Indeed, mead survived longest in the cooler northern regions, where grapes could not be grown successfully. Then, at the beginning of the eighteenth century, the introduction of sweet, fortified wines such as Port and Madeira helped wine prevail there as well. In colonial America, where apples flourished, hard cider was the local leader from the outset. Mead practically makes itself. When well made, it rivals the finest wines and champagnes in the world.
Honey is highly fermentable.
For more details, please consult my recipe. As with wines and champagnes, mead can be made sweet or dry. Which style is produced depends greatly on the amount of honey, the type of yeast used, and the length of fermentation. Sweeter meads generally need something to offset an otherwise cloying taste, just as beers require the balancing bitterness of hops against the sweetness of malt. Mead makers often try to replicate the effects of acids in sweet white wines by using citric, malic, or tartaric acids , which provide a tangy counterpoint.