Cyber (Mead) Monday

Cyber Monday is upon us and it appears that Superstition is applying 20% off all orders of 3 or more bottles.    

www.superstitionmeadery.com/

Rushford - Heather Blossom Metheglin

Rushford is a meadery and winery in Wisconsin that first planted grapes in 2013.  They're a relatively young winery but put out a nice variety of meads using local honeys.

Heather Blossom Metheglin is a sweet mead made with honey and Heather Blossom added. I don't believe it's necessarily a traditional heather honey, but has a lot of the same flavor and aroma characteristics.  This bottle is a 375mL with a 13.6% ABV.

A nose of apple blossom, a nice mix of sweet apple juice and some floral components.  The color is a nice, clear, light copper color.  A burnt orange, very reminiscence of apple juice.  At first the taste follows the nose with some apple, but opens up to so many more layers. There's a woodsy character, almost like an oaky astringency to it, in a nice way.  I get cinnamon, heather, floral, almost a cinnamon apple turnover flavor.  A very pleasant dessert quality to it, and as it warms the cinnamon and spices are more apparent and the juicy apple falls away.

This is a lovely and complex mead.  It has that very distinct, sweet heather flavor.  Not quite as heather intense as Schramms Heather, which is a completely different mead so this is not a comparison.  Heather Blossom is very complex with layers that open up nicely as it warms in your glass.  A great fall sipper.

Pips - Blue Suede Shews

Pips Meadery is a small, startup meadery outside of Chicago.  As of November 2016 they've not officially opened their doors or selling any product.  They're still going through all the hoops of setting up a production meadery but I expect them to open some time in 2017.  Despite that Pips has garnered a positive following in the mead community.

Let's get to the liquid.  Blue Suede Shews is an orange blossom base with wild blueberries and cashews,  This is an older labeled bottle so it's either a batch 1 or batch 2.

This mead has a really wonderful nose. There's a beautiful melding of jammy fruitiness and nuttiness that almost evokes a peanut butter and jelly combo.  The color is an extremely dark blue/purple, just about opaque as it could be without being 100%.  The taste matches the nose with a big, fruity punch of blueberries, but in a restrained way.  If that makes sense.  See, to me, blueberries have a delicate flavor profile that often times gets lost when used with other bolder fruit combos, but not here.  The blueberries are the star.  There's also a smooth, almost oily feel and taste from the cashews.  Even though it's not the same flavors, I still evoke that PB&J feeling of nuts and sticky sweet fruits when sipping this mead.

Blue Suede Shews really is a wonder beverage.  It's another one of those thought provoking meads for me, like Garagiste's Bangkok or Yukatan Sunrise, that makes you really consider and appreciate the intricate and unique flavor combinations that you don't see in meads every day.  It's well crafted beverage to say the least.

Four Meaderies are Pushing the Envelope in the World of Fermented Honey Wine

A great write in Paste Magazine about mead, highlighting 4 meaderies that are pushing the boundaries.  

By Jason Stein
PASTE

Believed to be the first alcoholic beverage, mead was once referred to as “the nectar of the Gods.” And those who have tried a well-executed mead will understand why. This beverage that is created by fermenting honey with water, and features spices or fruits, is quickly making a comeback, largely due to the ever-growing craft beer scene. Today, beer enthusiasts are seeking out what many consider to be the next frontier as meaderies have begun to pop up throughout the country. For those of you who are looking to join the movement, there are a few meaderies we think you should check out.

Schramm’s Mead  

Ken Schramm has led the charge for mead ever since co-founding the Mazer Cup Invitational in 1992. While the number of meaderies have increased tenfold since then, Ken has continued to push the envelope since opening Schramm’s in 2013 and has become known for his elegant fruit-forward meads, some of which come from his own orchard.

Superstition Meadery

For co-owner Jeff Herbert, becoming one of the most renowned mead-makers in the world was never the original plan. It took a screenplay, a trip to Borneo, and a sip of Chimay in Brussels to convince him that maybe he should give the whole homebrewing thing a shot (that’s the nutshell version). Five years ago, after taking a course at the Siebel Institute on how to start a brewery, and entering many competitions, Jeff and his wife and co-owner Jen moved to Arizona to make their dream a reality.

B. Nektar Meadery

Founded 10 years ago by Brad and Kerri Dahlhofer and their friend Paul Zimmerman, B. Nektar has come a long way from their 1,200-square-foot basement meadery. Today, B. Nektar is one of the largest and most recognizable names in the mead industry with an incredible 26,000-square-foot location that includes a new taproom. While they started out making more traditional styles of meads, they have now turned their focus to include several types of session meads and ciders that you can find in many locations around the country as well as, of course, their taproom in Ferndale, Michigan. While their portfolio is endless, two of our favorites from them are Cherry Chipotle and #Dragonsarereal.

Garagiste Meadery

One of the most exciting new Meaderies on the horizon is Garagiste Meadery, which isn’t even open yet. Technically, they don’t open until next year. But led by Chad Wiltz and his wife Sarah, Garagiste has been turning the heads of mead fans this year after the largest crowdfunding campaign in mead industry history. Once the Meadery in Tampa Heights opens, visitors will be able to hang out and enjoy meads on tap within view of the production facility. Two of our favorite meads Garagiste has released thus far are Goober Grape 2.0 and Black Widow.

FULL STORY: Paste Magazine

Garagiste - Black Widow

Garagiste Meadery's Black Widow (batch 2) is a Black Currant, Red Currant, Blackberry, Raspberry, and Tart Cherry melomel that's aged on bourbon staves with Vanilla beans.    

This mead is everything I look for in a melomel.  It has big bold flavors, Both the black and red currants add a nice tannic quality.  The blackberries, cherries and raspberries all lend a fruity tartness to everything, which is beautifully complimented by the sweetness of a little vanilla and some woods-y and boozy notes from the barrel.  Black Widow took home a Bronze Medal at the Texas Mead Cup in summer 2016, and rightfully so.  This is a beautiful mead.  It's so complex without being overwhelming.  Everything has it's place and the layers work well together.  

RELEASE: Crafted - Holiday Mead

Crafted Artisan Meadery out of Ohio announced that a new mead they will be releasing this holiday season.  Tentative release is set for Friday November 18th, 2016 in the taproom and seeing limited distribution a short time after that.

Little info outside of the label is known at this point but it appears to be a spiced honeywine.  If label imagery is any indication it will be a gingerbread spices, which is ginger, nutmeg, cinnamon, allspice, and clove.

RELEASE: B.Nektar - The Dude's Rug

The Dude's Rug is technically not a mead, but it's a tasty beverage put out by B.Nektar.  It's a hard apple cider spiced with tea and chai spices (cinnamon, cardamom, clove, ginger, and vanilla) that clocks in at a session-able 5.5% ABV

The Dude's Rug comes in 500mL bottles and is currently available in their taproom and will see distribution in stores that carry B/Nektar.

Information from B.Nektar website:

Essential Elements - Apple cider, chai tea (tea with cardamom, close, cinnamon, ginger, and vanilla).

Appearance - Dark amber and clear with a foamy white head that dissipates into a thin white rim.

Aroma - Sweet, fresh applies with notes of cinnamon, close, cardamom, ginger, and raisin.

Experience - Sweet, baked apples followed by a vivid blend of clove and cardamom.  Black tea rounds out the flavor and leave little to no tannin.  Medium-bodies with a crisp, red apple skin aftertaste.

Superstition: Berry White Day

Tomorrow, Saturday November 5th, 2016, is Superstition's famed Berry White Day.  This is a day/fest held at the meadery which in addition to the release of their Berry White meads, is a great party with the chance to sample all Whites and other meads.

Here's a sneak peak of the tap list for the event.

I'm extremely jealous of those who are able to attend.  Have a fun and safe time!