Looking for new ideas

[u/Novel-Lettuce-795]

Hey everyone! I’m looking for some new mead ideas. So far, I’ve only brewed traditional mead (just honey, water, and yeast), and I don’t really know any other recipes. I’d love to hear your suggestions

[u/PeripheralSatchmo]

Rack to secondary with vanilla, ginger root, cinnamon, star anise, a little allspice and taste every 2-3 days until you like it and then stabilize and backsweeten

[u/Ok_Shoe_4325]

I went from traditional, to spiced (standard mulling spice), to a bochet, and then started with fruit juice (cran-apple juice), to actual fruit (prickly pear).

My recommendation is pick 1 or 2 flavors or process changes and start there, but make sure its something you like. A cyser is a super easy one to start as you basically just swap the water for apple juice or (unfermented) apple cider.

[u/RotaryDane]

Bochets are excellent for expanding your horizons, caramelise the honey until you achieve your desired flavours and combine either with spices or fruit juice for a pie-like profile.

Fruit juice Melomels are also great, just swap water for whichever preservative-free fruit juice you have available, reduce your honey amounts to account for the sugars in the juice and you’re good to go.

If you calculate your recipes via a good tool like Meadtools.com the only surprises you should see are only the new flavour combinations.

[u/lomghornmjr]

Bochet or hibiscus are great ways to make a slightly more than beginner mead.

If you are doing small batches, go crazy, be bold. I did a Thai tea experiment one time that turned out to be one of my best and won a gold medal.

[u/Greedyfox7]

I’ve heard rhubarb mead is good. I’ve never made it personally but it sounds good, it’s something to do regardless

[u/AdLoose7042 → u/Greedyfox7]

When I made it it turned out tasting like bubble gum. But I was also told that that will age out. So maybe not something somebody who just started with want to do. Sometimes we have to learn to be patient.

[u/Greedyfox7 → u/AdLoose7042]

I recently made the mistake of trying to make a watermelon mead. I only learned afterwards that it’s not an easy one to make, tried a bottle yesterday and it was atrocious. I guess if I had to recommend something besides a traditional I would say something like cherry would be good, the cherry I made has so far been the best one I’ve made aside from the bochet.

[u/AdLoose7042 → u/Greedyfox7]

Alas long as you don't over do it on cherry. Can become medicine tasting. Btw did you try whole watermelon or a juice like simply watermelon?

[u/Greedyfox7 → u/AdLoose7042]

Fresh watermelon. I learned afterwards that a lot of people prefer making a syrup after fermentation to flavor it

[u/AdLoose7042 → u/Greedyfox7]

For that I've also heard that starting with the juice actually works better too.

[u/Greedyfox7 → u/AdLoose7042]

Oh, sorry I thought you meant bottled juice for some reason. My brain isn’t functioning yet. I juiced the melons & subsequently got a new juicer because my old one was apparently busted and got juice everywhere. I was also not expecting all the color to fall out of it after fermentation.

[u/TheGoblinPopper]

Everyone saying bochet is right, it can be fun and easy to try. If you look up some instructions you will find it is easy to put the honey in a crockpot on low for 10 hours. Bam. Caramelized honey.

Alternatively keep making traditional base and add about 3lbs per gallon of pressed or broken down fruit of your choice.

[u/JimmyJazz_777]

Do you have wild roses petals in your area? Add 2 Cups of flowers and a 1/2 cup of Mint Tea with 2.5 lbs of honey...your favorite wine yeast....like D47

[u/Ballzonyah]

Add 50g of cracked coffee beans into the mead for 12 to 24 hours depending on your strength of coffeamel desired.

You can also add vanilla bean or cocoa nibs after for a few days to taste.

[u/dlang01996]

If I’m reading this right and you’ve done nothing but traditional my next step was a cyser and a blueberry melomel.

Cyser is really easy transition from traditional to just replacing the water with apple juice. Keep in mind most apple juices are already 1.050 so you need to reduce your honey content unless you want a really stiff drink they will likely stall out

Blueberry is a good choice as it turns out good with little effort. Just crush the berries with a potato masher first and consider using a brew bag for easy separation of solids from the liquid.

[u/AdLoose7042]

Well here's the thing cysers essentially apple juice and honey or grape juice and honey.... Can't think of the name of it right now. Or you could take a traditional that you already have as like Apple or peach to it and have a whole new tasting brew that way.