Redcurrant Melomel

This recipe yields about 10L of sweet mead. The measurements for the base mead recipe is for 20L, however, as the batch was split between redcurrant and cassis.

Process

1. Make sure all equipment is clean and disinfected
2. Add the honey to the fermentation vessel
3. Top with water to reach the total volume of 20L, and stir to dissolve the honey
4. Pitch the yeast, stir vigorously to oxygenate, and add a lid with an airlock
5. Ferment for one month, then rack into two 10L secondaries. Half is used for cassis, half for this recipe.
6. Add potassium sorbate and potassium metabisulfate to stop fermentation, and let sit for 48h
7. Add the berries, let sit for a few days, and add more berries if desired
8. Add sodium metasilicate and chitin to clear it up
9. Bottle the mead, and enjoy

Notes

The berries were added in two stages - first roughly 600g, and then another probably 600g after tasting and realizing it needed a bit more “kick”. While the mead turned out really well, the redcurrant didn’t turn out quite as well as the cassis mead from the same base did. The redcurrant flavor is much more subtle, but again - still very tasty!