'Nutrient' for honey mead [Booze]

2015 Mar 25
When I was in the second grade, I bought a honey cookbook from the Ontario Bee Keepers Association. It had a recipe in it for Honey Mead, which I've been wanting to make since about the 8th grade. ;-)

Now that I'm 'all growed up' and have my own bee hives, I'd like to tackle making mead this fall.

But, the recipe calls for 'Nutrient'. Would that be brewers yeast? I'm thinking not, because the recipe also calls for yeast.

Any ideas?


2015 Mar 25
Helps to feed the yeast

www.northernbrewer.com

2015 Mar 25
Defalco's carries it

EDIT: I would also personally not add the acid nor the orange juice. There are 2 schools of mead : (1) those who think mead should have similar characteristics to wine, and (2) those who think a mead is a think on its own.

Folks who add acids are in (1). I'm in (2)

2015 Mar 26
Thank you both! That is very helpful. :-)

2015 Mar 26
Slightly off topic (and forgive me for not being familiar with this process), but can one use any type of liquid sweetener to make mead?

Let's be honest, I'm thinking maple syrup here.

2015 Mar 27
Not quite the same thing, but I've got friends who make beer using sap instead of water.

2015 Mar 27
Maple...beer? I must procure this immediately.

2015 Mar 27
A few of the local breweries do this. I think Big Rig, but I'm not sure of anyone else.

2015 Mar 27
Yes you can use maple syrup. Sap is not nearly as good because the largest part of the maple syrup flavour comes from the carmelization of boiling it down.

2015 Mar 27
Fermented maple bits are called acer. Have seen mixed reviews of it and while you could get a wine strength from it, mead is generally preferable especially if aged. Now distilling it would be something else :)

2015 Mar 27
A few impositions from my unrefined mead making experience:

6 months is really nothing. You're looking at a year if you really want it to settle down, sweeten and be really drinkable. Keeping a few bottles to try every 6 months is a good way to understand its development.

To avoid an overly dry mead you can back sweeten once fermentation appears to subside and the yeast drops out however the introduction of new honey may restart fermentation and induce carbonation.

Adding fruit makes it a melomel, which can be delicious but really hides any of the "mead" flavour.

I buy nutrient at defalcos but sometimes omit it with similar results. In my experience its more of an insurance policy.

Honey + water + yeast + lots of time = :)


2015 Mar 28
Yes I have also made it with just honey and yeast and nothing else - no nutrient or anything. It generally takes longer to ferment that way but will still get the job done.

I find 6 months quite drinkable but it definitely improves with age.

I recently found a full keg of 8 year old mead in my basement - forgot I had it! That didn't last very long, unfortunately.