How to Make Watermelon Wine with Honey (Watermelon Mead)

Step 1

Clean and sanitize all of your equipment. I like to wash the jug with soap and water, allow it to air dry a bit, then rinse the jug with cheap vodka, and allow it to fully air dry.

Step 2

Once your equipment is prepped, add the strawberries and water to a pot, and bring to a simmer.

Step 3

Cook for about 15 minutes; while simmering mash the strawberries with a spoon.

Step 4

Remove from heat and place a fine mesh colander over a pitcher or bowl; strain out the strawberry pulp, reserving the liquid.

Step 5

Add the strawberry liquid to the 1/2 gallon jug with the honey and lemon juice and allow it to cool to room temp. (75 grams of honey will give you a moderately alcoholic drink. You can double the amount for a high-alcohol wine)

Step 6

Add in the yeast and mix gently by swirling. Wait about 30 minutes for the yeast to get frothy and active.

Step 7

In the meantime, juice enough watermelon to have 48 fl oz of juice. Strain all the pulp out of the juice using a fine mesh strainer and cheesecloth or butter muslin. You must strain ALL of the pulp out, or it can cause a big mess in the airlock.

Step 8

In a medium pot, heat the watermelon juice until simmering. Remove from heat and allow to cool to room temperature. (You can place a metal pot in a bowl of ice to cool it down faster).

Step 9

Carefully using a funnel, add the watermelon juice to the jug leaving two inches of headspace (see pictures above).

Step 10

Cap the jug and swirl it around for about a minute.

Step 11

Remove the cap and place the airlock and stopper in the jug (see pictures above).

Step 12

After a few hours, you should notice a lot of bubbling in the bottle and activity in the airlock.

Step 13

Allow the wine to ferment for 14 days until the bubbling completely stops and you no longer see any activity in the airlock. At this point, you should see a lot of sediment in the bottom of the jug.

Step 14

Remove the airlock and using a funnel, transfer the wine to a new, clean jug for aging. Be careful pouring, pour gently and in one steady pour, leaving the sediment in the bottom of the original jug.*

Step 15

Cap the jug with a regular lid. Allow the wine to age at a cool room temperature or in the fridge for four weeks.

Step 16

At this point, you can rack the wine again with more aging time or move on to bottling.

Step 17

Clean and sterilize two 1-liter carbonation-safe bottles. Add one tablespoon of honey to each 1 Liter bottle. Using a funnel, transfer the wine from the aging jug into the carbonation-safe bottles, leaving any sediment in the bottom of the jug. Cap the bottles and invert gently twice to mix the honey in.Allow to ferment in the bottles at a cool room temperature for five days, then immediately store in the fridge. (check the carbonation by carefully opening a bottle over the sink, if it is not carbonated enough you can leave it at room temperature for seven days.)

Step 18

You can age the wine for three more weeks in the fridge before enjoying it chilled.

Step 19

Keep refrigerated.