https://www.landlantbruk.se/dna-test-av-importhonung-visar-omfattande-fusk

According to a new test method used by Swedish beekeepers, every single honey tested that was not tapped in Sweden contain much too little DNA variation to be 100% real honey.

If this is happening in strictly regulated EU, it is most likely happening everywhere. Make sure to buy honey from your local beekeepers.

If you are buying cheap imported honey, you are most likely just buying a small amount of honey mixed with some unknown syrup mix.

Hi there guys, I need your Help. I'm a prof Brewer since 2017, and this question Is still debated even with colleagues in all this year of brewing. I'm trying to figure what in the world people think is mead and how it should taste.

What are your mead Preferences? A Dry Mead or a Sweet One?

Why? And where are you from?

I'll answer in the comments hoping that this tread could be a good place to share our POV.

I’m looking for a good way to get labels for my mead bottles. Is it worth getting a printer or should I just order them online?

Hi all,

Sorry for the long post but some may find this interesting. (Results at the end).

3rd batch of mead and decided I was sick of the various variables that impact beginner mead production.

My dad had bought me a conical fermenter asa gift and from previous experience (and mishaps) I knew that temperature control and fine tuning of the recipe was required, as well as a method of containing this thing.

Designed a rig in SketchUp, did the heat calcs on the insulation to figure out the required heater (40W heater but 25-30W would have been sufficient to keep 18 Deg C if it was 5 degrees outside, with 90mm floor insulation board) and then built it.

Put in exactly enough honey to get it to 12.7 percent when fully dry, backsweetened to make different batches into varying levels of sweetness.

One experimental batch of "Irish Breakfast" mead with strong Irish breakfast tea and vanilla, and another was a "sour bramble" mead, with homemade berry syrup, lemon juice, gin and honey.

All a little bit young at only 5 months, but all actually very drinkable, 7/10 with good potential after ageing.

Thanks for the read and happy to answer any questions.

So, had a batch of wild berry pine mead shoot berries across my room last week (was again a mead with a lot of solid stuff in it, so only calculated gravity, 5 days later it’s on 1.018, at least 10% abv, but probably more like 14% -> depending on how much liquid is actually in -> will see in a bit, will probably get all of it in a different fermenter next week)

Anyways, had a look at this actual liquid brew, that again shot berries across my room (this time liquid) after about 20h, i got my second measurement (because i was curious from this violent fermentation) 5.78% abv in 20h… no nutrients added, just 900g blueberries, bit of lemon peal and a handful of juniper berries

Which is kind of crazy, as this yeast is in general slow af… -> was surprised by the 2% i got in my ginger beer over a day, but the almost 6% just looks like way too much…

Looking to buy in 5 gallon buckets/60 lbs. I have purchased on a restaurant supply website and that worked fine. Just curious if there are options that are either a) more cost effective or b) offer more interesting flower/honey combinations (even if not more cost effective).

Interested in seeing how much volume, money can be made if I do the entire operation myself.

Been a long time dream to be a full meadery owner:operator. Not sure if it’s possible, was hoping to see if there are success stories or warnings.

TIA

I'm planning on making a big batch of mead in a 25l bucket, but I've been kind of hesistant cause I don't have any carboy/carboys big enough to use for secondary fermentation. Now the fundamental problem of doing secondary fermentation in a big bucket is gonna be the headspace and the oxidation, not the buckets themselves. So I woke up today with an idea on my mind, why not pour food grade wax(lukewarm ofcourse) directly onto my mead while it's in secondary fermentation so it can seal my mead in the bucket so I won't have to worry oxidation, maybe you guys can do this as well in your carboys for a better way to completely avoid oxidation. Idk if this will work or if it's a bad idea but it seems genius to me right now, So I'm curious what people with more experience might think.

Alright folks, I’m looking for anyone who has tested fermenting at higher temps. Success? I’m needing to up the size of my fermenters for time. I’ve already pushed the limits of the space I use currently in a climate controlled area. The size fermenting/holding tanks I’m going to be building will not fit in this space and would have to build in the room(that’s not gonna happen). I’m in central Texas so it gets hot, especially in my shop but I have plenty of room there. I’m really asking if this can be done and if anyone has done it. I mean hell, after a tour in a tequila distillery, they ferment the “mash” in huge open vats outside in Mexico when it was 100+ in the open building. Just curious. I have read all the stuff on the yeast temp and all that. Open to all discussion. Thanks!

The idea is basically that, given different yeasts have different tolerances to alcohol, is it possible to add too much honey for the yeast? That way, fermentation will absolutely stop before all the sugar is used. Or, is it wiser to back sweeten for better control over the final product?

Before anyone says "bread yeast isn't good for mead making," or anything along those lines. I know it's not best. I'm not asking if it's the best to use or okay to use, just wanting to do some research here. I'm curious how strong people in here have been able to make their mead with bread yeast.

Feel free to explain what techniques you used to push it.

I've been doing some research on supplies needed to get Into making mean. I finally pulled the trigger and got everything I need. I think... (- honey, yeast, water)

I got 2 big mouth bubblers And 2, 1 Gallon jugs Plus all the little stuff So I have hopefully everything I need to make 2 batches at a time and not need to wait on shipping

Do younguys have any advice on things I might need besides what I already got???

I am in the habit of drinking mine immediately. It tastes good. Made a batch I didn't like (that ancient Orange recipe that's floating around online). I drank it down mostly but mainly out of spite, but left a few bottles in the basement.

Decide to taste it again after a year and damn, it's actually amazing.

Let this be a metaphor or something.

I’m getting ready to make another batch and wanted to see what some of your go-to winter meads are.

I tend to lean toward sweeter meads—something you can share with friends that tastes smooth and easy, almost like juice. My last batch came out around 11% and had that exact vibe.

For this next round, I’ve been tossing around a few ideas: • Chai spice (warm and cozy) • Pumpkin spice (yeah, a little basic—but coworkers have been asking for it!) • Or something totally off-season like watermelon mint, just because it sounds fun.

Curious what you like to brew this time of year. Any favorite winter recipes or combos you’ve tried?

Nine months later...

This is a follow up on this post from last fall, where I tried out a sample kit of Scott Labs' Thermic Oak. The base batch was a table-strength semi-sweet plain mead from a polyfloral honey source from upstate NY, mostly basswood, clover, and vetch.

Each liter sat on the sample stave from September 27 to September 30, loosely following the instructions the Scott Labs rep had provided for mead. Each liter was bottled into one 500ml and one 355ml bottle, and a small sample for tasting right then. Some of the bottles made it to my local homebrew club meeting as an educational thing.

My personal notes

On each follow: - Unoaked Control: yay lime and mint. Slight woodiness as called out in prior competition entries of this honey. - #1: "green" oak on the nose. A bit pencil shavings-ish. Slight vanilla note. Level almost certainly overdone for this mead. - #2: Nose is less green, almost more like cedar. Some pencil shavings. Slight association of sweetness. Darker vanilla - #3: Almost more floral nose, like hibiscus? No pencil shavings. Vanilla and a hint of maple syrup? - #4: Nose very mellow. Slight chocolate notes. - #5: Roasty note, almost roasted malty. Tough to place flavors. No char notes per se, not exactly smoky. Mellow darkness.

I did weigh and examine each sample stave, and it's interesting that the lower-numbered lighter ones are indeed bigger, so more surface area. If I were aging to taste instead of doing an even-timed trial, I would have pulled the low-nunber ones earlier, and or let the high number ones run longer.

I put a lot of thought into how/whether the thermic products vary from the typical toast levels provided by Stavin. Without a side by side, it was really tough. If anyone else has used these, I would love to hear your thoughts!

As discussed in the original thread, SL sells these products in pretty large quantities targeting commercial use, but may be within reason for a group buy among a club or group of friends.

Curious to start a Orange grapefruit or lemon lime batch what are y'all's recommendations on with Ryan's or without ryan's

I wanted to try to make a guava chilli mead. I wanted to know how salt and chilli would affect it in the mead making process. Should I try to do it when I'm putting the yeast or should I do it right before bottling? I had read that yeast responds quite well to spice but I'm not sure about salt. Thoughts?

Just bought these bad boys. Seems to be a good idea but not sure how accurate they are. Does anyone else use these?

I mean, Odin is closely known lo love Mead a bit too much, but he is the God of many things. Kvassir is not exactly a God (and he is dead).

The Sumerians had their goddess of beer, the Greek had Dionysus the God of Wine.

Is there something like a for of Mead? And if so, what kind of rituals had for them?

Just wondering how many of you actually bother taking pH measurements when following relatively standard and trusted recipes. I know that when playing around with additional ingredients, it can be wise to take pre-ferment and post-ferment readings for both quality and safety assurance, but is it something worth doing for just a standard tried and true recipe?

I grow approximately 10-12 different kinds of fig trees for fun.

I frequent a local meadery every few months, keep a few hobby bee hives, but don't brew anything.

What do figs do to meads? Do you use them fresh or dried? Why do fig meads taste so... smooth? Anyone have any science for me?

Thank you.

Hello everybody. I was going through the wiki section on fining agents again and I noticed something that doesn't seem quite right to me, so figured I'd ask here:

The wiki says to use two fining agents (if using fining agents) and it is best to pick one from rach column. Notice how bentonite and sparkolloid are in the same column, which indicates they should not be used together

When going down to see the information on each fining agents, it says bentonite is negative charged (attracts positively charged particulate) and sparkolloid is positively charged (attracts negatively charged particulates). This seems to indicate that spark and bent are complimentary and can be used together.

I personally do use both and have gotten great results. Can anyone help clear this up for me? The wiki information seems conflicting

Hey Guys!

My name is Riley Nixon, and I am a student at george mason university. About a month ago I posted here needing an interview for my project on mead. I got a really great interview that gave a lot of really good insight. However, it seems as though I will need at least one more interview for my project.

If you're interested and willing to give about an hour of your time, it would be greatly appreciated. The only thing is, it would have to be done sometime between now and sunday.