Mead
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This article is about the alcoholic beverage. For other uses, see Mead (disambiguation).
Swedish elderflower flavored mead.
Mead (/ˈmiːd/; archaic and dialectal "medd"; from Old English "medu",[1]) is an alcoholic beverage created by fermenting honey with water, sometimes with various fruits, spices, grains, or hops.[2][3][4] The alcoholic content ranges from about 8% ABV[5] to more than 20%. The defining characteristic of mead is that the majority of the beverage's fermentable sugar is derived from honey.[6] It may be still, carbonated, or naturally sparkling; dry, semi-sweet, or sweet.[7]
Mead was produced in ancient history throughout Europe, Africa and Asia.[8][9][10][11][12]
Mead has played an important role in the beliefs and mythology of some peoples. One such example is the Mead of Poetry, a mead of Norse mythology crafted from the blood of the wise being Kvasir which turns the drinker into a poet or scholar.
The terms "mead" and "honey-wine" often are used synonymously.[13][14] Some cultures, though, differentiate honey-wine from mead. For example, Hungarians hold that while mead is made of honey, water and beer-yeast (barm), honey-wine is watered honey fermented by recrement of grapes or other fruits.[15]
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