The First Mead

Date Sat 13 May 2023 Category Brewing.

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.

A label