Bee Blissful Mead
Commonly referred to as “honey wine”, mead is an alcoholic beverage made from honey. Using lava bee honey, a basic mead is made from diluted honey, yeast and yeast nutrients. Additional additives such as fruit extracts and spices change the complexity of the mead. The following is a basic recipe for making mead. Refer to more detailed references for specific brewing techniques.
Ingredients
- 14 pounds honey
- 4 gallons water
- 2 - 5g packets Pasteur Champagne yeast
- yeast nutrients
Directions
- Combine honey and water; heat must to 160°F (71°C) for 20 minutes.
- Chill pot of must in a cold water bath to fermentation temperature.
- Add ½ tsp yeast nutrients to must.
- Aerate must and pitch rehydrated yeast.
- Rack as necessary to leave yeast behind.
- Use Sparkalloid to clarify post fermentation and age 3-4 months.
- Bottle and enjoy.
Note: This mead created by the Fall 2003 UH Hilo CAFNRM Beekeeping class won third place in the Sanctioned Homebrew Competition held by the American Homebrewers Association.
