How to Make a Sweet Mead at Home

Today we're talking about how to make a sweet mead at home. Contrary to what you think, mead isn't always sweet! Most of the time it is semi dry after the fermentation process. There are few ways to do this and I want to teach how to do it safely. Most of this depends on your yeast and we will spend a few minutes talking about this. Let me know if you have questions below!
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Traditional Mead Recipe:
3/4 Gallon of Clean Water
2 Pounds of Any Honey
2.5 Grams of Wine Yeast (or Bread Yeast)
Steps to make a mead:
1.) Sanitize everything extremely well!
2.) Mix your ingredients
3.) Take a gravity reading and write it down
4.) Add your nutrients!
5.) Pitch your yeast into the mead and store in a place to start fermenting
Fermentation should take 14 - 20 days
6.) Check your gravity and rack when it's done fermenting
7.) Optional - Stabilize and Backsweeten if you want it sweeter
8.) Bottling time!
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0:00 Introduction
1:00 The Categories & Why It Matters
2:25 Low ABV Sweet Mead Methods
3:32 Low ABV Method 1
6:14 Low ABV Method 2
6:50 Low ABV Method 3
8:27 DON'T DO THIS ONE
11:51 High ABV Sweet Mead Methods
12:04 High ABV Method 1
13:16 High ABV Method 2
13:45 High ABV Method 3
17:10 High ABV Method 4
17:30 DON'T TRUST COLD CRASHING
17:45 Wrap Up

[@user-rg9oh5nv3p]

Wow I had no idea Ryan Gosling made mead! Can’t wait for Ken’s Mojo Dojo Casa House brew!

[@sandycove777]

Lol😂

[@spanthrax]

cold crashing is 100% only viable to clear your mead never to stop a fermentation

[@scotthodge8690]

Very helpful. Thanks 🔥💯🙌🏽

[@cjtillinghast1804]

Just wanted to say thanks for all these informative videos. Gonna make my first batch tomorrow.

[@ManMadeMead]

I’m happy I can help! Have fun!

[@ILuvRum]

Great video, very thorough and concise. As others have mentioned below using beer or ale yeast will allow use of the "cap" method for lower ABV meads. Simply proceed as you would with ale or beer minus the hops (or not). you can even carbonate it as you would with beer. There is some suggestion out here that this type of mead would be closer to the original mead of ancient times.

[@FifthElement-ct7hp]

I am a Baker, and to ferment the dough you need to put it in the refrigerator (slow maturation) the yeast takes 8-12 hours to rise the dough, it can literally go for a walk in the refrigerator. So it’s true that low temperatures only slow down fermentation a little, but certainly do not stop it.

[@patrickcorbett8361]

I really like your content and your presentation is very good...bravo, and please keep the information coming ! pc

[@ManMadeMead]

Thank you so much!

[@Nickle314]

10:05 - loved it! :-)))

[@Biedrik4]

I know it's not something beginners should try but I think delle stability is worth mentioning, especially if you're looking to use residual sugar and ABV tolerance. It's a good way of knowing whether you've got the right combination of sugar and alcohol to make refermentation nigh impossible. A typical Polish trójniak (1/3 honey, 2/3 water, 12-15% ABV) often ferments to 70+ delle.

[@domors89]

I agree. I have wondered why delle units don't get much coverage in the community. I wonder if part of it is because it relies on some calculations that many people might get wrong (like correct abv when using fruit solids).

[@TigerPat_9180]

Really Enjoyed Your Video , Thanks ! 🐯🤠

[@raist315]

My own method for mead is to start around 1.120, let it ferment dry, backsweeten to a little sweeter than I actually want, and let it ferment again until it stops. This is just what works for me, and I do plan to try pasteurizing eventually, just so I don't have every brew near 20%.

[@tarus94]

Hi friend when you backsweet do you put more yeast or not?

[@raist315]

@@tarus94I don't. When all the activity stops I add honey and stir, and within a day or two the activity starts again.

[@nitpow]

This Vid needs more likes...

[@PatrickBuckles]

my man, great vid as usual. I will find it searching through your vids, but at the end you talk about posting the link to your carbonating back-sweetened mead, unless I'm blind, I don't see it. FYI. That will be my next mead project so I'm going to look it up.

[@ManMadeMead]

Oops! Here is the bottle carbonation one that talks about backsweetening as well: kzbin.info/www/bejne/n6GzepV4bdmGZq8si=qe1fskHQu7vh-dd5

[@xander1052]

WLP618 can cap around 5% according to White Labs. in fairness this is a yeast strain designed for NA Beer.

[@shawnbluml4860]

If all I have right now is potassium sorbate, will that be enough to back sweeten or do I need to get the other? I thought I watched a video once where that’s what you used by itself

[@timothywilliams2021]

I like big meads. Generally start with more than the yeast should handle. Sometimes i step feed till it stops fermenting. Step feeding some yeast will go way past the stated abv cap.

[@hellzoneUK1991]

I always try this, and it always ends up pretty dry anyway, but I guess that's going to happen when I use champagne yeast.

[@Pooter-it4yg]

Try a solution of 1.13-1.14 with an aggressive yeast (rated to 18%) and a bit of nutrient. It'll probably stall short leaving you with roughly 14% ABV and 2-3 points of residual sweetness - dessert wine territory. Rack off onto powders to stabilise during conditioning so you can backsweeten if the yeast overperformed.

[@Monfet]

great vid! quick question: after i ferment, and want to back sweeten, exactly when do i add the sorbate and sulphide? i mean, i rack into second vessel. then add the powders. how long do i wait before i add my back sweeteners?

[@ManMadeMead]

I would add it after your fermentation is done and when you rack it. You will then want to wait 24 hours before you add any sweeteners!

[@user-cd1qs7zb7b]

Could I backsweeten with more honey? What would be your opinion of that in the end result (taste)? Great video!

[@ManMadeMead]

You definitely can! I do it all the time!

[@arghapirate2427]

What I did is a variation of your option 3 (17:13). I pasteurized my mead in a one gallon carboy. I gradually increased the water temperature with a sous vide to prevent thermal shock. A day later when all the sediment was formed at the bottom I bottled. Maybe I missed your point but what aspect of this is dangerous?

[@wf4516]

Because there is no promise that you killed all the yeast, even a small colony can build back up and continue fermenting, thus creating bottle bombs. Could you come out on the good side, sure, but I will never use this method because of the risk of bottle bombs.

[@melpomenean]

Many people pasteurize after bottling, particularly if they're also carbonating the beverage, and when the bottles are sealed there's a higher chance of things going wrong. This happened to Jordan from Arrow to the Mead when he accidentally overcarbonated a braggot and even though he tried being careful he had bottles explode.

[@SuperFunkmachine]

Mostly its people doing it in glass and with bottles added to heat.

[@jasona4243]

I like the intro👍

[@ManMadeMead]

Thank you!

[@LauraJayne64]

What do you pasteurize in so that you can back sweeten? I’ve only seen pasteurization with the mead in bottles. Do you have a video on how to do this?

[@ManMadeMead]

Lots of people do it in bottles. You can do it in a big glass carboy... I don't have a video on how to do it unfortunately!

[@bigtom9459]

Is potassium sorbate and metabisulfite only effective when used in tandem? Or will a campden tablet be sufficient?

[@ManMadeMead]

You have to use both to truly stabilize a mead!

[@bigtom9459]

thanks!@@ManMadeMead

[@simoneggersdorfer5305]

How much Potassium Sorbate and Metabisulfite would you recommend per Liter? Or how do you calculate the needed amount?

[@ManMadeMead]

I use half a teaspoon of sorbate per gallon (so roughly a little over 1/8 tsp per liter). Metabisulfite is normally 1/4 teaspoon per 5 gallons (19 liters) so that's like a super small amount per liter.

[@maxedoutdoors5865]

Can you stabilize with just potassium sorbate? Or does it need both

[@ManMadeMead]

You need both potassium sorbate & potassium metabisulfite!

[@jordanwiertsema5287]

Does adding the stabilizers mess with flavor?

[@ManMadeMead]

Nope!

[@claudebevelle8724]

do you need to keep your mead in a dark place after you table it ?

[@ManMadeMead]

Nope! I just wouldn't leave it in direct sunlight.. it doesn't really hurt it but the temperature fluctuations would be tough.

[@freddieconstable6358]

What about adding a couple of cups of brandy?

[@ManMadeMead]

You can do that! That could push the yeast beyond their limit and they would theoretically stop

[@tylerist8]

Hey. Wondering if you've done a video on a topic I've been wondering about. The different tastes from mead made with fruit added during primary vs fruit added to traditional mead after stabilizing

[@ManMadeMead]

I'll need to try that!

[@timothyjones2683]

Definitely agree with all you said! For me personally I use "cold crashing" more as a "cold clearification". I stabilize, back sweeten to my taste, then to start clearing I use some product but some times I'll just stick the carboy in my mini fridge and it clears quite well. I'm not to the point where my mead is being judged by clarity and all that so to me it's personal preference. BUT I always stabilize a week before it goes into the fridge. Is this a safe or okay thing to do?

[@ManMadeMead]

As long as it's stabilized, the yeast shouldn't be able to do anything.

[@SamHuddo]

Can you just use a beer yeast instead that has a tolerance of 6% to 8% and the brew would finish dry but be sweet due to residual honey?

[@ManMadeMead]

Most beer yeast still make it to 10%... but you could try that

[@friedoompa-loompa2876]

What about fermenting until desired sweetness level and then stabilizing the mead?

[@ManMadeMead]

It’s pretty difficult to truly halt fermentation. The only way to do it would be to pasteurize the mead. That would kill off the yeast.

[@friedoompa-loompa2876]

@@ManMadeMead so then I guess it’s preferable to wait until the mead is completely dry or if the yeast have reach their abv tolerance to stabilize, in order to ajust the abv by diluting and backsweetening?

[@ManMadeMead]

I would definitely recommend letting it finishing fermenting and then stabilizing before you back sweeten to your desired level.@@friedoompa-loompa2876

[@jgar538]

Great presentation. You forgot the Munk Fruit. Fun show on Basic brewing last night. Cheerz.

[@joehewitt9692]

Loved the video , change the sign behind you to show man made mead on the top rather than the bottom. Doing a great job thanks!

[@ObeyIzuna]

Just as I’m on Amazon trying to find a decent mead pack, I scroll over to check ur page and see you’ve uploaded😂 M(3x) gang 💪🏾

[@pyroboy417]

Another option (to save money) is to ferment to 12-14% using honey then do maths, and fortify the mead up to 18% using vodka, cognac, whiskey, etc.

[@EricC1982]

Kombucha has lots of horror stories 😂

[@Berol2000]

Well timed. Just harvested honey and wanting to put a sweet mead together

[@HeavyMetalWarriorHUN]

I'm a homebrewer and I've made a sweet mead 3 years ago from our own honey (my grandfather was a bee-keeper). I never liked the idea of backsweetening, using other sweetenings or pasteurizing, I wanted to keep it all natural. For a ~10 liter batch I used 4,5 kg honey @ OG: 1.115. Since in Hungary there's not a lot of options of wine yeasts, I decided to use a beer yeast with relatively high alcohol tolarence but something that doesn't ferment too dry. I've used 6,8g of Safbrew BE-256 belgian ale yeast, and some yeast nutrient. After a month I transfered it to secondary, but the fermentation stopped at 1.042 so I added a bit more yeast and yeast nutrient. At this point I left it for 8 months without touching it, then cold crashed it for a week and transfered, but only bottled after 2 more months. FG: 1.010, abv 13,8%. 1.010 doesn't sound very sweet but it was sweet and desserty, but not too sweet either. Just perfect for me. Since it was basically already 1 year old when I bottled it it was very good right away. I just opened a bottle yesterday and it's phenomenal, still very fruity (from the yeast) and floral (from the honey), but the sweetness has mellowed out a little bit. I've made a few other version bottles too, such as dry hopped with amarillo hops (8g/l for 2 days) which was iiincredible but best within the first 3 months. I highly recommend trying this yeast, I could not be happier with it. Here's a picture of the bottles: u.pcloud.link/publink/show?code=XZwVfvVZls5mNa8rmkkAh7CllR6Lw7HudxKy

[@arghapirate2427]

I also want to introduce an option 4. Filtering your mead. Has anyone of you tried this? You can buy a vacuum filter for around $500. Are these reliable for filtering out the yeast cells?

[@wf4516]

You would need to run absolute filters to do this. But most people aren't going to spend the money for that kind of setup just for this purpose. Stabilizing is far cheaper to do.

[@stanleygrover1685]

I made my first sweet mead , because the yeast stalled, at1.020 and !botted it after clearing.

[@DistressQQ]

Sooo... toss in a ton of honey, add a ton of extra sugar, a bit of water, high abv yeast and in a few weeks we can have an extra sweet 20% abv drink? God damn it I'm in

[@otakonjunkie]

Adding to the list because it's becoming increasingly popular: Allulose is not fermentable.

[@gamecollector7930]

It’s still possible to make a semi sweet 3.5% ABV mead at 1.040 OG with “10% ABV” English ale yeast without pasteurizing, stabilizing, Or “cold crashing”I bottle at 1.030 SG ~25% attenuation and it will CLEAR clear in a few weeks and be ready to drink in 2 months. I have made it for years and never had a problem. Also using 0 nutrient is key, you need the yeast to be weak and malleable for this to work.

[@dragonshoarddesign3094]

1.050 will not result in sweet mead, what you will get a watery mead that tastes like pretty much nothing even a 1 quart experiment with a pound of honey.

[@TigerPat_9180]

First 🥇

[@716MMA]

wtf

[@akillen77]

TMDWU

[@FaewoodMead]

Bottle bombs are such a scary thought! The last mead I didn't stabilize was the final push to change my ways - made an entertaining video, but boy was I embarrassed 😅