Introduction to Mead Making
Last Updated: October 14th 2021
This guide is intended to teach you how to make excellent mead. I will step you through the hows and whys of each part in short, easy-to-read articles. The hope is that you will finish the series with a wonderful overview of quality mead-making utilizing current scientific processes.
Unlike a printed book, this document is a living, evolving document. There will be revisions as time goes on. Your questions contribute to adding more knowledge to this document! Ask questions. Challenge old thinking. Tell me if I’m wrong and prove to me why. This document will improve as a result!
A Simplified Synopsis
Before getting into details, I want to give you a brief rundown of what mead-making involves. It may seem a little daunting at first, but it gets easier the more you do it. You also can drink while doing it! This is a typical round of mead making:
Recipe Planning and Ingredients
Sanitise everything.
Mix honey, water, and nutrients.
Prepare the yeast and pitch.
Monitoring fermentation with a hydrometer or refractometer.
Add nutrients at certain intervals.
Rack and/or cold crash to clear.
Stabilise and back sweeten (optional, with caveats)
Bottle in sanitised bottles. Cap.
Taste and realize you need to repeat!
When you put it this way, it’s really simple. However, there is more to it if you want stellar mead. This guide will get you there. Cheers!
