In the twenty-first century instant gratification is the norm. Whether it is your Internet content, news, food, or mulled beverages, we are used to getting what we want, when we want it.

If you read the above paragraph and thought "Wow, how wonderful that the old adage ‘Good things come to those who wait’ no longer applies to me!" then the following entry in the Mull-Off is probably another thing that will not apply to you, and you may stop reading here and head on down to Ralphs to buy a jug of apple cider to throw in the microwave.

If you’re still reading this after that last paragraph, then congratulations! You are of a rare and fine caliber, one of those who appreciate the finer things in life. You are amazing. You are among the few who can truly appreciate the fine and subtle flavors, and you have a good head start on possibly being one of the elite who can actually create this wonderful holiday beverage. Like many things, the key to overcoming this difficulty depends on your ability to make the next step.

June is a lovely month. In the final throes of spring, the weather is pleasant and the late evenings are conducive to sipping lemonade or mint juleps on the porch as you fan yourself on the swing. The last thing on your mind is cold winter nights that are six months away. This is the tricky part of making mead, because it is during these warm days of spring that the preparations for winter mead must be made. This is the difficult second step; in these days where rich (possibly warm) honey wine is the last thing on your mind you need to begin your preparation for the coming winter months. In the warm month of June it can be very difficult to fire up the stove and pull out all the accouterments required to begin the procedure that is so vital to the winter enjoyment of homemade mead. If you are able to get in the mindset to pull out a six gallon enamel pot, two five gallon glass carboys, acquire a hygrometer and a fermenter’s airlock and get your family to understand why they need to clear out of the kitchen for a day, then you are on your way to enjoying this wonderful beverage in the winter months.

Assuming that it is now June and you are standing before the pot on your stove, you’ll want to pour in three and a half gallons of drinking (not tap) water and twenty-three pounds of clover honey. Take a sprig of rosemary and a sprig of brier and tie them together and throw them into the pot as well. Get a muslin bag and put two teaspoons of cinnamon, two teaspoons of nutmeg, ten whole cloves, two teaspoons of mace, one teaspoon of ginger, and one eighth of an ounce of black peppercorns in it, then toss it into the pot. Bring the pot to a simmer (being careful not to let it boil, it is the late spring after all and we don’t want the kitchen to get too muggy, besides boiling honey makes a mess, and it’s been hard enough to get your family to go along with you this far). Allow it to simmer for one half hour, carefully skimming off the residue that will form on the surface. After this remove the sprigs and squeeze half a lemon into the pot then throw it in. Remove the heat, cover the pot and allow to stand overnight (or until it reaches room temperature, if room temperature in your area in June happens to be 75 degrees Fahrenheit).

Assuming that your family is still talking to you the next day, you may ask them to help you remove the muslin bag and the remains of the lemon from the mixture in the pot (now referred to as the "must"), add a good liquid wine yeast (preferably one that doesn't require a starter, this is available at most winemaking or brewing shops) and then transfer the must into a carboy and put a cheesecloth over the hole, allowing it to ferment for two to three days in a dark place where the temperature is a constant 75 degrees Fahrenheit. After three days you will "rack" (use a five foot or so piece of food grade plastic tubing to transfer the must) the must into the second carboy, attach the airlock and allow it to ferment until late September.

Now, you may think that you now have a well deserved three-month break in the winemaking process, however this is not the case. You must now spend the majority of your summer hosting parties and serving wine in order to have enough empty bottles to facilitate the bottling that will occur in the early fall. No rest for the wicked.

Come September you will now siphon off the mead into the bottles you’ve collected and cork them (you can get a corker at any winemaking or brew shop). At this point you’ll want to allow the mead to ferment another three months or so in the bottle (it gets better over time, so it’s best to save some for the following winter). When it comes time to serve, you may warm the wine in the bottle after opening it by standing the bottle in hot water, or you may pour it into a pot and simmer it (however this may evaporate off some of the alcohol and all your months of waiting will be for nought).

When serving remember to regale your guests with the process involved, while they may not ever truly appreciate all you went through to make this fine beverage, it will almost certainly prevent them from attempting to do the same, allowing you to corner the market on this wonderful holiday treat.

Submitted by Jonathan Watts