Anyway, I have an annual autumn tradition now - and the time approaches for this year's edition - of brewing a particular type of mead called cyser. It is in essence a hybrid of hard cider and mead. My recipe calls for 5 gallons of apple cider (good stuff - and for hard cider/cyser good stuff means tart, borderline bitter, and crisp - is hard to come by in Texas, but I can get Gravenstein cider at Whole Foods and there are a few other options) to which 14 lbs. of honey is added. I've been known to add a pound of raisins, dates, or both to provide nutrients for the yeast. The fermentation of a mead doesn't take too long, a month perhaps for this cyser, but the aging process does. I am only now going to put last year's batch into bottles, where it will age another year before it really begins to approach maximum drinkability. Last night I sampled the 2005 edition: dry and crisp at the outset, tasting mostly of a tart Gravenstein apple, the mead turns full-bodied soon thereafter, the honey character (I used local wildflower honey; tupelo or sage honeys work very well with apple) comes through in a sort of throaty richness. It is like tasting honey without the sweetness. The finish leaves the impression of sweetness and spice, the result of the alcohol, apple, and honey melding into a pie-like flavor. (This can be enhanced by spicing the mead with cinnamon, cloves, allspice, etc.). It is without question the finest fermented beverage I've ever made and
This is only one approach to a particular variety of mead, but in reality, mead is a beverage of endless possibility, as it can be made purely with fermented honey, but is also open to the additions of fruit (melomel), cider (cyser), spice (metheglin), herbs, flowers (notably, roses - a true rhodomel is a project in line for next summer), and malt (braggot). It can be made quite dry or very sweet, like any wine, and like wine, it can showcase varietal differences through the use of honey from a particular flower - orange blossom honey makes a terrific straight mead.
At any rate, a few months ago, the topic of mead came up tangentially in another topic, and I know Zach was planning to make some. I also know there are other homebrewers in our midst. Beyond that, I know many gents here enjoy feeling connected to the past, and mead is certainly an ancient beverage (there's a good case to be made that it's the oldest fermented beverage).
So, basically, I'm starting this thread to:
A. hear about others' mead experiences
B. toot my own horn about my mead-making prowess
and
C. share my passion for mead
Zach, I expect to hear a bit from you, at least.
Regards,
