The Stuff of Poetry – Mead

People have been drinking fermented beverages since the dawn of civilization. At first, the production of alcohol may have been accidental. Over time, it became an art.

Mead is a beverage made from fermented honey. This very drink was the founding father of wine and beer. A purist might just stick to just the simplest recipe of honey, water, and yeast, but some people, like myself, add a few additional ingredients to compliment the main ingredient.

My first introduction to mead was on my birthday. I prepared a medieval feast, each ingredient carefully chosen to be historically accurate or at least as accurate as it could be. A friend of mine brought along mead made by a brewery also known for brewing Tej, an Ethiopian honey wine. It was a welcome accompaniment to the sweet and savory flavors of the various medieval dishes.

I acquired a taste for mead while in Denmark. I was attending a folk school, and two of our favored activities were singing and drinking. A local liquor store carried mead in a ceramic bottle. The label depicted two Vikings, who seemed rather happy enjoying their brew out of horns. My friends and I started having little parties we appropriately dubbed "Viking Giggle Fest."

After school ended, I returned home. I yearned to make mead. I had been brewing for years, but most of these experiments ended in failure. This time around I was determined to make something drinkable. My first batch was rather scaled down. I boiled honey in water, let it cool to room temperature, added yeast, and set it aside to ferment for two weeks. I wanted to try it, so after the two weeks were up, I decided to try it. It wasn't bad, but it wasn't wonderful either. It showed signs of carbonation, its bubbles gently tickled my palate. The taste was a little watered down, but I was working off of a theory and not off of a recipe.

The next time I brewed I was prepared. I went out and got a basic brewing kit. I used more honey this time and also decided to use a few additives and clarifying agents such as gelatin, hops, lavender, and rose hip. I used champagne yeast instead of bread yeast for better flavor. This brew fermented for two weeks, I then aged it for two more, bottled it, and left it to age on a rack for about two more months. The end result was something wonderful, and I gave my grandfather a taste. He had been an avid amateur vintner, so he knew a thing or two about how wine should taste. A tear came to his eye, and I could tell he was proud that I had been successful.

For more information, visit these sites:
http://www.gotmead.com/making-mead/
http://www.solorb.com/mead/mead.html
http://sca_brew.homestead.com/files/recipes/Crystal_5.htm

Paul Rinehart is the founder of Online Cooking.

Related Articles:

Poetry Reading/Book Signing to be Held in Worcester, MA for Local Author
Tara L. Entwistle-Clark, author of the novel "A Butterfly in Winter," will be at Tatnuck Bookseller in Worcester, MA on July 23.

2nd Annual Novel Writing Contest Announced by Iota Publishing
Iota Publishing, a regional publishing house based in Irvine, California, introduced its 2008 novel writing competition today. Iota seeks published and unpublished authors who have completed manuscripts in the thriller, mystery, suspense, or sci-fi genres. The winner will receive a $1000 prize and a publishing contract with Iota. Submissions are via the Iota website (www.IotaPublishing.com/IotaWritingContestLink.asp ). The competition is open through April 30, 2008.

Outskirts Press Announces Poetry for Peace, the Latest Poetry Book From St. george, UT Author Kevin and Shawnae Dwyer
Outskirts Press, Inc. has published Poetry for Peace by Kevin and Shawnae Dwyer, which is the author's most recent book to date. The 5 x 8 Paperback in the Poetry category is available worldwide on book retailer websites such as Amazon and Barnes & Noble for a suggested retail price of $19.95. The webpage at www.outskirtspress.com/12067B was launched simultaneously with the book's publication.

Gray Matters, Survivor of a Brain Injury Publishes Intriguing Book of Poetry
Poetic insights of a woman who lived through a near-fatal head injury help other survivors cope and give the community a personal sense of what it is like to live with an injury to the brain.

Author Debuts Compelling Love Story in New Poetry Collection
New book exposes unquenchable love between Jesus and church

Poetry in a Nutshell
Poetry is more than just rhyming and prose that is in meters and verse. It is an art form.

The Fourth Better Sex -- Erotic Fiction Writing Contest BetterSex.com Seeks Next Candace Bushnell
The Sinclair Institute and BetterSex.com announced today that it will award over $4,000 in cash and prizes great amateur erotic fiction writers.

Costa Rican Vacation Up for Grabs in Online Writing Contest
Costa Rica's top informational travel website is offering a luxury Costa Rican vacation to the author of the winning Travel Writing Contest submission. Entry is free, and writers of all skill levels are welcome to enter.

Poetic Musings of an Old, Fat Man, a New Poetry Book From Poet Harry Gilleland
Poetic Musings of an Old, Fat Man is the third published collection of poetry written by poet Harry E. Gilleland, Jr. This new collection of 81 storoems and poems offers hours of stimulating reading. Featured are both rhyming poems and storoems (a story-poem format pioneered by Gilleland) and free-verse poems. This book will entertain while provoking thought on a wide variety of subjects.

How to Start and Sustain a Career as a Freelance Writer
Have you wondered how you can make a career writing books or articles for various publications? Or are you seeking a viable second income opportunity but do not know where to start? Well, freelance writing may be the right career for you and it can open a world of lucrative opportunities for you.You do not need to have special qualifications to be a freelance writer and make money.

Rules for Writing Poetry
You've been writing poetry since that first assignment in your high school writing class. You know the rules about writing poetry, right? Are there rules? Well, if you frequent the poetry forums across the Internet as much as I do, you'd find that there are a lot of amateur poets who adamantly declare that there are no rules for writing poetry and if someone even suggests reading poetry or books on poetry, many of the amateur poets will throw up a defensive front.

Are You a Freelance Writer? - Then You Need a Website
As a freelance writer, it is important to present yourself to your clients in a highly effective way. One of the most effective methods that freelancers use is a website.

$1000 for the First Chapter of a Novel? Now That's a Writing Contest
The third annual Writing Show First-Chapter-of-a-Novel Contest is awarding $1000 for the best first chapter of an unpublished novel. We're also offering four other cash prizes and ten 750-word critiques.

Promoting Your Poetry Book
At long last your book is finished. As a self-publisher poet it is up to you to market your anthology or chapbook. Self-publishing requires you to self-market successfully. Marketing your book can become a full time job and it isn?t going to happen overnight. So you might be asking yourself, ?Where do I begin to market my book??

Newly Released Book Of Poetry 'Rhythms' By Leo Shelton Engages The Minds Of Poetry Readers In All Emotions Of Life
Leo Shelton's new publication "Rhythms" is a book of poetry that touches on every emotion of life -- life's joy, love, sadness and loss, lust of loins and triumph.