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[lordcooper]

I've been producing my own wine and beer for a while now and have recently decided I want to try mead next.  The problem is that honey is pretty damn expensive, especially considering the quantities I would need.  Anyone know the best (cheapest) way to get honey in bulk that doesn't involve becoming a beekeeper?

[Zrk2]

...Buy  it direct from a keeper or some other version of wholesale?

[MetalSlimeHunt]

A baseball bat, empty jar, and high pain tolerance will get you honey for free. Unless, you know, you run into an africanized hive. Then you'll get no honey and die horribly. Still, your call.

[Tellemurius]

...Buy  it direct from a keeper or some other version of wholesale?

that might be a better choice

[Ibid Straydrink]

Also, if you live near a "culture hub" of some sort, e.g. China Town, you might be able to find good, imported honey less expensive than supermarket prices.

Alternatively, you could attempt to ferment mead from the 99 cent cornsyrup "hybrid" stuff.

[runiq]

Requirements:

• baseball bat
• gas mask
• hella smokin' flame

Steps to profit:

• Ambush beekeeper.
• a. Apply bat to head of beekeeper.
  b. Use smoke to knock bees out cold.
  c. Optionally, use smoke first, to knock beekeeper out cold more easily.
• Aquire honey.
• ?
• Mead.
• Give us some.

[Nikov]

Honey is going to be expensive no matter what, although buying from the source (be prepared to bid) might be less expensive. Making mead out of corn syrup probably will result in an inferior product. The best way you can go about fermenting mead is to treat it as a business rather than a hobby. If raw materials cost you a hundred dollars, make a plan to recover that cost through sales, and be prepared to absorb the cost of bad batches as you learn how to make the new product.

Or you can commit assault with a deadly weapon if Capitalism isn't your thing.

[DJ]

You don't have to sell mead to recover expenses, if making mead for own consumption is cheaper than buying mead then meadmaking still makes a lot of sense.

Anyway, if you don't have what it takes to wrestle wild bees for their honey, try collecting pollen yourself No, seriously, I remember that my aunt used to make some kind of ersatz honey out of dandelion flowers. It wasn't really that similar to honey, but I bet it'd still be miles above corn syrup.

Getting 2-3 beehives shouldn't be too expensive, though. IIRC you can get like 30 pounds of honey per hive in one year. Beekeeping is damn lucrative until varoa kills all of your hives.

[Armok]

> go to a beekeper and get the crappy quality wax filled stuff that'd otherwise be thrown away.

[DJ]

Nah, they don't have that. It separates into wax and honey neatly when heated, since they're different densities, so they can extract most of the honey. I guess you could get some wax with traces of honey, though

Wax itself is still a useful product, so it may be expensive too.

[Ibid Straydrink]

> go to a beekeper and get the crappy quality wax filled stuff that'd otherwise be thrown away.

Some of that stuff is considered gourmet cuisine, sir!

Yeah, ok, I made that up. But I like my honey wax wafers.

[Armok]

* Armok knows exactly zero abaut beekeping or honey and just tried to apy Comon Sense. This dodnt work out very well

[Duke 2.0]

 Ferment wax into mead.

 I think Armok is onto something here.

[DJ]

You can use scented candles for a more exotic flavour

[MetalSlimeHunt]

Ferment wax into mead.

 I think Armok is onto something here.

"Sir, I stopped you because your driving was erratic. Have you had any candles this evening?"