How to make Mead (honey wine) at home – Part 5

Types of Mead
There are as many flavors of mead as there are drops of rain in a thunderstorm. Honey itself is a very unpredictable product, but even two batches of mead started from the same hive of honey can end up with different flavors and properties. However, there are some general classifications of mead that are detailed as follows:

Mead: honey wine with only honey and no additional spices
Sack Mead: sweet honey wine but the only sweetener used was honey. No additional spices.
Metheglin: honey wine that has been spiced for flavor. Examples of common spices are cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves, rosemary & thyme.
Sack Metheglin: sweet spiced honey wine
Hydromel: weak or watered mead
Sparkling Mead: mead made with the same carbonation technique as Champaign
Cycer: Mead made with apple juice
Ryzomel: Mead made with flowers

Mead, Wine, Beer & Ale making as a hobby
Various spices and fruit juice combinations are used today to make meads and wines of all variety. Many people enjoy the hobby of home brewing to make their own beers, ales, wines and meads which is perfectly legal in the US as long as it's not done for sale and the mixtures aren't distilled into stronger spirits. Federal law provides that individuals may produce up to 200 gallons of wine per year per person per household. Wine making kits are readily available at local home brew shops or via the internet for $50 to $100. Internet and book resources are also readily available to today's hobbyist to explain the process step-by-step.

Many people today enjoy making their own meads, wines, beers and ales for the pure satisfaction and enjoyment of doing the job themselves. Once the basics of brewing are understood it's very easy to make your own custom flavors or play with recipes from more traditional products like mead or grape wine. Wine can be made from just about every fruit and vegetable on the planet given proper understanding of fermentation. These beverages can often be made by the hobbyist MUCH cheaper than if the same products were bought commercially and often with the same quality as commercial brews. Custom brews make great gifts too! Home brewing has become so popular that hobby clubs have been in operation for years and often promote local competitions among fellow brewers.

Other Sources:

http://www.SimpleHomeBrewing.com
http://www.squidoo.com/easybeermaking
http://www.squidoo.com/honeymead