user80: Following up on the hard cider topic, how about mead?  Like cider, it's just another common fermented drink (honey, in this case).  However, it's a bit more wine-like in character.  On topic or not?  

user303: I would think Mead would be on topic. It is brewed using a fermenting process, and can include carbonation and hops.
However, there are variations that perhaps would not fit. Since it gets is sugar from honey, it also overlaps with other honey produced products also termed mead. These can include making a honey-wine or even distilled into a liquor.
So I think it would be on a case by case basis that you would determine if this was off topic or not. For example, if it were in relation to making a Christmas mead which included some fruits and hops and was 8% abv then I think that would work, as opposed to questions about distilling honey to reach a 40% abv level.
Overall, since this exchange is so new, I think it is important to allow questions to come in and provide answers and just build content. As the site matures content which may not fit as a good example going forward can be closed and deleted. But up front, it will only disenfranchise users to close downvote and delete their questions based on something which was very close to being on topic. 
I really liked your answer in another post here on meta in regards to this, "Relax the rules and see what happens." That was a similar attitude Stack Overflow used when they first started (in fact, there was no closing questions then, and when it was first introduced you could only close your own questions).

80: <p>Following up on the hard cider topic, how about mead?  Like cider, it's just another common fermented drink (honey, in this case).  However, it's a bit more wine-like in character.  On topic or not?  </p>
 303: <p>I would think Mead would be on topic. It is brewed using a fermenting process, and can include carbonation and hops.</p>

<p>However, there are variations that perhaps would not fit. Since it gets is sugar from honey, it also overlaps with other honey produced products also termed mead. These can include making a honey-wine or even distilled into a liquor.</p>

<p>So I think it would be on a case by case basis that you would determine if this was off topic or not. For example, if it were in relation to making a Christmas mead which included some fruits and hops and was 8% abv then I think that would work, as opposed to questions about distilling honey to reach a 40% abv level.</p>

<p>Overall, since this exchange is so new, I think it is important to allow questions to come in and provide answers and just build content. As the site matures content which may not fit as a good example going forward can be closed and deleted. But up front, it will only disenfranchise users to close downvote and delete their questions based on something which was very close to being on topic. </p>

<p>I really liked your answer in another post here on meta in regards to this, "Relax the rules and see what happens." That was a similar attitude Stack Overflow used when they first started (in fact, there was no closing questions then, and when it was first introduced you could only close your own questions).</p>
