Ok, this is the recipe I've tried 4 times now, because I was originally looking for the "holy grail" of mead recipes and it's the one that tasted nicest straight off the lees.
Yes, that just meant that there was some residual sweetness and/or honey flavour - but it encouraged me to make the three gallon batch, split it into 3 X 1 gallon demijohns and use a different yeast for each one.
It is a little generic and doesn't specify some items too closely but I'll lay it out exactly as my mother hand wrote it out. So.......
Mead, a drink that can take on many characteristics - sweet or dry - depending on the amount of honey used - about 1.5kg (3lb) for a dry wine or about 1.75kg (4lb) for a sweet wine.
Makes approximately 1 gallon (imperial) or 4.5 litres.
Set Honey - 1.5 -1.75 kg/3-4 lb
Cold Tea - 600 ml/1 pint
Campden tablets
Boiled water
Citric acid - 1 teaspoon
Wine Yeast compound OR Special Mead Yeast and Yeast nutrient.
Fatbloke Note: Initially my first mead making used a Champagne type yeast (a.k.a. Dessert/High Alcohol type). This meant that as a total beginner I didn't appreciate it at all when it was first off the lees - I was expecting (wrongly) something not unsimilar to the commercial meads I'd tried. Those types of yeast will give you a dry mead. I'd suggest that it may be more sensible to make a sweet mead on the first attempt (personal preference of course).
As for "special mead yeast", well as far as I can find out, currently the only one(s) available are produced as liquid yeasts by "Wyeast" and particularly in the UK, aren't quite so easy to get hold of (the packets I have come from Brouwland in Belgium).
Dissolve honey over low heat
Add tea and 1 campden tablet dissolved in a quarter pint of boiling water
Place in 1 gallon fermentation vessel
Top up to almost three quarters full with boiled water and shake to mix thoroughly
Add citric acid
Prep must (did the original recipe say this or is it just the way my mother wrote it down? i.e. did she mean prepare a starter ???) The yeast mixture as per the instructions on yeast packet/or yeast compound/or the "special mead yeast".
When must (starter) has been fermenting for about 3 - 5 hours it should be added to the fermentation vessel.
Ensure it's mixed well and top up with more cooled water. Fit air lock and put in warm place to ferment.
WATCH IT CAREFULLY
If heavy sediment builds up, syphon mead into seperate vessel, taking just a little of the sediment.
When fermentation is complete (4-6 weeks) syphon mead into clean, sterilised vessel i.e. no sediment.
See campden tablet instructions Dissolve 1 or 2 in a little hot water and add to mead. This will ensure fermentation stops and wine clears.
Leave sealed under and airlock till the wine is cleared and sediment formed (you can filter it if you have the equipment available).
Bottle in sterilised bottles, cork and label.
Store for at least 6/12 - The longer the better.
Now I have no idea why this version turned out to be the nicest one I've made so far (nicest one straight off the lees that is).
It's only a very basic recipe, produced by "Gales" (who are now just another brand name from the "food nazis" that are Nestle - as I understand). They just originally sold honey so it was in their interest to produce such recipes.
As for my earlier comment re yeast, well if you can't track down either the Sweet or Dry Mead yeast, then this recipe was the best when Lalvin 71B-1122 was used (according to my experiment/personal taste). It's easily available but you would need a suitable yeast nutrient - I'd think something like Minavit or Tronozymol (my local HBS has stopped selling Minavit (a Gervin product) and now does the Tronozymol). Then use it according to the instructions.
Also, I never made a yeast starter as such, just rehydrated it according to the instructions on the packet.
I'll post some other recipes I have when I get 5 minutes.
Yes, that just meant that there was some residual sweetness and/or honey flavour - but it encouraged me to make the three gallon batch, split it into 3 X 1 gallon demijohns and use a different yeast for each one.
It is a little generic and doesn't specify some items too closely but I'll lay it out exactly as my mother hand wrote it out. So.......
Mead, a drink that can take on many characteristics - sweet or dry - depending on the amount of honey used - about 1.5kg (3lb) for a dry wine or about 1.75kg (4lb) for a sweet wine.
Makes approximately 1 gallon (imperial) or 4.5 litres.
Set Honey - 1.5 -1.75 kg/3-4 lb
Cold Tea - 600 ml/1 pint
Campden tablets
Boiled water
Citric acid - 1 teaspoon
Wine Yeast compound OR Special Mead Yeast and Yeast nutrient.
Fatbloke Note: Initially my first mead making used a Champagne type yeast (a.k.a. Dessert/High Alcohol type). This meant that as a total beginner I didn't appreciate it at all when it was first off the lees - I was expecting (wrongly) something not unsimilar to the commercial meads I'd tried. Those types of yeast will give you a dry mead. I'd suggest that it may be more sensible to make a sweet mead on the first attempt (personal preference of course).
As for "special mead yeast", well as far as I can find out, currently the only one(s) available are produced as liquid yeasts by "Wyeast" and particularly in the UK, aren't quite so easy to get hold of (the packets I have come from Brouwland in Belgium).
Dissolve honey over low heat
Add tea and 1 campden tablet dissolved in a quarter pint of boiling water
Place in 1 gallon fermentation vessel
Top up to almost three quarters full with boiled water and shake to mix thoroughly
Add citric acid
Prep must (did the original recipe say this or is it just the way my mother wrote it down? i.e. did she mean prepare a starter ???) The yeast mixture as per the instructions on yeast packet/or yeast compound/or the "special mead yeast".
When must (starter) has been fermenting for about 3 - 5 hours it should be added to the fermentation vessel.
Ensure it's mixed well and top up with more cooled water. Fit air lock and put in warm place to ferment.
WATCH IT CAREFULLY
If heavy sediment builds up, syphon mead into seperate vessel, taking just a little of the sediment.
When fermentation is complete (4-6 weeks) syphon mead into clean, sterilised vessel i.e. no sediment.
See campden tablet instructions Dissolve 1 or 2 in a little hot water and add to mead. This will ensure fermentation stops and wine clears.
Leave sealed under and airlock till the wine is cleared and sediment formed (you can filter it if you have the equipment available).
Bottle in sterilised bottles, cork and label.
Store for at least 6/12 - The longer the better.
Now I have no idea why this version turned out to be the nicest one I've made so far (nicest one straight off the lees that is).
It's only a very basic recipe, produced by "Gales" (who are now just another brand name from the "food nazis" that are Nestle - as I understand). They just originally sold honey so it was in their interest to produce such recipes.
As for my earlier comment re yeast, well if you can't track down either the Sweet or Dry Mead yeast, then this recipe was the best when Lalvin 71B-1122 was used (according to my experiment/personal taste). It's easily available but you would need a suitable yeast nutrient - I'd think something like Minavit or Tronozymol (my local HBS has stopped selling Minavit (a Gervin product) and now does the Tronozymol). Then use it according to the instructions.
Also, I never made a yeast starter as such, just rehydrated it according to the instructions on the packet.
I'll post some other recipes I have when I get 5 minutes.
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