Mead Starter Kit
Ready to start making mead?
We've put together a simple mead starter kit with the equipment, yeast and nutrient you need to create you first batch of mead. Just add water and honey.
So how does mead making work?
Mead is made by combining honey with water, creating a “must." Yeast is then added to the must, followed by the (usually staggered) addition of nutrients. The must is left to ferment, allowing the yeast to convert the fermentable sugars into alcohol. Once fermented, depending on your desired outcome, the mead can be carbonated, backsweetened, or aged on oak anywhere from a few months to a few years.
Mead making can be simplified into a few simple steps:
Cleaning & Sanitising
Arguably the most important part of the mead making process, proper cleaning and sanitisation of your equipment gives your mead its best chance at success. All equipment should be cleaned and sanitised before and after use to avoid contamination of your batch. Follow the instructions on your brewing friendly detergent and sanitiser for best results.
Mix honey and water, then add yeast
Honey and water are added to a fermenter and mixed until dissolved, creating a must. Yeast is added to the must to kick start the fermentation process whereby the yeast will covert the fermentable sugars present in the honey into alcohol and CO2.
Add Nutrients and Ferment (then add more nutrients)
Nutrients are added to the must alongside yeast at the start of fermentation. Depending on the recipe, they are also added throughout the fermentation process – this is commonly referred to as staggered nutrient additions (SNA). We recommend this approach, as it ensures the yeast is provided with adequate nutrition throughout fermentation. Some recipes may suggest adding all the nutrient with the yeast, however this can sometimes result in the nutrient flocculating out before the yeast is able to use it, resulting in a halted fermentation, off-flavours, and other flaws.
Fermentation temperature is also important in keeping the yeast happy – ensure you follow the temperatures stated on the yeast packet. Depending on the recipe and fermentation temperature, the mead should finish fermenting in 1-4 weeks, depending on the recipe and fermentation conditions.
Bottle and/or Age
Once fermentation is complete and the mead has cleared, you can bottle your mead or go on to age it. If ageing, use a cleaned and sanitised siphon to transfer the mead (taking care not to disturb the sediment) into a secondary vessel like a glass demijohn or jar, and oak it to your taste or recipe specifications.
Once aged (or if you’re skipping this step), your mead can be bottled. Using a cleaned and sanitised siphon, transfer the mead off into cleaned and sanitised bottle/s, taking care not to disturb the sediment.
Recipes
Below are some recipes you can use to get started. As you progress in your mead making journey, you may find that you want to tweak your process and try different honey varieties, different quantities of honey, or different yeast amounts. We would suggest using a mead batch builder to make sure you are using appropriate amounts of honey, yeast, and nutrient.
Sparkling Dry Mead
Ingredients:
- 500 g honey
- ~2.65 L water (to reach 3 L total)
- 2 g MJ Mead Yeast (1/5 sachet) (re-seal and store in fridge)
- Expected ABV: 6-7%
Nutrient Schedule:
- Day 0: ¼ tsp (1.25g) Nutrient
- Day 1: ¼ tsp (1.25g) Nutrient
- Day 2: ¼ tsp (1.25g) Nutrient
Method:
- Clean and sanitise the jar, lid, airlock, and a mixing spoon.
- Place the stick on thermometer on the jar.
- Add honey to the jar along with 1 L of warm (not hot) water. Mix until dissolved.
- Top up to 3 L with cool water and mix well. Sprinkle in the yeast and first dose of nutrient.
- Secure the lid and fit the airlock (half filled with previously boiled and cooled water). Leave to ferment for 1 day.
- One day after pitching the yeast, sprinkle in the second nutrient dose.
- Two days after pitching the yeast, sprinkle in the third nutrient dose.
- Continue to ferment until complete – the airlock should stop bubbling and a hydrometer reading (if using) should be stable over two days.
- Once fermentation is complete and the mead has cleared, clean and sanitise the syphon and use it to transfer the clear mead to 750 ml bottles.
- Put 1/3 tsp (1.4 g) of sugar into each bottle, seal, and store in a cool dark place to allow it to carbonate.
Note: This recipe can be left still, however we recommend carbonating it to add more body to the finished drink.
Semi-Sweet Mead (can be made sweeter):
- 1 kg honey
- ~2.3 L water (to reach 3 L total)
- 2 g MJ Mead Yeast (1/5 sachet) (re-seal and store in fridge)
- Expected ABV: 14-15%
Higher ABV Nutrient Schedule:
- Day 0: ¼ tsp (1.25 g) Nutrient
- Day 2: ¼ tsp (1.25 g) Nutrient
- Day 4: ¼ tsp (1.25 g) Nutrient
- Day 6: ¼ tsp (1.25 g) Nutrient
Method:
- Clean and sanitise the jar, lid, airlock, and a mixing spoon.
- Place the stick on thermometer on the jar.
- Add honey to the jar along with 1 L of warm (not hot) water. Mix until dissolved.
- Top up to 3 L with cool water and mix well. sprinkle in yeast and first dose of nutrient.
- Secure the lid and fit the airlock (half filled with previously boiled and cooled water). Leave to ferment for 2 days.
- Two days after pitching the yeast, sprinkle in the second nutrient dose.
- Four days after pitching the yeast, sprinkle in the third nutrient dose.
- Six days after pitching the yeast, sprinkle in the fourth nutrient dose.
- Continue to ferment until complete – the airlock should stop bubbling and a hydrometer reading (if using) should be stable over two days.
- Once fermentation is complete and the mead has cleared, clean and sanitise the syphon and use it to transfer the clear mead to bottles or ageing vessel.
- Put 1/3 tsp (1.4 g) of sugar into each bottle, seal, and store in a cool dark place to allow it to carbonate.
Back Sweetening
Follow the below steps if you’d like to back sweeten your mead (note, you will need to purchase additional ingredients if you wish to do this):
- Wait for stable gravity readings.
- 24 hours after fermentation is complete, add 1 Campden tablet (0.44 g) and wait 24 hours.
- After 24 hours, add ½ tsp (2 g) potassium sorbate and wait 24 hours.
- Make a honey syrup using 100 g honey and 100 g warm water.
- Start by adding 50 ml of syrup to your mead and taste. Add more in 25 ml increments until desired sweetness is reached.
- Rest for few days.
- Bottle (note this cannot be carbonated with sugar).
Additions
Mead is an excellent canvas for your creativity, allowing for the addition of fruit, spices, oak, or botanicals. To learn more about different styles, view our blogs Introduction to Mead Part 1 and Introduction to Mead Part 2.
There are no hard and fast rules for how to add fruit or other flavour additions to your mead – you could try adding dried herbs and flowers like lavender or rose, or you experiment by fermenting the honey with other sugar sources like molasses or maple syrup for a more complex flavour. The world is your oyster!
Taking a Specific Gravity (SG) Reading
While taking a specific gravity reading isn’t always necessary, it is required if you are wanting to know the alcohol volume (ABV) of your mead, and if you would like to back sweeten your mead. The most commonly used tool to measure specific gravity is a 'Hydrometer'.
How to read a Hydrometer
The standard gravity readings on a hydrometer are denoted by numbers, starting with 1.000, and incrementing by 10, 20, 30, and so on. These numbers represent 1.010, 1.020, 1.030, and so forth.
The point where the liquid level meets the hydrometer scale is your reading. For example, if the mead is at the spot where the arrow is pointing on the hydrometer below, your reading will be 1.040.
ABV Calculator
Estimate your alcohol content