When people ask me what mead is, I usually respond with something along the lines of, “Well, it’s not beer, it’s not wine, and it’s not cider. It’s mead!” Admittedly, that’s not a very helpful answer.

In its most basic form, mead is simply the fermentation of water and honey into an alcoholic beverage. Also called honey wine, the craft of mead fermentation has been enjoyed for centuries for social, ...