Jack Ratt Lyme Bay Christmas Mead, 75 cl

Product Information

Here, we have looked at how to enjoy mead, from serving size suggestions to drinking temperature, and even the glassware you are best to enjoy it from! What is Mead? The suggested serving of mead will usually depend on the strength of the product in question, as the alcoholic strength can range from 3.5% ABV to more than 18%. Our Lyme Bay meads range from our 4% sparkling mead (which comes perfectly portioned in our cans) to our 14.5% bottles of Traditional, West Country and Waking The Demon meads – the latter made especially for the band Bullet For My Valentine.

Mead can be enjoyed either hot or cold, so the serving temperature will depend on how you want to enjoy your beverage. Cold Swill the mead around slightly and inhale to experience the balance of tones and the unique aroma of the beverage. It will not be a one-sided fragrance but rather a variety of tones. Different ingredients used in the flavouring of the mead will also add new layers to the scent. TasteChristmas for the best part of a decade. Lyme Bay Winery’s Christmas mead is arguably their staroffering. Fill the glass jug up to three inches from the top with cold water. The extra space will provide room for some foam. When the temperature of the jug contents has been reduced to warm bathwater, sprinkle the yeast across the top of the liquid (do not mix) and cover the top of the jug with a square of cheesecloth secured with the rubber band. Do not recap! The brew must be allowed to breath. Place the jug somewhere dark but at least 70 degrees (I have an upstairs closet I like to use for this) and allow it to ferment for one week. At that point, you can begin tasting your brew; sweetness will lessen by the day. Then, add three more gallons of water, this time cold, to allow it to cool down to room temperature. So how much mead should you serve in a glass? If you are drinking your mead warmed up, we would recommend around 50ml of mead in a whisky glass. If you are drinking it cool, we would say between 100 – 125ml, mirroring a traditional small glass of wine serving.

When major foaming stops (typically, after a few days), add some water and leave it for two months and a few days until it clears and the oranges sink to the bottom of the jug. The timeslot you book for is to see Father Christmas. You can access the farm park anytime from 10am on the date you visit. This recipe will yield one gallon of delicious and healthy spiced mead that you can enjoy every day. Ingredients

In a large pot, boil the honey for three hours until it caramelizes. Stir constantly and keep the caramelized honey hydrated as it will harden at room temperature. This recipe recommends using finings eight weeks before bottling to clarify your mead. Just boil finings with water and add the boiling water to the fermenter. Prepare Your Yeast — Re-hydrate dry yeasts and make starters with liquid yeasts. For yeast rehydration I use Startup from BSG at a rate of 1 gram per oz. of rehydration water. I typically use 1 oz. of rehydration water per 1.5 grams of yeast. I pitch yeast at 2 grams and up to 5 grams per gallon (4 L) along a specific gravity (SG) range of 1.050 to 1.150+. The rehydration process involves adding the Startup to 110 °F (43 °C) water and mixing it thoroughly. Once the rehydration water cools to 104 °F (40 °C) or below the yeast can be added and gently mixed. From here the yeast will begin to bloom up. After 10 minutes or so you can mix it again and add some of the must to both temper the rehydration water and give the yeast a little food. This is lighter in colour than the Lyme Bay Traditional Mead also sold by Lyme Bay Winery. There are hints of orange hues in an otherwise golden drink. There is a noteworthy viscosity (and legs!) despite the lower alcohol at10%. Nose Of course we can always pour ourselves a glass of a delicious holiday spiced mead, but since the season calls for family gatherings and house parties why not use your holiday meads to take your drinks game to the next level?

As dedicated lovers of all things mead-related, we look forward to the chillier end of the year for this very reason; it gives us the perfect opportunity to spend the evenings huddled before an open fire, and toasting the winter nights with a cupful of mulled mead – what could be better? tea to flavor (the combos are endless and should be adapted to your taste, but I cut open 6 mulling spice tea bags for this venture) Rehydrate yeast prior to pitching: Rehydrate 27.5 grams of Go-Ferm in 550 ml of 110F water, then add yeast at 104F. Let stand for 15 minutes, then gently stir to break up any clumps. Temper yeast to within 18 F over the next 15-30 min and then add to the must. Archaeological evidence puts mead as being one of the oldest alcoholic drinks in the world after traces of the honey-based drink were found in China over 9,000 years ago. This means mead has been enjoyed by some of history’s ancient civilisations, from the ancient Greeks to Norse marauders. The flavours of the mead can and often will develop with every sip, and you will notice this most after swallowing and exhaling – known as the ‘tail’. The more sips you take, the more the flavours and sensations will develop.Place the sealed honey jar and gallon jug of water in the sink and fill with hot water to warm the ingredients. But in a similar way to wine, there is a process you can follow to really explore the depths of your mead, which we have outlined below: In the simplest of terms, mead is essentially a honey wine. It is honey and water that is fermented with yeast and can also be flavoured with a range of fruits, hops, or spices and comes in both still and sparkling form. The key spices for making your mulled mead according to the traditional recipe are ginger (from the root, not powdered), cloves, and cinnamon. The three of these working together create a flavour which has bewitched people for centuries, and are widely believed to help with a wide array of ailments. While these are the definitive ‘holy trinity’ of mulling spices, it’s not uncommon to see others thrown in the mix, such as nutmeg, star anise, allspice and cardamom – all of which bring that characteristic warmth and sweetness to the drink. Fruity Additions

As the days grow colder and the wild winds start blowing down from the north, there are few things more satisfying or warming than a glass or two of something steaming, delicious, and ( ahem) alcoholic. If you are drinking cold mead, it is best served at 12 – 16°C, as this is when the best tones of the drink are revealed. To get it to this temperature, store your mead in the fridge and before serving, allow it to sit in the glass for a few minutes at room temperature. It will not reach room temperature in that time, but it also won’t be too cold. Help Father Christmas’s team of North Pole folk to collect enough magic for Christmas in our brand new walk through! To that tune, I’m going to share with you four of my favorite meads that I consider perfect for the holidays. Note that all of these recipes have flexibility to adjust the amounts of spices, fruits, and other ingredients, as well as the techniques used when making them. I will outline my basic procedure, but feel free to follow your own traditional process and adapt the recipe as you feel comfortable.Prefer your mead pure and simple? Swap your usual dessert wine for a glass of mead to accompany Christmas pudding and mince pies.