Ok, there are two ginger mead recipe's in this book mentioned above. They are as follows:
Melimiguelenium Ginger Mead
Originally brewed for the new millenium with Melissa and Miguel, the mead wasn't ready for a year and a half. Twas a long wait, but so was the millenium. We can't be sure about what this century will bring, but for sure this medium-sweet mead with the zest of ginger will help celebrate every single day by just knowing that there is a stash waiting to be enjoyed. Worth making a double batch, this is a fine as the finest liqueur and ages supremely.
Ingredients for 5 gallons (19l):
17 1/1/2 lbs. (7.9 kg) light honey
3/4 lb. (340g) freshly grated gingerroot
1/4oz. (7 g) yeast extract (optional)
1/4 tsp. (1 g) Irish Moss powder
1 oz. (28 g) dried champagne yeast or Pris de Mousse wine yeast rehydrated in preboiled 105-degree F (41 C) water for 10 minutes before pitching.
O.G.: 1.126-1.130 (29.5-30)
F.G.: 1.020-1.035 (5-9)
Add the honey, grated gingerroot and Irish moss to 1 1/2 gallons (5.7 l) of water and bring to boil for 15 minutes. Skim the coagulated meringuelike foam off the surface (this is albumin-type protein). Be careful, honey worts will boil over just like beer worts. Leave the lid ajar and monitor the onset of boiling very carefully.
Transfer the hot mead "wort" with the grated gingerroot to a closed fermenter system and 1 1/2 gallons (5.7 l) of cold water. Seal the carboy briefly and shake the contents to aerate the "wort." If necessary, add cold water to make 5 gallons. Glass carboys are ideal for mead fermentation. Rehydrate the yeast and pitch when temperature is below 80 degrees F (27 C). Ferment for 1 month, then siphone the mead while avoiding the gingerroot. Discard the "spent" gingerroot. Continue to ferment for an additional 1 to 2 months or until the mead begins to clear. Then siphon the mead into another fermenter leaving the yeast behind. Continue to ferment to completion. Let it sit, then bottle when mead has cleared. It is ready to drink as soon as it has cleared.
...
Barkshack Sparkling Gingermead
A twentieth-century legend. Unlike traditional mead, Barkshack Gingermead and its variations are brewed with less honey per gallon, happily resulting in a dry, effervescently clear beverage with a 9-12 percent alcoholic sparkle, reminiscent of white champagne, or more accurately, like a dry (not sweet), alcoholic "ginger ale." Barkshack (Ginger) Honey Mead will take many brewers and friends by storm. In fact, 99 percent of the people who have tasted Barkshack Gingermead (or variations thereof) have pursued it as if it were a love affair. There are hundreds of brewers today who began their brewing endeavors because of the thrill of Barkshack Gingermead. It is wonderful. It is glorious. It is well worth waiting for. And wait you must.
Barkshack Gingermead is a brew that should be allowed to mature in a secondary fermentor for 1 to 1 1/2 months before bottling. Then, depending on ingredients, it needs to mature for 3 months to a full year in order to reach its full taste potential and to allow immature flavors to disappear. Patience is indeed a virtue that, in this case, is well rewarded.
The Recipand procedures for brewing the basic Barkshack Gingermead are simple and should make sense to even the beginning homebrewer.
Points that are emphasized in the brewing of this recipe or cariations are:
1. Honey should be boiled with water.
2. Champagne yeasts should be used for the more alcoholic versions of mead (percent alcohol in exess of 12 percent); otherwise, lager or ale yeast will suffice.
3. Slow primary fermentation is sometimes experienced with mead fermentation. Under no circumstances should the mead remain in an open primary fermenter for more than 7 days. Use a secondary fermenter with a fermentation lock.
4. Pasteurize all fruit that you may use. THis can be done by adding fruit to the hor sparged or partially strainged "wort." Do not boil the fruit as this may sometimes cause unsettling (pectin) haze.
5. When adding spice or herbs to the mead as flavoring, prepare a strong fresh "tea" and add it at bottling time; flavors will be cleaner and fresher.
Ingredients for 5 gallons (19 l):
7lbs. (3.2 kg) light honey
1 1/2 lbs. (680 g) corn sugar
1-6 oz. (28-168 g) freshly grated gingerroot
1 tsp. (4 g) gypsum
1 tsp. (4 g) citric acid
3 tsp. (15 g) yeast nutrient (available at homebrew supply stores), OR 1/4 oz. (7 g) yeast extract
1/4 tsp. (1 g) Irish Moss powder
1-6 lbs. (450 g-2.7 kg) Crushed fruitsuch as sour cherries, blackberries, raspberries (my favorite), blueberries, rhubarb, grapes, grape concentrate, cranberries, chokecherries, etc. (all optional)
3 oz. (84 g) lemongrass or other herb or spice flavorings--but go easy on the cloves, cinnamon, mint, hops. Lemon or orange peel is also nice (all optional).
1 oz. ( 28 g) champagne yeast
3/4 c. (175 ml) corn sugar (for bottling)
O.G.: 1.060-1.066 (15-16)
F.G.: .992-.996 (below 0)
Hey, now! Relax, don't worry, have a homebrew.
Boil for 15 minutes 1 1/2 gallons (5.7 l) of water, the honey, corn sugar, gingerroot, gypsum, citric acid, Irish moss and yeast nutrient. Turn the heat off. If you are going to add fruit, then take a small strainer and fish out as much of the ginger root shavings as you can, but don't worry. Then add your crushed fruit to the pot of hot wort and let it steep for 10-15 minutes.
Pour the entire contents of the "wort" (unsparged if fruit is added) into a plastic open primary fermenter and add about 3 gallons (11.5 l) of cold water (or enough to make 5 gallons [19 l]). When cooled to 70-78 defrees F (21-26 C), pitch the yeast.
After specific gravity as fallen to 1.020 (5), or within 7 days, whichever comes first, rack the brew into a secondary fermenter. If you use fruit, remote fermented fruit with a sanitized strainer, or carefully manipulate the siphon hose so that no fruit (or very little) passes to the secondary fermenter.
Age 1-1 1/2 months in the secondary fermenter.
Bottle with 3/4 cup (175 ml) of corn sugar. If herb, spice or tea flavoring is desired, add a strong strained tea to the finished mead at bottling time. In this manner, you may add the "tea" halfway through the bottling process, enabling you to bottle 2 flavors of mead!
The flavor of mead will change with age. Harsh and sharp flavors will mellow. A tasting after 6 months will give some indication of your results. But a sparkling cold Barkshack Gingermead of 1 year or more -- now that's heaven.
Citations:
Papazian, Charlie. The Complete Joy of Homebrewing. 3rd. William Morrow Paperbacks, 2003. 340-345.
Please forgive any typos, this was very long to type up and its is late here and I have had quite a bit of mead already tonight.
As a side note, charlie suggests straining off any fruit, I would go ahead and up this and really suggest that you simply add all fruits/ginger to a nylon bag for easy removal. Hope this helps!