What are you drinking right now?

It seems that spring has finally arrived, so it would be a sin not to have a drink. On Saturday, I brought a couple of liters of this. Unlike the products from Suzdal, which you've seen reviews of before, "Medovarnya Na-Payakh" is a small company, almost like home production. As for the drink itself, it’s slightly less strong than the standard (4.5% on average, depending on the batch), it smells good, not repulsive, and even reminiscent of pure honey. It's similar to "Pyatyltinnaya" from Suzdal, but without excessive sweetness, as it should be considering there is no sugar in its composition (which is actually a good sign). However, hops are present in the ingredients, but they aren't very noticeable. Or maybe they just blend in harmoniously. Perhaps it's one of the best meads I've tried (I won't compare it to "Black Boar" from Mjolnir, as they are too different). In general, it's an excellent product; I recommend it, 9/10.
The bottle of rum next to it isn't just for show. These two drinks mix very well together, unlike that terrible combination of vodka and beer that is somehow popular here. Rum adds not only a pleasant strength but also a wonderful vanilla aroma that goes so well with the honey flavor, while the drinkability doesn't suffer at all. The proportions depend on your taste, but you probably shouldn't add more than 1 part rum to 3 parts mead. I usually mix them in a ratio of about 1 to 4. Although, perhaps you could do the opposite and add some mead to the rum instead... But remember that these are drinks made from different raw materials, which means you might feel unwell afterward. By the way, I first tried pairing mead with pickled apples, following numerous online suggestions. It was quite good. You don't even need real pickled apples: thinly slice them and put them in a glass of water; after a couple of hours, you can use them as a snack.