Newbee project

[JKVirginia]

Greetings all,

I've taken on a somewhat ambitious project as my first crack at meadmaking. Two very good friends of mine are getting married in May of next year, and I wished to provide the "honey-moon" provisions--I'm aware that some reliable sources call it a myth, but it's a fun myth and one I consider worth perpetuating in the name of spreading the word about a most interesting beverage.

So... What I need is a recipe for a fairly basic, beginner-proof mead that can be counted on to mature to a good degree by May of 2006, and makes at least enough to fill 28-12 oz bottles. (I figure that 2-6oz glasses per bottle is a decent quaff, and strikes a balance between tradition and portability). I expect this rules out many of the drier types of mead, but I'm curious about your input.

Thanks!

Jonathan

[Pewter_of_Deodar]

If this is your first effort at mead making, use Joe's Ancient Orange, Clove, and Cinnamon. It is fool-proof and can be sized to any size of batch you require...

[David Baldwin]

I wholeheartedly second Pewter's nomination of Joe's Ancient Orange.

If you start around August 1st, it will have time to age a bit before the wedding in May.

I make it in 3 gallon batches. Two of those batches should meet your volume needs, give you some left over and not set you back too far $$$.

Good luck, and let us know how it turns out!

David