[UnwashedPeasant]

The bacteria for the fermentation comes from the raw honey.

Interesting. I thought honey was antibacterial.

[mylife]

meade is fermented honey

[whatexit]

It’s yeast that makes it ferment. Honey is anti-bacterial.

[Celtic Conservative]

It is.

CC

[ConservativeInPA]

The bacteria for the fermentation comes from the raw honey.

Yeast performs the fermentation. It's in the air. It's on the surface of most things. It's everywhere. As long as you do not kill the yeast, e.g. heating, you can add water or a brine solution to just about anything organic and it will ferment. Sometimes it helps to add sugar or honey to feed the yeast. Once fermentation starts, air becomes the enemy as it contains bad bacteria and molds. An airlock on a fermentation vessel allows CO2 from the fermentation to force air from the vessel and stop any new air from getting into the vessel.