Mead by Any Other Name

There is a lot of confusion around the word "Mead". A lot of people only vaguely heard of it and most of the time it evokes an image of a bunch of rough vikings sitting around with big mugs of nasty tasting brew. But nothing could be further from the truth.

Mead is an astonishing delicate and wonderful drink. It is wine that is brewed from honey. It is not a vicious concotion of strange ingredients. If you have tried mead then you know what I am talking about. If you haven't tried it then you are missing out on something.

But, let me delve into the real subject of this article. Mead comes in many different variations and I want to explain these variations.

Melomel: This is a mead that has fruit added either in the ferment or afterward. There are as many variations as there are fruits.

Cyser: This is a mead that is fermented with some derivative of apples such as apple cider, juice or or cider.

Pyment: This is a mead that is either sweetened or fermented with grapes. Yup! This can also work in the opposite way in that you make a wine and then flavor it with honey! Still called Pyment.

Metheglin: This is mead that is flavored with spices or herbs.

Braggot: Mead that is made with malted grain or malted barlety

Sack mead: A strong mead made with extra honey

capsicumel: Mead made with Chili Peppers

hippocras: Mead made with Honey, grapes, and spices

Mora: Honey and Mulberries

Rhodomel: honey with attar, a rose petal distillate

You see that mead is so much more than just a honey wine? It is a drink of amazing range and possibilities. There are lots of ways you can enhance and enrich your mead and because it is well over a thousand years old there are many ways it has been done.