Ginger Mead

inkiväärisima / ingefärsmjöd

Note: apologies for the lack of decent pictures! Today was a rainy, dismal day, besides which, I don't really have a finished product yet. I'll update with more pictures later in the week.

It's that time of the month again - Leftover Tuesday! This time, I'm using some extremely potent ginger syrup, a by-product from making crystallized ginger, to make a slightly different version of a very topical Finnish treat: mead, which is typically served with May Day fritters or doughnuts on, yes, May Day (and Walpurgis Night, the day before).


Now, making Finnish mead isn't quite as involved as brewing in general, nor does it produce a beverage with any more than a negligible alcohol content. You don't need any special equipment - I've even made it in regular plastic bottles - or ingredients, since it's made with regular fresh yeast. What you do need, however, is a bit of time and patience, and since I only bottled this last night, I can't even tell you what it tastes like yet. I'll be making a post on regular sima later in the week in honor of the upcoming Walpurgis, but if you want to get some ready by the 30th, here is a very typical recipe.

Of course, for the impatient among us, there's always ginger ale - a splosh of ginger syrup, another of soda water, and some ice.


Look for a roundup of all the fabulous leftover ideas over at Ceres & Bacchus later in the week.

Ginger Mead

350 ml strong ginger syrup (leftovers from making crystallized ginger last week)
125 g dark brown sugar
250 g caster sugar
4.5 l water
1/5 tsp fresh yeast
(raisins)

Dissolve the sugars in about half of the water. Mix with the syrup and the rest of the water in a large pan/jar/bucket and leave to cool a bit. Once the mixture is lukewarm, sprinkle on the yeast (yes, that is one fifth of a tsp) and stir to dissolve. Cover loosely and let stand at room temperature overnight.

Once the mixture has started to ferment the following day, strain through a sieve into bottles. Sprinkle a tiny bit of sugar and some raisins into each bottle, then close tightly. The mead is ready when the raisins puff up and rise to the surface, about three days at room temperature or 5-7 days in the fridge.

Be careful when opening the bottles - it can be very fizzy!