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Where can I purchase some Mead


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#1 Jdtirado

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Posted 13 August 2012 - 10:33 AM

I may want to try to give this a go, but I would need to taste it first to make sure it is what I want.

#2 MtnBrewer

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Posted 13 August 2012 - 10:51 AM

Dirty John's has a pretty fair selection. I don't know many of those brands but the Polish meads should all be really good.

#3 Jdtirado

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Posted 13 August 2012 - 10:51 AM

That's a tough one for you in Virginia, I'm afraid. Just avoid Chaucer's.You should be able to find some Blacksnake Meadery, they won several medals. That's probably your best bet.

Thanks I see several places close buy. If I'm going to do this, I think that I will start with one gallon batches. I like the simplicity of it. I am sure that it may get complicated with the different recipes.

#4 Genesee Ted

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Posted 13 August 2012 - 07:25 PM

Another thing to consider is to trade someone for a couple of bottles. Man, if I knew where HighTest was at, I would point you his way. That dude sent me some amazing stuff on a handful of occasions. After my wedding, I should have some of my sparkling cyser left. If that is the case, I will pack up a 12 oz for you. All that being said, commercial meads are notoriously iffy. We actually have a few good mead producers in Upstate NY, but I doubt they distribute very widely outside the state. A lot of them are on the Finger Lakes Wine Trail, so some only are available at the producer. The best meads I have ever had have all been homebrewed. YMMV. Another thing to consider is the width and depth of the flavors in mead. There are so many types and styles of mead that it is hard to say exactly *what mead tastes like*. Anywhere from still to sparkling, sweet to dry. Any number of flavor additions. Each varietal of honey tastes different. For the creative fermentationoligist, mead is a really fun playground. Also, they are so easy to make that they practically beg you to make them. So much easier than beer. Mix and go pretty much at its' simplest. Now you do need to make sure that you somewhat follow the Staggered Nutrient Addition schedule for best results, but SAN is easy.Also.... mead has been known for millenia to be an aphrodisiac. Hence the etymology of the term "Honeymoon". Traditional wedding gift was enough mead for the newlyweds to consume for a full moon cycle to encourage fertility. Jus' sayin!

#5 MtnBrewer

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Posted 13 August 2012 - 08:45 PM

That's true. There are all these boutique meaderies popping up. I see them at wine festivals. Used to be just Redstone.

#6 Genesee Ted

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Posted 13 August 2012 - 09:51 PM

That's true. There are all these boutique meaderies popping up. I see them at wine festivals. Used to be just Redstone.

Funny how Redstone got all that hype... The few I have had from them I thought were middle of the road at best. Like I said before, we have some good producers here. I had a great sparkling mead the other day, but the producer escapes me. Still, the best I have had has been from homebrewers. My club has a lot of great meadmakers. When I was working in Buffalo, there was a guy out there who was a crotchety old bastard, but gott dang if he didn't know mead. The stuff he brought around was great. Point being, perhaps it is easier to find good commercial mead these days, but good luck just walking into a liquor store looking for it.

#7 MtnBrewer

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Posted 14 August 2012 - 07:31 AM

Funny how Redstone got all that hype... The few I have had from them I thought were middle of the road at best. Like I said before, we have some good producers here. I had a great sparkling mead the other day, but the producer escapes me. Still, the best I have had has been from homebrewers. My club has a lot of great meadmakers. When I was working in Buffalo, there was a guy out there who was a crotchety old bastard, but gott dang if he didn't know mead. The stuff he brought around was great. Point being, perhaps it is easier to find good commercial mead these days, but good luck just walking into a liquor store looking for it.

Yeah, absolutely. It would have to be someplace like Dirty John's to have any sort of selection. Even around here, about all you find in stores is Redstone and Chaucer. :crazy: Redstone isn't bad really, it's just that a commercial meadery can't do things economically the way we'd do them. So they use fruit juice or fruit concentrate, they use middle of the road honey, etc. A well-made homemade mead will always be better than something like Redstone. Some of the smaller ones, like Scott for example, can afford to use better ingredients.

#8 Genesee Ted

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Posted 14 August 2012 - 01:48 PM

If I wasn't sort of low on properly aged mead, I would suggest a mead trade circle.

#9 ScottS

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Posted 14 August 2012 - 07:08 PM

If I wasn't sort of low on properly aged mead, I would suggest a mead trade circle.

I was supposed to quit the day job and go on a mead-making binge. Then we decided to move, so laying down some mead doesn't make sense. Now I'm 9 months minimum away from getting some going again. :stabby:

#10 glennh2os

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Posted 15 August 2012 - 04:43 AM

Suggestion of a place to try right down the road from youhttps://www.virginiawine.org/wineries/hill-top-berry-farm-and-wineryIgnore the wine (unless you like fruit wines etc..) they are a great meadery too. Last visit I made was a couple years ago so YMMVAlso hit that main link (the virginiawine.org) Tons of stuff has cropped up since the last time I was up there (cideries , more wineries etc..). I suspect you might find more meaderies have cropped up too. If you are ever down in this area I'd strongly suggest Starrlight meadery in Pittsboro NC. Great people running the place, great mead also!

#11 Jdtirado

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Posted 15 August 2012 - 04:47 AM

Suggestion of a place to try right down the road from youhttps://www.virginiawine.org/wineries/hill-top-berry-farm-and-wineryIgnore the wine (unless you like fruit wines etc..) they are a great meadery too. Last visit I made was a couple years ago so YMMVAlso hit that main link (the virginiawine.org) Tons of stuff has cropped up since the last time I was up there (cideries , more wineries etc..). I suspect you might find more meaderies have cropped up too. If you are ever down in this area I'd strongly suggest Starrlight meadery in Pittsboro NC. Great people running the place, great mead also!

Thanks Glenn

#12 positiveContact

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Posted 16 August 2012 - 03:40 AM

sometimes there are free mead tastings at my grocery store :P

#13 realbeerguy

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Posted 16 August 2012 - 03:32 PM

If I wasn't sort of low on properly aged mead, I would suggest a mead trade circle.

great idea! I'm in


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