigorous fermentation has settled down, top up with water to within an inch of the bung.

When the fermentation has ceased, the mead should be racked into another sterile demijohn and stored in a cool place. Keep on the air lock even if you believe that fermentation has finished. Mead is renowned for undergoing ‘secondary fermentation’ at the drop of a hat, and if you replace the lock with a solid bung too soon, you risk contamination of your mead, as well as the possibility of scaring elderly visiting relatives!

Sweet mead To make sweet mead, follow the recipe above, but start your recipe with 4lbs of honey, and then add an extra ½lb or so, during fermentation, according to your taste.

Gradually, you will begin to see it clear. To clear his, Gareth recommends lining a funnel with a coffee filter paper, and decanting the liquid through. This has to be repeated several times.

Alternatively there are products called finings, that will clear the mead less laboriously, or there are various wine filters on the market, guaranteed to leave you with a crystal-clear end-product.

With mead, you have to be patient: It will be at least a year before your mead is ready for bottling/drinking, and the longer you can leave it the better.

So don’t expect any mead that you make to be ready for this Christmas: You will be looking at Christmas 2009 if you start now. However, don’t be totally downhearted. The ‘tasting’ sessions in between, (especially if you make lots of mead), can get pretty enjoyably boozy Always check for signs of bad fermentation and do not consume if this is suspected.