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Mead Lovers Digest #0626
Subject: Mead Lover's Digest #626, 26 December 1997
From: mead-request@talisman.com
Mead Lover's Digest #626 26 December 1997
Forum for Discussion of Mead Making and Consuming
Dick Dunn, Digest Janitor
Contents:
Re: Commercial Meads and Wassail (blood@teleport.com)
Re: Mead Lover's Digest #625, 23 December 1997 (CMatt609)
Re: Homemade v Professional (CLSAXER)
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Subject: Re: Commercial Meads and Wassail
From: blood@teleport.com
Date: Tue, 23 Dec 1997 00:42:01 -0800 (PST)
Thank you Mr. Thaddaeus Vick for defending my original post, which was not
in the least meant to be overly derisive of commercial meads. I simply
stated my opinions, many of which have been echoed by others. Having made
mead for 4 years now, some of it prize-winning, and having sampled
commercial ones both here and over in Europe, I think I am quite able to
identify a good mead.
If anything, my post was complimenting two commercial meaderies, L'Abeille
and Life Force, which others have criticized to one degree or another. But,
as Mr. Vick said, none of us should be surprised that we can brew superior
meads on our own--yes, that's why we're here!
I would love to see more commercial meaderies in action, and that goes for
the Cask & Hive as well. More power to them! In fact, I help edit the
"Brewer's Notes" feature in a magazine called _Vor Tru_, which covers
ancient Northern European culture and religion. The publication is up to
Issue 57, and has been around for 15 years or so. The publisher has been
brewing mead since the 70's himself, when it was _truly_ a 'lost art'.
One plan I have been pursuing for future issues of the Brewer's Notes is to
try to publicize commercial meaderies. We are hoping to feature an
interview with Life Force, as well as L'Abeille, who we'll be visiting next
month. We'd be happy to write about the Cask & Hive sometime too. If any
MLD readers are aware of other commercial meaderies, or distributors
carrying imported meads, I would love to hear from them.
If anyone is interested in how to get a sample issue of _Vor Tru_, they may
email me offlist and I'll provide the details. World Tree Publications, who
put out Vor Tru, also make available an excellent "Mead Brewer's Handbook"
which is one of the best introductions for someone new to brewing mead. The
last issue's Brewer's Notes featured an in-depth interview about mead yeast
culturing with Dave Logsdon, who is the microbiologist behind Wyeast Labs.
On a different note, someone recently commented that the spice mulling bag
which Chaucer's Mead encourages cutomers to employ may be partly there to
hide any off tastes from the substandard stuff in the bottle. This is
probably true. However, this past weekend we celebrated Yule and decided to
make a Wassail using a Black Cherry Mead that I had done with a friend. We
steeped it for 15 minutes or so on low heat, covered, with the traditional
spices and orange peel, etc. Absolutely fantastic results! I think any mead
done with berries would work equally well.
Wassail!
Michael Moynihan
blood@teleport.com
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Subject: Re: Mead Lover's Digest #625, 23 December 1997
From: CMatt609 <CMatt609@aol.com>
Date: Tue, 23 Dec 1997 11:16:14 EST
i am looking for a cider, or cyser recipee that will end up with a product
that tastes like some of the english ciders now on the market, like woodpecker
cider. i'm thinking a little honey could be added to give some more kick, but
not enough to be real meady, just enough for a little extra kick. any
suggestions
------------------------------
Subject: Re: Homemade v Professional
From: CLSAXER <CLSAXER@aol.com>
Date: Tue, 23 Dec 1997 12:46:05 EST
In MLD 625 Thaddaeus A. Vick wrote,
> With all due respect to any individual purveyor of commercial potables,
> I suggest that this is a simple fact of the process of producing anything in
> quantity. I would rank the lowest quality homemade beers and meads I have
> tasted at least equal with the finest commercial equivalents I have tasted.
While I agree that homebrewed beers and meads can be as good, or better than,
anything commercially produced, I do not believe it is true with wine. Having
tasted uncountable gallons of homemade and professionally made wines I believe
the professionals win hands down. I have never tasted any homemade wines that
compare to a French Premiere Grand Cru, or a Bernkasteler Doktor Auslese
Eiswein or ...
I believe that a commercial meaderies are capable of reaching this level of
the art, but do not as yet have the experience and perhaps the patience to do
so. I realize that being a commercial meadery means having to get the bills
paid to keep the doors open. I also believe that the great wineries show that
there are ways to to achieve greatness in meadmaking too. The two arts are
very simular.
I would love to be able to go down to the local wine shop and spend $75
dollars on a commercial mead for a special occasion, and feel like I got a
good deal.
Right now I go to my homemade mead cellar for that special occasion, and
believe me, while there are some very tasty meads down there, none of them
compare to a Premiere Grand Cru or a Bernkasteler Doktor.
My apologies to any home wine makers who are able to make wines of First Great
Growth quality. There are probably some of you out there somewhere. To you I
say, "May I try some of your wine? Why aren't you making mead?!"
Wassail & Happy Holidays!
Carl Saxer
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End of Mead Lover's Digest #626
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