Cheese - the leftover product from Blaand.

Make it sweet and it'll be drinkable

Our tomte are protecting the mead with their lives - still.

This year, for our summer event, I’ve decided to make a session-style mead (under 7% ABV) for those who want to participate in the drinking competition. The goal is a 6% strawberry and elderflower mead, keeping the alcohol content lower so the event can be enjoyed and respected by everyone attending.

Butterbeer Mead update.

After tasting the latest batch, I decided it needed a little more balance. The flavor was rich and full from the added ingredients, but it called for some brightness to bring everything together.

I added a measured amount of acid blend to sharpen and lift the profile, and it did exactly what it needed to do. The sweetness, spice, and body now sit in harmony while it continues to age.

I’m confident it will be enjoyed at Vetrnætr!

Currently enjoying some absolutely wonderful Black Hills Medu Nine Herbs Mead! The taste is so lovely. Can't recommend this enough!

Final adjustments before bottling.

The cooling agent did exactly what it was supposed to do. It gave the mead that cold finish, but it came in a little stronger than I originally wanted.

I briefly considered acid blend, but acid sharpens structure, it does not mute cooling. I also thought about diluting with water, but that would have thinned the body and altered the texture.

Instead, I backsweetened slightly using warmed mead to dissolve the honey properly, then added a touch more vanilla. That combination brought everything back into balance. The added sweetness softened the edge, and the vanilla reinforced the creamy profile without fighting the cooling effect.

Now it finishes smooth with a chilled aftertaste as intended.

Balance matters more than any single ingredient.

Lithuanian Gastronomical Heritage - Gira (Kvas)

Like many other countries known for their traditions of winemaking or beer brewing, Lithuania also stands out in the area of beverages with its own national drink - gira.

Gira is a fermented drink widely believed to have originated in Eastern Europe, known as kvas amongst Slavs. However, it has a far reaching history in Lithuania with recipes and use being recorded in the Grand Duchy of Lithuania.

Lithuania is special in this sphere for its rich heritage of gira recipes, a number of which have been dated back to as far as the 16th century AD. Over a hundred of such original recipes survive today from basic rye and bread gira, to more exotic cloudberry, honey and even milk gira.

Gira is not only a popular staple in modern day Lithuania, but also a valuable and longstanding piece of Lithuanian heritage, with a long history of use in folk medicine, traditional drink and popular refreshment throughout our history.

The Baltic Star

Traditional Mead (5 Gallon Batch – ~9% ABV)

Goal: Lower ABV traditional mead, clean fermentation, easy drinking

Ingredients:
12 lbs honey (orange blossom or similar)
Purified or Spring Water to make 5 gallons total
1 packet Lalvin 71B-1122 (5g)
6.25 g Go-Ferm
12–14 g Fermaid O

Target Stats
OG: ~1.075–1.080
FG: ~0.998–1.005
ABV: ~9%

Step 1: Mix
1. Add honey to fermenter
2. Add water and mix thoroughly until dissolved
3. Fill to 5 gallons total


Step 2: Rehydrate Yeast
1. Heat 100 mL water to ~104°F
2. Add 6.25 g Go-Ferm
3. Let cool to ~100°F
4. Add yeast and wait 20 minutes
5. Pitch into must

Step 3: Oxygenate
Stir or shake well immediately after pitching

Step 4: Nutrients (TOSNA 3.0)
Add 12–14 g Fermaid O total, split into 4 additions:
24 hours: 3–3.5 g
48 hours: 3–3.5 g
72 hours: 3–3.5 g
1/3 sugar break (~1.050): 3–3.5 g

Step 5: Primary Fermentation
Keep temperature 64–68°F
Degas once daily for 3–5 days
Oxygenate again at 12–24 hours
Stop nutrients after the 1/3 sugar break

Step 6: Ferment
Let ferment until gravity is stable
Usually 10–21 days for this strength

Step 7: Rack
Transfer off sediment into a clean container

Step 8: Stabilize (optional)
Add potassium metabisulfite (K-meta)
Add potassium sorbate

Step 9: Age
Let clear and age 2–4 months

Step 10: Bottle
Bottle once clear and stable

Key Notes
Lower ABV ferments faster and cleaner
This will finish dry unless backsweetened after stabilization
Keep everything sanitized throughout the process

A friend sent me this picture!

Traditional Mead Recipe – 1 Gallon Beginner Batch

Goal: Simple semi-sweet traditional mead
Batch Size: 1 gallon
Target ABV: Around 10%
Starting Gravity: Around 1.080
Final Sweetness: Semi-sweet after backsweetening

Ingredients:

• 2.25–2.4 lbs orange blossom honey
• Water to reach 1 gallon total volume
• 1 packet Lalvin 71B-1122 yeast
• 6.25g Go-Ferm Protect Evolution
• 1.5g Fermaid O total
• Optional: 1 drop vanilla extract after fermentation

Step 1: Mix the Must

Sanitize everything first.

Add the honey to your fermenter.

Add water until you reach 1 gallon total volume.

Mix very well until the honey is fully dissolved.

Pull off about 200 mL of must for your hydrometer reading.

Your reading should be around 1.080.

Do not pour the hydrometer sample back into the fermenter.

Step 2: Rehydrate the Yeast

Warm about 100 mL of clean water to about 104°F.

Mix in 6.25g Go-Ferm until dissolved.

Let it cool to about 95°F.

Add the yeast.

Let it sit for 15–20 minutes.

Once activated, pour the yeast mixture into the fermenter.

Stir vigorously to oxygenate the must.

Step 3: Fermentation

Keep the mead around 64–68°F.

Gently stir once daily for the first few days to release CO₂.

Step 4: Add Fermaid O

Use 1.5g Fermaid O total.

Add it in 3 additions:

• 0.5g after 24 hours
• 0.5g after 48 hours
• 0.5g at the 1/3 sugar break

The 1/3 sugar break means the yeast has eaten about one-third of the sugar.

For this recipe, that is around 1.055 on your hydrometer.

Do not add nutrients after this point.

Step 5: Let It Finish

Let fermentation continue until the gravity stops changing.

The mead is finished fermenting when you get the same gravity reading several days apart.

It will likely ferment dry, which is normal.

Step 6: Rack and Stabilize

Rack the mead off the sediment into a clean sanitized jug.

If you want it semi-sweet, stabilize first with potassium metabisulfite and potassium sorbate.

After stabilizing, backsweeten with a small amount of honey until it tastes right.

Step 7: Clear and Age

Let the mead clear naturally, or use a fining agent if needed.

Age for at least 2–4 months.

Step 8: Bottle

Bottle only when the mead is clear and the gravity is stable.

Do not bottle while fermentation is still active.

I rewrote this for a 1 gallon batch. Try it out and see if you like it! Remember to use a fermenter larger than 1 gallon to have head space in the beginning stage.

With the restraints due to my new job I have not had much time to do anything with my meads. Most of them have just been quietly aging in my basement. I'm hoping tomorrow I'm going to be able to spend some time checking on everything.

Bottling my Miðsumar mead.

Made with strawberries and elderflower.