I started brewing with mead. I made a single gallon batch of some 'show mead', which is to say it had few embellishments. A proof of concept, really. It turned out really well and I took some to Defcon 2022.
Ingredients:
- 1.1kg orange blossom honey, plus 30g to backsweeten
- 1-2 grams Lalvin D47 yeast, but the whole packet would have worked fine
- Yeast nutrient
- 1 gallon distilled water
- Sodium metabisulfite
- Potassium sorbate
Instructions:
- Mix honey, water, yeast in sanitized container. Remember to reserve some honey for backsweetening.
- Measure your inital gravity (mine was 1.081)
- Add airlock. Wait 3 weeks, or until fermented and clear.
- Measure your post-fermentation gravity. Mine was 0.999, giving me an abv of 10.8%
- Add potassium metabisulfite and potassium sorbate per retailer's instructions.
- Backsweeten to taste. I added 30g more honey.
- Bottle
- Wait (optional)
- Enjoy
Tasting notes: This turned out really nice and clear, and about 10% alcohol by volume. Sadly, we drank it all before it could really age to perfection. Oh well, better make some more.