Why would you think of a need to pasteurise honey ? I'm pretty sure that the ancient Egyptians didn't have pasteurisers before they put some in one of the pyramids/other graves.... and the archaeologists found some samples still edible after many millennia.So I should look for honey that isn't pasturised?
The varietal honeys linked at the Beefolks above are good examples of honey that has made good meads of various types before.Any other guide line? Certain ingredients that I should avoid?
I really don't want to buy the wrong honey cause even the cheap stuff is expensive if you waste it. Thanks for the info.
I think you miss read the postWhy would you think of a need to pasteurise honey ? I'm pretty sure that the ancient Egyptians didn't have pasteurisers before they put some in one of the pyramids/other graves.... and the archaeologists found some samples still edible after many millennia.
Honey is already anti-bacterial in it's natural state, so when it's blended/mixed/treated for food consumption, it's often heated to allow it to be mixed/filtered for aesthetic (packaging/display) reasons.
If you can locate a nice tasting, local, raw honey, then I'd suggest you use that. Any hive/bee debris settles out during the fermentation and clearing processes and lack of heat retains a greater number of the aromatics and some flavours that might be lost (and that also applies to the type of yeast used - it's why I don't use champagne yeast).
The varietal honeys linked at the Beefolks above are good examples of honey that has made good meads of various types before.
Some don't like to use pure buckwheat, as it can have a "farm yard" hint to it, but they will use another honey and mix a little buckwheat in.
As for ingredients to avoid, have a read through various threads here, but also over at Gotmead. That should give you some idea about what to use or not, as might be the case, but also about types/styles of meads that you might want to try.
regards
fatbloke
?????I think you miss read the post
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