Ingredients
Since water makes up the majority of your mead, it better be good. Let’s review each source of water and determine which is best for mead-making.
Distilled Water
Distilled water lacks minerals and will seriously stress your yeast if you don’t add them back. Do not use distilled water for creating mead.
Tap Water
Tap water should generally be avoided. Most tap water is treated with chlorine or chloramines. Chlorine can be boiled away, but chloramines cannot be boiled off. These chemicals slow down fermentation and produce an unappealing bandaid-type off-flavor in mead.
Well Water
Well-based water may or may not be good for mead-making, depending on the mineral and sulfur content. I would recommend a carbon-based filter for well water if you decide to test it. You can also do side-by-side testing of your well water and spring water to determine which is better.
Spring Water
You want good spring water. Spring water contains the trace minerals necessary to keep your yeast healthy. This makes spring the best choice of water for mead-making.