A Mead Aroma Wheel and Lexicon

Goals: Mead is experiencing a revival in the United States, and the number of meaderies has grown significantly in the past decade. Despite this industry growth, mead sensory studies are limited and focus on experimental samples and hedonic assessments. The aim of this study was to create a lexicon to standardize the language used to describe mead attributes and to create a mead aroma wheel for use as an assistive tool for mead judges, producers, and consumers.

Key Findings:

• A trained panel developed a lexicon of 75 aroma, five basic taste, and six mouthfeel sensation terms to describe commercial mead.

• Reference standards for each attribute were included for consistency and reproducibility.

• An open-access Traditional Mead Aroma Wheel organizes 75 aroma descriptors into a visual tool with suggestions for a standardized mead evaluation procedure.

Impact and Significance: Terms used to describe mead sensory attributes vary based on industry role, experience, and mead competition scoresheets. A standardized lexicon is proposed as a method to unify terms for mead description regardless of expertise. This lexicon was adapted into a visual tool, the Traditional Mead Aroma Wheel, to aid in mead evaluation during production, at competitions, and in the taproom.