Here is the simplest mead recipe ever. I've Googled "simplest mead recipe" or similar terms a bunch of times, and every result is way more complicated than this. As far as I can tell, every single mead recipe ever published on the internet is needlessly complex. This one is not only simple, but quite good.
(It's a Thanksgiving tradition at my parents' house, when the extended family all come over, to do some kind of alcohol-tasting event. We did rum one year, bourbon another year ... my dad selects five brands of the chosen alcohol, puts them into unlabeled containers, and we do blind taste tests. He prints out descriptions of each brand, and everyone tries to match the beverages with the appropriate descriptions, and also ranks them in order of preference. Last year we did mead. Four commercial brands plus my own. Mine finished #1 in the blinded rankings. For real.)
The recipe is from The Art of Fermentation by Sandor Ellix Katz.
Ingredients:
1. Water.
2. Honey.
The ratio should generally be about 4 parts water to 1 part honey, but it doesn't need to be exact. Anywhere from 1:1 to 10:1 should be fine. (The more honey you use in comparison to water, the longer you'll want to let it ferment.)
The water should not be chlorinated; so filtered or distilled water is better than tap water.
The honey should be raw. Raw honey has live yeast in it, which is what drives the fermentation. (If you don't use raw honey, you might get it to work with the ambient yeast from the air, but it's harder and requires a few more instructions.)
Instructions:
1. Fill a glass container with the water and honey. I like to use the bottles that store-bought kombucha (Synergy brand) comes in because the plastic lid is pretty forgiving (for when the carbonation increases the air pressure inside). But pretty much any kind of glass container will do. I like containers with lids so that I can shake rather than stir, but it's not strictly necessary -- though you'll want to cover the top somehow to keep flies away.
2. Make a note of the start date.
3. Shake or stir the solution vigorously for 5-10 seconds.
4. Repeat step #3 once or twice a day for about a month.
5. About a week after the start date (maybe sooner), you should start to see bubbles. As the liquid begins to get carbonated, you should open the cap (if any) before and after shaking/stirring to let the gasses escape.
6. After about 30 days, you don't need to shake it anymore. Keep unsealing the cap every once in a while to let the pressure escape, but otherwise just let it sit there.
7. It should be drinkable mead in about six months. The longer you let it sit, the less sweet and more alcoholic it will become. Feel free to taste it every once in a while so you can monitor how the flavor changes. Personally, I think it's perfect after about two years, but anything after six months is good.
8. Throughout the process, it is possible that a film of gunk will form on the surface. Use a fork or something to remove it, then carry on like it never happened.
9. That's all there is to it.
(It's a Thanksgiving tradition at my parents' house, when the extended family all come over, to do some kind of alcohol-tasting event. We did rum one year, bourbon another year ... my dad selects five brands of the chosen alcohol, puts them into unlabeled containers, and we do blind taste tests. He prints out descriptions of each brand, and everyone tries to match the beverages with the appropriate descriptions, and also ranks them in order of preference. Last year we did mead. Four commercial brands plus my own. Mine finished #1 in the blinded rankings. For real.)
The recipe is from The Art of Fermentation by Sandor Ellix Katz.
Ingredients:
1. Water.
2. Honey.
The ratio should generally be about 4 parts water to 1 part honey, but it doesn't need to be exact. Anywhere from 1:1 to 10:1 should be fine. (The more honey you use in comparison to water, the longer you'll want to let it ferment.)
The water should not be chlorinated; so filtered or distilled water is better than tap water.
The honey should be raw. Raw honey has live yeast in it, which is what drives the fermentation. (If you don't use raw honey, you might get it to work with the ambient yeast from the air, but it's harder and requires a few more instructions.)
Instructions:
1. Fill a glass container with the water and honey. I like to use the bottles that store-bought kombucha (Synergy brand) comes in because the plastic lid is pretty forgiving (for when the carbonation increases the air pressure inside). But pretty much any kind of glass container will do. I like containers with lids so that I can shake rather than stir, but it's not strictly necessary -- though you'll want to cover the top somehow to keep flies away.
2. Make a note of the start date.
3. Shake or stir the solution vigorously for 5-10 seconds.
4. Repeat step #3 once or twice a day for about a month.
5. About a week after the start date (maybe sooner), you should start to see bubbles. As the liquid begins to get carbonated, you should open the cap (if any) before and after shaking/stirring to let the gasses escape.
6. After about 30 days, you don't need to shake it anymore. Keep unsealing the cap every once in a while to let the pressure escape, but otherwise just let it sit there.
7. It should be drinkable mead in about six months. The longer you let it sit, the less sweet and more alcoholic it will become. Feel free to taste it every once in a while so you can monitor how the flavor changes. Personally, I think it's perfect after about two years, but anything after six months is good.
8. Throughout the process, it is possible that a film of gunk will form on the surface. Use a fork or something to remove it, then carry on like it never happened.
9. That's all there is to it.
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