Conquer Club

While out buying a few tasty import brews yesterday several bottles of mead on the shelf caught my eye. It's wine made from honey for those that don't know. It reminds me of viking stories, mead drunk in great quantities at a sumptuous feast after a return from a long, arduous sea-voyage.

Anyone had mead before? Recommended? The shop owner says some is sweet, some is dry.

I'm tempting to plunk down 24 bucks for a bottle of the Danish stuff.

Yea? Nay?

I tried it in Denmark, loved it.

Also apparently the Danes, atleast the ones I was with, will sometimes mix it with beer. It was great.

That's interesting, about mixing beer with it.

Do you know what they used for the beer? Lager? Stout? Something else?

Maybe a black and tan!

Actually its not "mixed" with beer. Malted barley & hops are added during the "brewing" to make Braggot.
Mead mixed with other fruits or spices go by different names as well:
Mead with grapes: Pyment
Mead with spices: Metheglin
Mead with berries: Melomel
Mead with apples (cider): Cyser

All are quite tasty.

Mead is quite a complex beverage. Honey is 100% fermentable, meaning all the sugar in it will be eaten by the yeast during fermentation. This leaves the aroma & flavor characteristics of the flowers (or plants, weeds, trees, etc) from where the bees got their nectar.

You can make mead quite simply. Dilute honey with water (typically 3-4lbs honey per gallon), heat to 160deg (F) to pasteurize, cool to room temp, add yeast & nutrients, and wait. At least 6mos to a year. Mead ages very well.
Here's a good site: http://www.gotmead.com/
You can also buy decent mead kits here: http://www.northernbrewer.com/mead.html

Was the Danish stuff you tried Viking Blod by chance?
This is actually mead made with a little hops & hibiscus. It was real good, and at 19%, knocks you down quick.

I find mead quite tasty. I say if you have an opportunity to try some, go for it.

Truly one of the most magnificient drinks in the world. I'm thinking about making a batch myself in fact.

MeDeFe wrote:Truly one of the most magnificient drinks in the world. I'm thinking about making a batch myself in fact.

Its funny you mention that, because after homebrewing beer for 5+ years, I'll be making my first batch of mead next weekend.
I'm using honey from a local apiary and the water I use (for my beer too) is from a natural spring about 3 miles from my house; for a nice, local flare.

I'm looking forward to it. I'll make a 5 gallon batch which will make for some good X-Mas '09 presents.

Well, I'm going to have to try it for myself and report my findings.

Thanks for all the info too, Iz Man.

I found a mead recipe in my library, one from a book of old Norse culture.

I don't think I want to wait the requisite time needed to brew a batch though. lol

tiberiusaquila wrote:Well, I'm going to have to try it for myself and report my findings.
Thanks for all the info too, Iz Man.
I found a mead recipe in my library, one from a book of old Norse culture.
I don't think I want to wait the requisite time needed to brew a batch though. lol

So here's what you do.
Make a batch of mead. Then, while waiting for your mead to come into its own.......

Brew your own beer !

The turn around time for beer (a "typical" brew, no a big, heavy beer) is a few weeks.

So you can enjoy your own beer then enjoy your own mead

Iz Man wrote:So here's what you do.
Make a batch of mead. Then, while waiting for your mead to come into its own.......

Brew your own beer !

The turn around time for beer (a "typical" brew, no a big, heavy beer) is a few weeks.

So you can enjoy your own beer then enjoy your own mead

Now there's an idea.

I know how good beer should taste but I'd need to experiment with tasting a bit of mead to know what I'm shooting for.