Domesday Mead

Sometimes when I am in experimental mood, I go out and do something mad, like buying English wine. That happened during my recent visit to London, where I got a bottle of red, white and English Mead from Fortnum & Mason. I can now relate the news to you because the mead has been tasted yesterday, and I live to tell.

If you wonder what mead is, then rest assured that you're not alone. It's the first time that I've tasted it myself. Mead, or German Met is the ancient beverage of the Germanic gods imbibed (copiously, I am sure) in Walhalla. It is a gold coloured wine made of fermented honey and it tastes accordingly - very sweet. If you have a sweet tooth like I do, then this is a desert wine for you. It is pretty much like a Sauternes, but mostly without the underlying slight acidity, or complexity for that matter. But nice no less. I am surprised that mead is not better known. But then again, the other day when I tasted an excellent Sauternes on a Swiss flight and they had to open the bottle for me, I learnt that this is not a widely held taste among Europeans, whereas people from the Middle East seem to like it much more. Interesting.