How to make honey mead

Today I am showing you how to make mead, or as it is also known honey wine. The mead I ended up making turned out to have an alcohol percentage of around 11%, and took about 1 month in total. Mead is extremely simple to make, doesn't require heating, or complex additions and timings. It's just a matter of doing the right steps in the right order.
============= Links ==================
Fermentation jug: amzn.to/3BK12HB
Glass bottles: amzn.to/3rB980t
Bottling bucket: amzn.to/3zEEPZB
Home Brew Fermentation Kit: amzn.to/3f1R8av
Yeast Nutrient: amzn.to/3zASnVU
Sterilization Solution: amzn.to/3zDHUJq
Mixing Bowls: amzn.to/3zUrwEH
Pyrex Measuring Cup: amzn.to/3iLxctm
Ladle: amzn.to/3l0RRfP
Campden Tablets: amzn.to/3BKPioe
Champagne Yeast: amzn.to/3i6Yg7l
Thermometer: amzn.to/3ycjzdw
Siphon: amzn.to/3l0OxkV
============= Video Equipment ==================
Camera: amzn.to/3i72XNm
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Lens Adaptor: amzn.to/3rji9uX
Light: amzn.to/2UMK7TQ
Ingredients:
It's a good rule of thumb to use 3 lbs of honey per gallon of water. Additionally 1 tsp of yeast nutrient was used as well as two camden tablets.
Patreon: / flavorlab
Disclaimer: Some links are affiliate links

[@gretathuumberg]

Everyone is talking about Honningbrew or Black Briar. Call me old fashioned, but I prefer the Mead with juniper berries.

[@thickskinnedacedetectivema2761]

Wonder if Vilod is still making that mead with Juniper Berries mixed in.

[@fireproxy9707]

This is from Skyrim huh haha 😀

[@JayJay-re1ex]

dick-cheese burger 😂😂 Skyrim

[@mayomage5064]

Hey, you. You're finally awake. You were trying to cross the border, right? Walked right into that Imperial ambush, same as us, and that thief over there. Damn you Stormcloaks. Skyrim was fine until you came along. Empire was nice and lazy. If they hadn't been looking for you, I could've stolen that horse and be halfway to Hammerfell. You there. You and me - we shouldn't be here. It's these Stormcloaks the Empire wants. We're all brothers and sisters in binds now, thief. Shut up back there! And what's wrong with him, huh? Watch your tongue. You're speaking to Ulfric Stormcloak, the true High King. Ulfric? The Jarl of Windhelm? You're the leader of the rebellion. But if they've captured you... Oh gods, where are they taking us? I don't know where we're going, but Sovngarde awaits. No, this can't be happening. This isn't happening. Hey, what village are you from, horse thief? Why do you care? A Nord's last thoughts should be of home. Rorikstead. I'm... I'm from Rorikstead.

[@yongyea4147]

dick-cheese burger snow berries are a better choice

[@pemanson]

*Uses sterilised tools and utensils. *Shoves the whole hand into the bucked. A+

[@shadibeidas1]

I laughed so hard when I saw that... What was the literal point of sterilization if you're going to shove in a human hand coated with microorganisms?

[@Juusokakku]

Paused the video and went for comments as soon as I saw this. Just amazing.

[@mr.e0311]

And all 4 of you are 110% certain that his hands were NOT in any sensitization liquid prior to your 'observation' simply because you did not see it on the video..? You didnt see him put a gd shirt on either but yet there he was with one on... You'd make good cops but terrible trial lawyers. All the sheep that up voted that comment too. I heard the Vikings pioneered the sterilization process for making mead... with a wooden stick they found... in the forest.... Usually (you would know this IF you were a home brewer) people submerge their hands in the liquid while they are sanitizing everything else. It is very hard to keep your hands out of the liquid since most of us dont have a Honda robot house-slave yet and I doubt this guy does either.

[@stephenburke7108]

Bucked?

[@theothersideofthecoin3125]

😂😂😂😂😭😭😭😭

[@zebman74]

My grandfather grew his own grapes, raised his own bees, and grew impressive herb and fruit gardens. He used the ingredients to make some of the best Mead and Wine I have ever tasted. He passed away in the summer of 2019. Now I'd like to start making Mead just as he did. Thank you for the help!

[@TwoPlusTwoEqualsFive32]

I'd ask around and see if anyone found recipe books, there would be alot of good information in there.

[@dfxjedi]

@@TwoPlusTwoEqualsFive32 Hopefully he didn't just memorize the recipes

[@Hang10boards]

A_C_unit....sorry for the loss of your Grandfather... It's hard losing the elders for sure... The things we take for granted as youngsters and the things our "Adult" heart yearns for their knowledge after they pass.... There's a PLETHORA of accessible information out there....just find which shoe fits YOU best!! Best of luck on your brews brother!

[@HalfKaztBoy]

keep up the family tradition!

[@j.mendezphotography8684]

Condolences. By this his legacy would live on through you.

[@Rhobyn]

Quick safety warning for anyone who wants to try this: Make damn sure you are using proper fermenting bottles and not those decorative ones you might serve water in. The latter can and will blow up and send fine shards into your face.

[@TheStraycat74]

Glass Grenades are a thing, and they SUCK. only use bottles rated for PRESSURE.

[@FlavorLab]

Thanks for pointing this out. The swingtop bottles I used were from the LHBS and were rated for beer, but I didn't point that out in the video. Thanks for pointing this out, hopefully avoiding some people some heartbreak!

[@TheStraycat74]

@@FlavorLab some, yes. my other comments still stand and I'm sorry if I've been overly critical, but if they are not pointed out then you might accidentally hurt someone, and neither of us wants that.

[@Ap0Kal1ps3]

Good advice. This is why I stop fermentation before putting any fizzy drink into my screw top wine bottles. I once saw a bottle of chokecherry wine pop it's top while sitting on my parent's wine rack. Ain't nobody got time for that.

[@konekogremory8957]

@@TheStraycat74 cant you slap an airlock on top to prevent this? i have a few of those

[@Carpfoon]

black briar mead, the finest mead in all of skyrim guys I know BBM is shiz lol honningbrew all the way

[@FlavorLab]

Fus ro dah!!!

[@cbrackin531]

You have Skooma?!?

[@sirbillius]

CarpFoon 0'Hydrate Honningbrew is a the vastly superior beverage.

[@danbrown5840]

Everyone knows that Blackbriar focuses on profit, Honningbrew is obviously the superior mead

[@Shmidershmax]

@@danbrown5840 There was that vermin incident, though. I'm not sure I'd trust them after that.

[@beanie5851]

I went to a local bar one time they brewed some kind of honey mead that was like 14% That shit tasted like heaven I didn’t realize how fucked up I was getting till it was too late

[@FoamyMugs]

wish my home had a place like that, can't find anywhere that sells good real mead

[@saxboss1]

@@FoamyMugs sounds like you should start a business!

[@mundanestuff]

Yup. First batch I made did that to me. Got up from the table and fell over. I've never been that drunk that fast without pounding shots.

[@SymphonyZach]

@@FoamyMugs well, make your own! Maybe sell it to others

[@carltonshell1964]

you can increase the alcohol content in this recipe by increasing the amount of honey or directly adding more sugar, adding more honey reduces the dryness and increases the alcohol, adding the sugar just increases the alcohol.

[@hognigk96]

One of the most common misconceptions of mead making is that the mead should be sweet due to the fact that honey is being used. The reality is that a lot of the time the sweetness of the honey is usually all but gone after fermentation takes place. That is why you should always back sweet your mead. Back sweeting is basically adding more sugar after the fermentation has taken place, preferably honey. But don’t just dump it in right away, first add 1/2 teaspoon of potassium sorbate per gallon of mead and and stir to halt fermentation. Potassium sorbate is a common alchemy ingredient and can be collected from common Nirnroot, it does not kill the yeast, but it prevents it from converting anymore sugars into carbon dioxide and alcohol. After 24 additional hours you can add the sweetener to the mead without the risk of additional fermentation and your mead should be sweeter (and better) than before. Good enough to show all *true* Nords of Skyrim that Honningbrew mead is far superior to that swill the Blackbriars are selling in Riften.

[@htf5555]

lmao

[@Nexus-bf3ut]

I feel bamboozled

[@hognigk96]

@@Nexus-bf3ut It's legit advice tho

[@Nexus-bf3ut]

@@hognigk96 It's spreading misinformation-saying shit like Nirnroot is a common ingredient? You should be fined for your crimes

[@NikopolAU]

You got me in the first half :)

[@TheRealRedStripe]

Just a heads up for anyone trying this at home. You really need to let the mead finish fermenting before you put it in a sealed container. Best case the lid pops and the mead overflows, worst case the bottle explodes and sends shard of glass all over. If you want to see if it's finished fermenting, take a gravity reading after bubbling has finished, then wait a few days and take another. If the gravity is still going down, it's not finished.

[@zorgfleeter]

good tip, wish id known that before i did it myself, tho i put them in plastic bottles, once opend it was like a champagne! a thin glass one would def have shatterd

[@gantin100]

I put my bottled mead in a plastic drawer just in case it explodes. That way I dont have a giant mess everywhere.

[@qwormuli77]

@@gantin100 Putting the bottles in the (cleaned) fermentation bucket also works well.

[@TheStraycat74]

@John Smith I'm not a fan of extra chemicals. I mean you do you, but I don't use those and I've only ever had one brew skunk, and one bottle bomb that glass grenade'd in my car as I drove 1,200 miles to my dads house... and since I gave out 15 bottles of mead for x-mas this year, and those bottles were nearly a year old when I gave them away... AND I literally just drank a bottle from that same batch not 5 minutes ago... yeah, I didn't liek this video much.

[@CitySteadingBrews]

@@TheStraycat74 good advice, yet again!

[@CitySteadingBrews]

Bottling that early is dangerous! You need to be SURE fermentation is finished. Take a reading, wait a week, take another. If they haven't changed, it's safe to bottle.

[@pieroocchooa5837]

Is the alcohol methanol or ethanol. Since there is no pasteurization how do you get rid of the methanol

[@CitySteadingBrews]

Piero OCCHooa both are produced in fermentation and you cannot avoid methanol. The amounts are so minor though.

[@ARedMotorcycle]

Do you think he killed his friends because of this?

[@oofig]

@@ARedMotorcycle No

[@AedanBlackheart]

What the hell do you use for this "reading" not all of us make this shit

[@juliuskull]

Saying honey mead is like saying federal FBI

[@KingDomIV]

and this is called a tautology or a tautological statement since it is self evident that mead is made with honey and that the fbi is a federal agency meaning that as you correctly pointed out the first word is unnecessary.

[@Wookie_oo7]

Yeah but what about the local FBI?

[@madamada5293]

Yeah but what about the FBI that sees you in your device camera

[@KingDomIV]

@@Wookie_oo7 there isnt one. It is the federal bureau of investigation... isnt it? cba to look it up.

[@Wookie_oo7]

@@KingDomIV I feel like you may have missed the joke there mate.

[@covered_in_sponges7058]

Got an elder-scrolls cookbook for christmas, has a whole section on meads. Excited to try them out.

[@SymphonyZach]

I need to get me that for my birthday coming up. Didn’t know it had thag in it, like legitimate recipes

[@covered_in_sponges7058]

@@SymphonyZach since last year i've gone all in on mead brewing. Its a great hobby

[@rollychairs]

This is amazing! I had no idea the process was so complex, makes you wonder how we came about doing it in the first place.

[@stoffni]

By accident is the most prominent theory. As it really isnt that complex. If you remove all the "modern" steps, it all just boils down to honey or something sugary in water, along with some luck and TADAH you've found wine.

[@johnoconnell5202]

Like Stoffni comment by accident...a fermentation book by Sandor katz's, describes animals who seek and gorge naturally fermented fruit and get "drunk"(fruit that fell from tree, wild yeast ferments the sugars and water content over time).. I'm sure we stumbled on it similarly, noticed the effects and then figured out how to make it happen and the rest is history. Seems likely.

[@Brad96]

It's not as complicated as it's made to seem here. As with many things you can have 5 crafters in a room and you'll end up with 10 opinions on how it's done. I've made more mead than my house can hold and it's as simple and honey water yeast time.

[@dolphinboi-playmonsterranc9668]

Just like science, mixing stuff until it makes something interesting happen.

[@TheStraycat74]

he made it about 5 times more complex than it needs to be, and he did not allow it to run anywhere NEAR long enough. figure a month to three months in primary AT LEAST. then at least a month in secondary. I use a bottling wand to fill bottles, you do not get oxygen mixed into your brew that way. I also follow a Two-Rack-Rule in that I ALWAYS rack the brew TWICE: once after primary, and once after secondary just before bottling.

[@CitySteadingBrews]

It's SANITIZING not STERILIZING. Very different things. Glad to see the use of Star San!

[@weirjwerijrweurhuewhr588]

Why is it not sterilizing? This is the definition of sterilizing according to Wikipedia: "Sterilization refers to any process that removes, kills, or deactivates all forms of life (in particular referring to microorganisms such as fungi, bacteria, spores, unicellular eukaryotic organisms such as Plasmodium, etc.) and other biological agents like prions present in a specific surface, object or fluid, for example food or biological culture media."

[@timothymcguire5126]

@@weirjwerijrweurhuewhr588 The answer is in the Wikipedia article you gave. The processes he did do not kill ALL forms of life. Many bacteria can survive disinfecting processes like alcohol or other chemicals (that’s why hand wipes kill 99.9% of germs, they disinfect, not sterilize). True sterilization almost always requires a medical grade autoclave. Which is way overkill for food preparation.

[@josedorsaith5261]

Pedantic

[@Starberrycreme]

Mom found the piss jars 😣

[@danielb6505]

LOL!

[@raymondcantlay9875]

Hello, i used to work with a guy who's surname was "LANT", and he was annoying as hell, so i used to call him "Piss-Pot", which he hated. So one day, another worker asked me Why? i simply explained that there was an Old English word:- LANT,or to LANT. Back in days of old, when men were bold,etc, apparently they used to Pee in the container containing the brewing beer, and the yeast,etc in the urine helped,and sometimes even strengthened fermentation,yuk,but probably strong! So, you now have you "Piss-Pot", go make some Beer. Hope it tastes nice? Respects.

[@raymondcantlay9875]

Oooop's "Piss-Jars".

[@claytonanderson692]

@@raymondcantlay9875 since mine is the only like on this extremely like-worthy comment I'm going to venture that I am the only human to have laid eyes upon it. If the Sun dies and earth freezes over and the human race ends never to be revived, I will be honored to be your sole comment liker. thank you for this comment.

[@dimasakbar7668]

@@claytonanderson692 sorry 😉

[@deathtoll206]

Just found my new channel to binge watch. Seems the great KZbin gods chose your coke recipe video to feature today. Keep up the amazing work guys!

[@jacobmacock]

"sterilize" Doesn't wear gloves "sterilize" *Dips hands into container* "sterilize" *Gets hands all over tube for primary fermenter*

[@kbwall92]

You forgot to "sterilize"

[@marsreynolds6157]

Jacob Macock I came here to say the exact same thing

[@Nexus-bf3ut]

@@PoorDummIdiots No, you can't, actually.

[@Nexus-bf3ut]

@@PoorDummIdiots Washing/cleaning your hands and sterilizing them are two different things entirely you dumbass. You *cannot* sterilize your hands-you can however perform surgical scrubs to prevent the growth and spread of bacteria/pathogens. One is vastly different than the other, but regardless, your hands will always have microorganisms on them. You cannot sterilize them as you would a pair of gloves or lab equipment

[@noldos]

After sterilizing the material, my hands are always sterile enough. They for sure smell of the product enough... Sterile is a relative terme Anyways. My hands also end up in the must after I pasteurized it, and I have yet to have a spoiled batch.

[@ryanw2839]

So did you guys sterilize your hands before you realized the ladle wasn’t long enough? 😆

[@LocoCrazyKooKoo]

Walter White, he is not.

[@matthewbittenbender9191]

Ryan W nope. That’s what they call “unique” flavoring.

[@Ap0Kal1ps3]

As a brewer, I can say it's necessary to use food grade sanitiser on everything, including your hands and arms up to your elbows. Sure, you won't get every germ off you, but you will get most of them. Then the yeast will create an environment not suitable for the remaining bacteria. If you don't at least try to wash your hands, you're guaranteed to get some funky alcohol.

[@Murdocr360]

@@Ap0Kal1ps3 Could you not just wear gloves?

[@Ap0Kal1ps3]

@@Murdocr360 Contrary to popular belief, gloves are not a substitute for properly washing your hands when making anything food related. You had to touch the gloves with your hands in order to put them on, and some kinds of common rubber/latex/nitrile gloves can provide a suitable surface for bacteria to grow on. It's also pretty rare to find individually packaged, sterilized gloves. Better to just wash your hands with TSP. It's only about 5 bucks at the hardware store.

[@theastronomer5800]

I have made dozens of meads. Many videos over complicate the process. Just sanitize your carboy, put in honey (I warm the jars up in pot of hot tap water so the honey flows more easily), add spring water half way, mix/shake, top off water, add yeast, mix some more and come back in three months when it's clear to bottle! If you want to complicate it a bit, throw in a handful of dark raisins and brew a black tea to put in (for tannins) at the start.

[@igiveupfine]

thanks for still making videos. you're one of my favorite small time food youtube channels.

[@darksparder6369]

Showing the metric units as well is always nice.

[@mikhailali1972]

this is awesome, would be better if you could itemize in a list all the equipment, apparatus and ingredients used in this video, but all in all cool and educational!

[@girlsgonefishing3758]

Love making mead. Its so fun and tastes so nice

[@stuartsvino2337]

A good straight forward video on making mead,this one i will follow good narrating and the best i have seen.Thanks guys

[@simonanikolova610]

Thank you so much for the links and for everything you explained so well!

[@101RandomPerson101]

this channel is so interesting! just subscribed

[@FlavorLab]

Thank you!

[@Adam-018]

@@FlavorLab i will be a lot happier with a belly full of mead

[@longleaf9943]

Sentences I thought I'd never hear. "The least sexy part of making mead......"

[@carolinablue6987]

r/newsentence

[@davibessa5628]

I just found out about your videos and I loved it! Keep doing it, please! Cheers from Brazil!

[@drizzlemethis9995]

your channel is wild man! keep it up

[@jordan7744]

3rd video ive watched from this channel, awesome content and i really appreciate how in depth you explain the the variables and different aspects of each step, this is extremely helpful as i will actually have reference points going ahead with any experimenting. Thanks man keep it coming :D

[@CitySteadingBrews]

Well, be careful, his methods are a little risky. It's not done fermenting and can actually explode those bottles. Just word to the wise.

[@kinghackettRTC]

All seems actually really simple, besides all the hard stuff

[@NOSLIWKR]

Thanks for the instructions. Bravo!

[@theonlycatonice]

That is awesome that it's a gift that will get better over time!

[@oakleydonohoe8609]

And they thought they could stop me from drinking

[@JiggerzWithAttitude]

I was so excited about the new video I nearly broke my touchpad clicking on it.

[@FlavorLab]

This made me so happy to read. It's because of people like you that I keep chugging on.

[@JiggerzWithAttitude]

@@FlavorLab KZbin recommended your coca-cola video and I subscribed on the spot. I really enjoy your videos (How to Build a Turbo Encabulator is one of my favorites). Thank you!

[@jjesusbelloordaz7356]

Yo aprendí a hacer vino con un señor Italiano que me dio refugio en su casa, en Canadá, y un día aprendí el concepto de hidromiel, tengo ya casi 8 años haciendo hidromiel y nunca dejo de aprender; creo que has hecho un gran trabajo con tu video, es muy interesante y he aprendido mucho, muchas gracias

[@unitunitglue5143]

Looks awesome, well done! 👏

[@fabiolopes7463]

Use a drill with a paint mixer attachment on it for stirring the honey and water mixture, sounds crazy but it’s seriously effective

[@agamemnon8163]

You should get a bottling wand to use conjunction with your bottling bucket, this lets your fill your bottles from the bottom up. There's a risk of oxidization when the mead (or beer) splashed around while being dispensed into the bottles.

[@annadalnoki9396]

Great advice thanks

[@TheDcraft]

Now this I'm going to have to try.

[@victorialee7191]

Wow your whole channel is so fascinating! Just subscribed :)

[@mundanestuff]

The first time I made mead it fermented almost a month, two weeks on primary fermentation, racked to secondary, one week, racked again, one week. It really wasn't even done at a month. I aged it a year in flip top bottles in the basement before sharing at a party. It was amazing. We have a large number of Meaderies in upstate and western new York and the finger lakes region where we live, it's really nice having access to a wide variety of local mead at most liquor stores and to go to festivals and just have mead in bottles for sale. If you ever travel in western new York, lookup a meadery and go visit it

[@rennychenny]

I think the temperature of the brewing environment makes a BIG difference in terms of how quickly the fermentation will progress. Any idea what temp your brew room was? I've had some ferments that are a month long and some that are a week long and even stronger abv than the month long. Hotter the better (as long as it's under 86 degrees some say)

[@mundanestuff]

@@rennychenny chilly. My desk is in the same place the mead fermented the first time, and it's probably 65 tops. Colder than normal room temperature for sure. That ferment was very active though, looked like an alien baby flopping around in a jar.

[@rennychenny]

@@mundanestuff aww. My seemingly most active ferment left me so sad in the end because it still tasted like fruit juice :(

[@LeekClock]

If you didn't want to add flavourings, could you just leave it in the first bucket two weeks longer? Or is it important to separate it from the yeast after two weeks?

[@cocottebayo]

I really like you channel my man, keep up the good work! (this will be my go to channel when we move in our farm and have the room and the time to do everything from scratch! ♥)

[@davidvocal2881]

Found your channel today and literally watched every video cuz 4 am

[@MultiDom20]

I’ve never tried mead but I hope I have a chance too in the future

[@brissiebeaver4382]

Domonick Matheson it is amazing if u do it right

[@rc59191]

You can find it at any good sized liquor store or online. Chaucer's mead comes with a spice pack that tastes amazing when you heat the mead in a saucepan and mix it in.

[@Lelldorin84]

"I sterilized everything" He says as he handles the equipment bare fingered.

[@Kintsurugi]

Plot Twist: The man himself is sterile.

[@Immortal__]

He sounds like a leftist. These types aren't know for their logic.

[@TheStraycat74]

@@Kintsurugi *EDITED* We can only hope His HANDS were sterile as well...

[@TheStraycat74]

@@Immortal__ dude, bad form. we have no idea from this video what his political ideology is, and I personally don;t care. I care about the fact he's giving bad advice, admitting to giving out crappy green (way too young) mead as holiday presents, and using his platform here to suggest to other people to do it his (wrong) way.

[@Immortal__]

@@TheStraycat74 Considering the voice resembles that of a nancy and 99.9% of people with said voice, are on the left of the political spectrum, I'd say it is a completely reasoned and thought-out position.

[@MattykVT]

The hangover from this looks insane

[@SeaJay_Oceans]

Yum. Thank you little bees !

[@katy8188]

Wow, letting me live out the hobbity life of my dreams

[@jmoa5758]

Honningbrew Mead!

[@gretathuumberg]

Do you mean Black-Briar mead?

[@lucianoprokilla]

@@gretathuumberg no there's also honeybrew mead in skyrim

[@thatssovenus]

That nasty swill? I heard the establishment was shut down after the owner tried poisoning the Captain of the Whiterun guard.

[@lucianoprokilla]

@@thatssovenus Lore-friendly responses are the best xD

[@jamesfinch6766]

Thanks for the science class man!

[@Taconmadre95]

Thanks for a great video I’ll this recipe will be my first batch

[@AnunnakiWarrior88]

KZbin offers me everything that I will never make in life

[@latemanparodius5133]

Pretty easy to do it if the thought ever does strike. Bucket, honey, water, yeast. You could even use baking yeast for the same purpose, but it'll stop sooner in the fermenting process.

[@jayozombie5183]

Thanks for sharing that.. moron

[@epictiktoks2555]

@@jayozombie5183 damn g you good?

[@matthewalexandersayers4470]

My two go to metherglins are 1) Juniper berries and raisins amd 2) Ginger, lemon and vanilla. My main melomel is raspberries with juniper berries.

[@yongyea4147]

Matthew Alexander Sayers using snow berries is the preferred method

[@ImSorryYouFoundThis]

Great video as always!

[@kyrkbymannen]

This was a great video! Thanks a bunch!

[@GG-yo2tg]

Do IT as shown and you will get sparkling mead👌

[@Myrejex]

I’d be a lot warmer and a lot happier with a bellyful of mead.

[@noobnoob98noob]

Seems fun might try to do this as a summer projekt.

[@amikatsworld]

This is great!

[@KoBo33451]

This is great! 😃 Granted, I've made mead before and never used yeast nutrient, and the main thing I noticed is that it takes longer for the mead to fully ferment. I once tried using a handful of raisins (about 10 or 12) per gallon, and it helped to speed it up with no noticeable difference in flavor from the raisins. Have you considered trying to make a similar beverage with other sugary foodstuffs like maple syrup of molasses?

[@FlavorLab]

I want to try mollases

[@CoryDLivingston]

Raisins offer negligible nutrients to the Mead and won't have any noticable effect (unless you use enough raisins where you're just making a raisin Mead). The only reason year nutrient would increase Ferment longer is that it is able to digest more of the sugar, and not abruptly stop short of it's full potential. Tldr: there's 0 chance a handful of raisins had more positive influence than nutrient

[@lkeo48845]

The raisins give the mead a different mouthfeel too. I don’t use commercial nutrient at all anymore. I use raisins & lemon. The results are very tasty.

[@InefficientElectron]

Honey mead is redundant. All mead is honey mead.

[@robertfoster3214]

I never heard of this really cool

[@Alice_Bloodborne]

I don't know why. But these video's are really entertaining. I'm definitely subscribing!

[@cronus33]

Couple things to consider at the end: 1. You don't want to aerate that mead by pouring it in roughly like that into the bottles. Should pour it down the side or use a bottling wand. 2. Those bottles could very well be bombs if there is still active years in there. If you let them sit for 6 months they could get pressurized. May want to stir in some potassium sorbate or similar checmical to stop yeast production before bottling.

[@annadalnoki9396]

What does the potassium do and when do you add it how much and does it leave any taste difference

[@LazyBoyA1]

⁠​⁠@@annadalnoki9396it’s the campden tablets, it stops the fermenting process plus prevents it from becoming vinegar, good to add when bottling if you want extra protection

[@Michael20089]

you do not have enough subscribers for how cool your content is

[@wellwelp313]

New to the channel.You got a new subscriber.Keep up the good work.

[@ZagorTeNayebo]

I usually make riesling wine and im really stoked to try making some mead

[@arlarl5122]

Honey mead is something like egg scrambled eggs.

[@nathanhunt9105]

You should have made some with juniper berries mixed in.

[@yongyea4147]

Nathan Hunt you mean snow berries

[@nathanhunt9105]

@@yongyea4147 No, Ralof specifically says Vilod makes his mead with juniper berries mixed in.

[@dandeberry]

Nathan Hunt you prefer the black briars mead or the honningbrew brotha?

[@dnugearl2549]

Nice and thorough 🤙

[@Kim-learns-to-fly]

So helpful! Thanks!

[@Warfeather]

Sterilize everything!!!! Puts hand in bucket while stirring haha

[@Hamza-es8ve]

After all it doesn't matter eventually any bacteria in the mead will die from alcohol in the mead

[@TheDrewjameson]

"You have to sterilize everything" (dips hands in) :)

[@vinnyc.1265]

You do realize you can wash your hands right?

[@bootsandboxers5079]

I've been drinking meed for 20 year's it's great

[@user-us6ce7me8k]

Awesome! Happy 2020! 🎆✨

[@FlavorLab]

Thank you!

[@jamiebetts3923]

Just wondering how they sanitized things back in the day.

[@weirjwerijrweurhuewhr588]

Imagine them crushing grapes with their feet..

[@Vypren]

Sterilises Equipment before use Submerges hand in water-honey mixture 😂

[@dolphinboi-playmonsterranc9668]

Really helps get that log chopper taste

[@LloydMajor]

Real cool!

[@blade913]

All I did was use one gallon plastic jugs of distilled water for this, poured out the water i was going to replace with honey, and added the yeast. Being disinfectant happy of course. Came out with a good mead, I let it sit in the jugs for 3 months. Shared with lots of people, lots of people happy with it and liked it, some willing to pay me for it lol. Course I can't really sell it after all.

[@wanderinwolf3804]

you could give it to them as a gift, but happily accept donations to "the growing mead fund". Then at that point, its all personal use and you can still get some extra money on the side lol

[@blade913]

@@wanderinwolf3804 I tend to just provide to family, they donate to the cause. And just give away to friends in return they offer their opinion on them, flavors and all.

[@marcusjones457]

"At this point you can drink it, it will just taste like cheap wine" Nope, it'll taste like piss and kerosene 😂

[@thegrim418]

My drink of choice

[@bengarbaag7114]

ever had thunderbird?

[@dolphinboi-playmonsterranc9668]

@@bengarbaag7114 What's the word?

[@knightmare39]

@@dolphinboi-playmonsterranc9668 How’s it sold?

[@arlarl5122]

I personally think mead tastes like medicine, unless you put more honey in it when you bottle it - after putting potassium sorbet in first of course.

[@toddsedlak]

Out of curiosity, since everything has to be sterilized why doesn't it matter that you're adding non -sterile flavor components like oranges and raisins?

[@SgtRamen]

Todd Sedlak if you really want to be a crackhead about rogue yeast you can sterilize your fruit or rinds with star San before placing them into the mead, but honestly this is more of a preference than a necessity. I personally just give them a rinse in some filtered water

[@beckmallon3953]

the process of making any alcohol includes fermenting and if you have unwanted bacteria in your vessel and you leave your alcohol to ferment, you're also letting that bacteria ferment and form a culture which can make you ill

[@Rhobyn]

There are a bunch of fermentation recipes that rely on whatever yeast is in the air and on the products. I wouldn't worry about it too much. If a batch contains significant amounts of the stuff you shouldn't consume, you will likely see/smell/taste it. Kinda like a petri dish. Also your alcohol content should be killing off a significant amount of weird stuff.

[@noldos]

I usually blanch everything for a few seconds in boiling water if it doesn't loose too much flavor in the process. Maybe I'm just paranoid. There shouldn't be any health issues though, it just might not taste very nice or even turn to vinegar. There are yeasts that introduce "notes" of manure, rancid butter or vomit... No thank you.

[@emmaayla5889]

Another idea is that the high sugar content will not allow the bacteria to survive regardless. The types of bacteria that survive on fruit rinds/nuts etc cant live without enough water. Sugar makes them lose their ability to absorb water therefore killing them. Same goes for salt. Thats why things like jams /preserves dont (usually) grow mold/go bad. Im thinking it could be a similar concept with this.

[@waldllwyn139]

Adding more honey than needed in your primary can a shock the yeast too, it’s best to back sweeten after it’s stabilized if you desire a sweet mead

[@hitman911946]

Such nice pre-covid nostalgia

[@davidigleniec2483]

I feel like im 15 again and want to grow pot in a closet, but as an adult with mead in my basement.

[@user-zu4us2gx7x]

God of War: Ragnarök.

[@matheusmota1618]

My favourite drinking buddy, Let's get some mead!

[@justyouraveragezoomer]

There are approximately 171,476 words in the english language and i cannot strain any of them together to express how much i love you

[@puravidadew7031]

All that sterilization and then you ended up putting your hand into the solution.

[@insaneweasel1]

What microorganism can live in honey? It is a dessicant and should kill most little buggers.

[@FlavorLab]

From what I read there can be spores within honey, I guess this is the reason you can't give honey to babies. The Camden tablets may have been overkill though, you're right for the most part honey is fairly sanitary.

[@GG-yo2tg]

But you would get a sour mead when fungi are growing in it

[@thatssovenus]

Bacteria spores.

[@TheKenttt]

My roommate in college once made bootleg wine in a water cooler jug (those blue ones in offices) using grapes, bread yeast, and other ingredients. He actually bottled it, and gave me one. Never drank it, and after watching this process, I'm glad i didn't.

[@glitchysquid1137]

Just discovered the channel. It's like NileRed, but with food/biochemistry. Very nice

[@FlavorLab]

Thank you!

[@MrAggezzz]

You shouldn't bottle like that, you introduce a lot of oxygen to the mead and the oxygen in contact with ethanol becomes vinegar so you should use bottleing wand to introduce less oxygen. There are a lot of small mistakes you make but mead is pretty resistant to them.

[@latemanparodius5133]

It's not the oxygen itself, but other microbes that use the oxygen to make it into vinegar. ...but even vinegar has its uses, right? Might take a while to use 5 gallons of it, though. Salad dressings, hot sauces, vinegar pickling, a dash here and there when cooking...

[@Morlev44]

fermenting in plastic bucket? eww

[@MJsKitchen]

Very new idea for me

[@danielray1484]

My specialty is honey-appleshine I never use yeast nutrition. No problems fermenting, just takes 2 or 3 days to really start Also doing the same thing (making Christmas gifts) but distilling it.👌

[@SirRipster]

honey appleshine? that sounds amazing, is it just fermenting withh both apple and honey?

[@annadalnoki9396]

So what do you use instead of feminization yeast he used the Champlain yeast which gives a higher alcohol content

[@3Y3ECE]

Good video, but i would like to mention a couple of things, just for another perspective. 1- if you use a glass carboy, 5 or 6 gallon, the flavor will pop a lot more. Plastics and rubbers have a negative impact on the flavor, that ive noticed so far. 2- along the same premise, use cork stoppers and glass airlocks. These are much more expensive than the plastic locks and rubber stoppers, but again, the difference in flavor is extremely noticeable. Now real mead is just honey, when you add fruit juices or actual fruit, its now called a melomel. I do suggest you let it sit at least 6 months, and give them regular stirs or shakes to revive the yeast, and reintroduce the heavy sugars resting on the bottom. My next setup is going to have an electromagnetic bar stirrer so i can plop in a sterilized magnet, put the jug on the magnetic stirrer plate and really blend together all the elements again, for the first week or so. Great video, and i appreciate the heavy emphasis on sterilization. But do use longer ladels, skin does not belong in your brew! Now i cant wait to make more!!

[@nox5555]

I would use Lab magnets, they are easy to sterilize and dont bleed anything into anything.

[@AberBraham]

I'm tired. Read this as "How to make money head".

[@Akamaholic]

Nice

[@spookbuster4862]

My Faaaavorite drinkin buddy, let's get some Mead!

[@amberkat8147]

I would like to start brewing at home. It seems like a hobby that doesn't require a lot of space, just time.

[@FlavorLab]

It depends on how simple you want to go. Beer brewing equipment can take up a lot of space, mead is a little easier