Mead Recipe: Crafting Authentic Australian Mead with a Traditional Recipe

Flavouring Mead Recipe

• Mead can be flavoured with a variety of stone & soft fruits or infused with fruit or grape juice
  
  
• Steeping Oak and adding aroma hops is becoming increasingly popular
  
  
• There are 2 methods to flavour the Mead with fruit:
  
  
  • Adding the fruit at primary fermentation – freeze or sanitise first. This method can result in the flavour / sweetness of the fruit fermenting out and can lead to primary fermentation issues
    
    
  • Adding the fruit to the secondary post primary fermentation – this method requires the use of Potassium Sorbate prior to adding the fruit to ensure the yeast does not commence fermenting the sugars in the fruit. Most flavour is infused in the secondary, the alcohol present inhibits bacterial activity and the fruit can be removed when the desired flavour / colour is reached.
    
    
  • Dose Potassium Sorbate at a rate of 1.4g per 3.8L or 7g per 19L
    
    
  • Allow the Mead to ‘set’ for 24 hours after dosing before adding fruit

Troubleshooting a mead style

• • If your Mead has stopped fermenting / not reached the target FG:
    
    
  • Check SG over 2 days to see if it is fully attenuated
    
    
  • Check pH – adjust if too acidic (Calcium Carbonate)
    
    
  • Pitch more high alcohol tolerant yeast (EC-1118)
    
    
• If your Mead is too sweet:
  
  
  • If still fermenting – as per the above
    
    
  • If fully fermented – add Malic, Tartaric or Citric Acid to balance sweetness
    
    
• If your Mead is too Dry:
  
  
  • After fermentation add Potassium Sorbate to inhibit yeast activity – let ‘set’ for 24 hours
    
    
  • Back sweeten with honey, sugar syrup or fruit juice
    
    
• If your Mead is Hazy (suspended proteins and yeast):
  
  
  • Allow more time in secondary to naturally clear
    
    
  • Cold Crash to drop yeast and proteins out of suspension
    
    
  • Use a fining agent

Bottling Storage and Maturing

• Prior to bottling ensure fermentation has completely ceased
  
  
• Allow the Mead to clear naturally or use finings to clear the mead prior to bottling
  
  
• If you have back sweetened Mead after using Potassium Sorbate allow 24 hours minimum after dosing prior to bottling
  
  
• Avoid oxidising the Mead when bottling – oxidised Mead will haze and develop a wet cardboard taste over time
  
  
• Use glass bottles if possible
  
  
• Store your bottled Mead away from light in an area with stable temperature
  
  
• Allow the Mead to age / mature if possible – Mead improves with age
  
  
• If you want a sparkling Mead – dose bottles with dextrose and secondary ferment – cannot use Potassium Sorbate if secondary fermenting

A Basic Mead Recipe – 5 Gallon Batch
A Medium Sweet Basic Mead Recipe – 5 Gallons / 19L Batch (Scale for 1 Gallon Batch)

• Ingredients:
  
  
• • 8kg of clean, quality Honey – no off aroma or flavour
    
    
  • 15.15L of good quality water (use enough to make a 19L batch)
    
    
  • 10g of Yeast Nutrient
    
    
  • 2 x 10g Mangrove Jack’s Craft Series M05 Mead Yeast
    
    
• Process:
  
  
  • Clean & Sterilise all Equipment, Fermenters / Demijohns – anything that will come into contact with the Must
    
    
  • Put 4L of water in a large pot and bring it to the boil for 10 minutes then remove from heat and add the yeast nutrient
    
    
  • Add the honey and stir until the water and honey are fully combined and of a uniform consistency
    
    
  • Sanitise the Must by your preferred method (boiling not recommended for Basic Meads as it will remove flavour and aromatics)
    
    
  • Pour the Must into the fermenter and add the remaining water (will cool the Must to pitching temperature) – take OG reading which should be between 1.112 and 1.128
    
    
  • Rehydrate the yeast in 250mls of 30-38 degree water for 15 minutes
    
    
  • Vigorously stir the Must to oxygenate it for 5 to 10 Minutes then pitch the rehydrated yeast and seal the fermenter
    
    
  • Keep the fermenter between 15-20 degrees Celsius (22 degrees is ideal) – fermentation activity should be evident within 24 hours
    
    
  • After about 14 days fermentation activity will start to slow – rack the Mead to a cleaned and sanitised secondary fermenter and continue fermenting (can check SG at this time – should be 1.030 or lower)
    
    
  • After fermentation activity has ceased – confirm with Hydrometer (FG should be 1.010 or lower) – allow the Mead to clear for another 14 days*
    
    
  • After 14 Days bottle the Mead and store / mature for at least 3 months before drinking – 6 -12 Months storage preferred for optimal flavour