Mead from Old Honey
Fragrant, amber-colored, and delicious — perfect for a festive table! This homemade mead is a great way to use up old honey you'd otherwise toss. It's easy to make at home, and you can use honey that has crystallized or even started to ferment.
Cooking method
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Step 1:
How do you make mead from old honey? Start by measuring out your old honey. Mine is very old — it's been sitting around for about 8 years. Over that time it has darkened considerably and even developed some sediment. No worries: honey like this works perfectly.
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Step 2:
Also measure out the raisins, hops, and yeast. It's best to buy the hops and yeast from a specialty (homebrew) shop. My hops are pelletized, and the yeast is made specifically for mead.
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Step 3:
Pour the measured water into a pot and bring it to a boil. Dissolve the honey in the water and simmer everything together over low heat for 5–7 minutes. Foam will rise to the surface as it cooks — skim it off. Then let the liquid cool to lukewarm.
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Step 4:
Pour it into a slightly larger glass jar. Add the raisins (unwashed), yeast, spices, and hops. Stir well.
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Step 5:
Cover the jar with a layer of cheesecloth and set it in a warm place to ferment for a few days — about 5–7 days.
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Step 6:
Once fermentation is finished, strain the mead through several layers of cheesecloth. Pour the liquid into bottles and seal them tightly. Store the bottles in a cool, dark place for 2–3 months to age.
- Old honey that's been stored badly doesn't have to be thrown out or distilled. You can turn it into something far tastier and more wholesome — mead.
- Mead is one of the oldest fermented honey drinks, and it practically makes itself. The key is getting the ingredient ratios right. Young mead, drunk right after fermentation, tastes a lot like a light fermented soda and is only about 2–3% ABV. To make it stronger, you need to give it time to age. Glass bottles or wooden barrels are best for aging. For a more refined aroma, you can add fragrant herbs and spices or dried or fresh berries. The longer the mead ages, the stronger it gets. Centuries ago, mead was aged in oak barrels for as long as fifty years and opened only for special occasions.
- For the best results, use filtered or bottled water with a neutral taste. Tap water can give the drink an off, characteristic flavor.
- Since everyone's tolerance for salt, sweetness, bitterness, heat, acidity, and pungency is different, always add spices and seasonings to your own taste. If you're using a spice for the first time, remember that some are easy to overdo (chili pepper, for example).
Caloric content of the products possible in the composition of the dish
- Honey - 400 kcal/100g
- Pressed yeast - 109 kcal/100g
- Raisins - 280 kcal/100g
- Kishmish - 279 kcal/100g
- Water - 0 kcal/100g
- Spices dry - 240 kcal/100g
- Hops - 0 kcal/100g
