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Medium Show Mead Recipe

Since the raspberry melomel has now won multiple awards in competition (more on that later) and with a large amount of honey in the basement, I have to start making some more meads.  This is the first in at least three I am going to make is a medium show mead – just honey, yeast, water – with some nutrients sprinkled in.

First off, I am inspired by the Maine Mead Works and their dry mead.  I had some on NYE and I was blown away.  Their mead was as tasty as all the texts say meads are supposed to be.  Beyond the product in the bottle, I am a big fan of the bottle’s labeling – different and distinguished as mead should be.

Since I think I know what I am doing with meadmaking,  I am ready to pump out a 5 gallon batch.  I think that if I were to do it all over again, I would start my mead making with this recipe.

Medium Show Mead Recipe

Ingredients:

13 lbs of high quality honey

4 gallons of water

2 tsp yeast energizer

2 tsp yeast nutrient

2 packets of Lalvin D -47 yeast

Instructions:

Mix honey and water together in carboy along with energizer and nutrient.  Proof packets of yeast and pitch.  Follow the staggered nutrient/energizer additions on this timeline:

Add 1/4 teaspoon of  yeast energizer and 1/2 teaspoon of yeast nutrient  at the 24 hour mark after fermentation begins.
Add another quarter teaspoon  of yeast energizer and another half teaspoon of  yeast nutrient  at the 48 hour mark after fermentation begins.
When 30% of the sugar has been depleted, add one last quarter teaspoon of yeast energizer and half teaspoon of yeast nutrient.

Ferment at 65° F (18° C) for at least two weeks.  Rack to a secondary and let it condition until it clears.  Bottle as normal.

I may let this sit on oak for a little while – I may not.

Starting Gravity: 1.096

Final Gravity: 1.010

This mead should be ready to drink in 8 weeks from the date you make it.  It will age well – so drink some soon and then drink some later.

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4 Comments

  1. Does a mead ferment need a good blast of O2 or aeration like wort does? Would you expect this to help dry out the mead through complete attenuation?

  2. Yes, O2 would help the yeast as it would in a wort. The thing is, I am trying to get the mead to finish with some residual sweetness – somewhere between the dry and the sack (sweet) versions. The yeast strain I am using is known for leaving some sweetness behind. Maybe not aerating the must too much will help in accomplishing my desired outcome.

  3. Jerry

    I’m a newbie and when you say mix honey and water together I’m imagining a huge clump of honey dropping to the bottom of the carboy under the water. What does it take to mix it properly?

  4. If you warm the honey in a water bath around 100 degrees Fahrenheit, it will become less like cold molasses and more like sugar water. Some good swirls should get a good mix of honey and water. If you pitch your yeast right after you swirl/aerate, then the yeast get everything swirling around pretty quickly.

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