What is mead? The basic answer is an alcoholic beverage made from fermented honey, but there is more to it. The U.S. government answers the question what is mead by saying it is "honey wine", probably because it is made by the same process as wine, but it deserves a classification of its own. What is mead? You ask? Mead can be sweet or dry, sparkling or still, and flavored with anything imaginable. Honey doesn’t oxidize like grapes do so mead doesn’t have to be consumed before the next morning, or you'll have to cook with it, like wine. A good bottle of mead will never make it to the next day though, because it will be gone. If you've never tried it before, visit Hidden Legend and order a bottle.
What is mead? Mead has a flavor and mouth feel unlike any other drink. Classifying it as wine doesn’t do it justice and it is not beer either. It is mead and is probably the oldest alcoholic beverage on the planet. Really wine and beer should be compared to mead, not the other way around. Mead should be the standard. The reason we can say that mead is the world’s oldest drink is answered in the question, “What is mead?”
Mead is fermented honey. Honey was the only universal sugar source. Bees make honey on every continent. Grapes, sugar cane, wheat, corn, potatoes, and every other sugar source came from specific regions and were not always as widespread as they are today. Mead can be traced back to many places. What is mead? Mead is the original, the one that all others should be compared too.
