I started brewing when I was 15 (23 years ago). Even bought a fridge for "aging my beer". Don't know what the fuck my mom was thinking letting me get away with that shit.
Anyway, I've brewed on and off over the years but am just getting back into it again.
I didn't know what mead was until a couple years ago. (It's fermented honey) Anyway, I wound up going to a mead tasting last summer with about 30 homebrewed meads opened up. I had never tasted the stuff before. It was a great experience and I learned a lot. Most of them had been flavored with things like fruit, tea bags (raspberry herbal tea for instance), or spices, even vegetables like pumpkins.
The best one I tried was a strawberry/chocolate mead and it was excellent so I decided to try to make one. Bought about $600 worth of supplies on top of the dust-covered stuff I had in the basement, and I've been really enjoying getting back into it.
I finally got a wort-chiller in the mail today. Life is going to be much better now.
I'm brewing up a storm these days and enjoying trying new things.
Got going:
5 gallons of strawberry/chocolate mead
6 gallons of Merlot
Brewing this week:
5 gallons of Porter (my favorite beer)
Brewing on March 5th with some friends:
5 gallons Chocolate/Mint mead
5 gallons unflavored mead from some local beekeepers I know.
Things I want to try:
brewing organic mead from naturally harvested yeast
mulberry wine from the trees on my property
hard cider
The problem with mead is that it should be many months old before you drink it. I figure I need about 20 carboys so I can try all the things I want to try.