Here's my first attempt at making mead:
(Recipe is copied from gotmead.com, for basic directions on how to prepare the must - the unfermented honey/water mixture - click here)
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Joe's Ancient Orange, Clove, and Cinnamon Mead
Servings - 1 gallon
Ingredients:
• 3.5 lbs Clover or your choice honey or blend(will finish sweet)
• 1 large orange (later cut in eights or smaller rind and all)
• 1 small handful raisins (25 if you count but more or less ok)
• 1 stick cinnamon
• 1 whole clove (or 2 if you like, these critters are potent!)
• 1 pinch nutmeg or allspice (very small)
• 1 package Fleishmann’s bread yeast ( now don't get holy on me--- after all this is an ancient mead and that's all we had back then)
• 1 gallon of water
Instructions:
1) Use a clean 1 gallon carboy
2) Dissolve honey in some warm water and put in carboy
3) Wash orange well to remove any pesticides and slice in eights --add orange (you can push em through opening big boy -- rinds included -- its ok for this mead -- take my word for it -- ignore the experts)
4) Put in raisins, clove, cinnamon stick, any optional ingredients and fill to 3 inches from the top with cold water.
(need room for some foam -- you can top off with more water after the first few day frenzy)
5) Shake the heck out of the jug with top on, of course. This is your sophisticated aeration process.
6) When at room temperature in your kitchen, put in 1 teaspoon of bread yeast. ( No you don't have to rehydrate it first-- the ancients didn't even have that word in their vocabulary-- just put it in and give it a gentle swirl or not - The yeast can fight for their own territory)
7) Install water airlock.
8) Put in dark place.
9) It will start working immediately or in an hour. (Don't use grandma's bread yeast she bought years before she passed away in the 90's) ( Wait 3 hours before you panic or call me)
10) After major foaming stops in a few days add some water and then keep your hands off of it. (Don't shake it! Don't mess with them yeastees! Let them alone except its okay to open your cabinet to smell every once in a while.
Recipe Notes:
Racking --- Don't you dare --- NO NO more stirring or shaking -- You're not listening, don't touch.
After 2 months and maybe a few days it will slow down to a stop and clear all by itself.
(How about that-You are not so important after all)
Then you can put a hose in with a small cloth filter on the end into the clear part and siphon off the golden nectar.
If you wait long enough even the oranges will sink to the bottom but I never waited that long.
If it is clear it is ready. You don't need a cold basement.
It does better in a kitchen in the dark. (Like in a cabinet) likes a little heat (70°-80°F).
If it didn't work out... you screwed up and didn't read my instructions (or used grandma's bread yeast she bought years before she passed away) .
If it didn't work out then take up another hobby. Mead is not for you. It is too complicated.
If you were successful, which I am 99% certain you will be if you followed the recipe, then enjoy your mead.
When you get ready to make different mead you will probably have to unlearn some of these practices I have taught you, but hey--- This recipe and procedure works with these ingredients so don't knock it. It was your first mead. It was my tenth.
Sometimes, even the experts can forget all they know and make good ancient mead.
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Now, because I like experimenting (and because they're listed), I'll be making four different batches of this mead:
Single Clove with Nutmeg
Double Clove with Nutmeg
Single Clove with Allspice
and
Double Clove with Allspice
(If I'm feeling daring - and have enough honey - I'll try making mead using the Ground Ginger I realized I have*. *I pretty much NEVER use ginger, so don't judge me for not knowing that I had it.)
Because of my experience level, I'll start with Single Clove with Nutmeg.
10-March-2016
10:45hrs
Ok, I've started the must, and have one jug sitting until it's ready for the yeast.
I've heated the water to roughly 115°F and stirred the honey in.
11:17hrs
We're all set to leave them be.
I'll let them sit until the 16th, before I top it off the rest of the way with water.
8-April-2016
10:30hrs
My phone broke on March 11th, but I kept some handwritten notes.
Topped off both jugs on 16-March and am letting one sit until 16-May (the earliest they'll be “done").
The other will be siphoned into another jug and allowed to age for about a year or two.
(It should be noted that I will be doing this AFTER the oranges sink to the bottom of the fermentation jug. I don't know how long that will take, but I'll be sure to keep this as up to date as possible until then.)
Also, do not, I repeat, DO NOT use a makeshift airlock. (Trust me on this.)
16-May-2016
11:23hrs
The mead is ready.
Siphoned the first jug at 11:02hrs.
Time to see how it tastes.
17-May-2016
13:46hrs
Took a good long look at the mixture and noticed that it wasn't clear.
That means that it wasn't finished.
Luckily, I hadn't poured any of it.
Out the airlock back on and decided to let it age.
Unfortunately, I had “racked" it (transferred the mixture into another jug prior to the end of fermentation).
At least I left the second jug undisturbed.
This is what happens when you're a horrendous Novice.
LESSONS DECIDEDLY LEARNT.
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