Though mead is an old drink, we are not attempting to recreate what it once was. Our rediscovery of mead seeks to reimagine and reinvent mead, to bring it into current times, and make it relevant for today.
What is Mead?
Mead, often referred to as "honey wine," is the world's most ancient fermented beverage, with the earliest record of mead dating back to Ancient China in 7000 BC. Truth be told, mead is not wine at all, rather it is its own unique category of beverage defined by the fermentable sugars found in honey, whereas wine is defined by the fermentable sugars found in fruit. In its most basic form, mead is three ingredients: honey, water and yeast.
The foundation of any mead is of course, honey, but that's just the beginning. Like winemakers use different grapes in wine, we showcase unique honey varietals together with a myriad of fruits and spices to craft our meads. Rediscover and reimagine this historical beverage with us!
How is it Made?
Honey is blended with water or other liquids like cider, tea, or coffee. The ratio is approximately 1 part honey to 4 parts water.
Fruits (melomel) and/or spices (metheglin) are added to the honey and liquid base.
Yeast is added and the sweet mixture is fermented to the desired sweetness and alcohol levels. Mead alcohol by volume ranges from 8% to 20%. Some meads are aged in wood barrels similar to wine and spirits.
Traditional
Meads simply crafted from honey, water, and yeast
Soak Up The Sun
Musical Inspiration: Soak Up the Sun by Sheryl Crow
A semi-sweet traditional mead made with orange blossom honey. Notes of citrus, peach, and grape. 12.5% ABV
Virginia Tonight
Musical Inspiration: Virginia Moon, by the Foo Fighters and Norah Jones
A semi-sweet traditional mead fermented with Virginia Wildflower and Appalachian honey and aged in bourbon barrels. 12% ABV
Capulumel
Honey blended with coffee and fermented
Coffee Cantata
Musical Inspiration: Coffee Cantata, by Johann Sebastian Bach
A semi-sweet mead made with cold brew coffee and a blend of wildflower, mesquite blossom, and blueberry blossom honey and aged in maple bourbon barrels. 13% ABV
Metheglin
Meads flavored with herbs and/or spices
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Scarborough Fair
Musical Inspiration: Scarborough Fair by Simon and Garfunkel
Dry metheglin made with star thistle honey, rosemary, thyme, and green tea. 13% ABV
Today is the Greatest
Musical Inspiration: Today by Smashing Pumpkins
Semi-sweet metheglin made with a blend of Appalachian and Virginia wildflower honey, a touch of pumpkin and sweetened with our pumpkin spice Whipped honey. 12.5% ABV
Dream Weaver
Musical Inspiration: Dream Weaver by Gary Wright
semi-sweet metheglin made with orange blossom honey, oranges, coconut, vanilla and cardamon. 13% ABV
Ginger Me Slowly
Musical Inspiration: Ginger me Slowly by Somi
semi-sweet metheglin made with rich avocado blossom honey and fresh ginger and then rye barrel aged . 11% ABV
Cyser
Honey blended with apple cider and fermented together
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Dream by the Fire
Musical Inspiration: Winter Wonderland
A semi-sweet cyser made with a blend of four honeys and freshly pressed Virginia apple cider from Showalters Orchard in Harrisonburg, VA, flavored with apple pie spices and aged in new French oak barrels. 12.5% ABV
Melomel
Mead fermented or flavored with fruit
All Blues
Musical Inspiration: All Blues by Miles Davis
A semi-sweet melomel made with blueberry blossom honey and blueberries added in both primary and secondary fermentation, aged in French oak. 13% ABV
Raspberry Passion
Musical Inspiration: Raspberry Jam by Joe Satriani
A semi-sweet melomel made with Virginia honey, raspberries and passion fruit. 13% ABV
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Strawberry Swing
Musical Inspiration: Strawberry Swing by Coldplay
A semi-sweet melomel made with alfalfa honey and local strawberries. 12% ABV
Black Velvet
Musical Inspiration: Black Velvet by Alannah Myles
A semi-sweet melomel made with a blend of star thistle honey and Appalachian wildflower honey and black currants. 13% ABV