When Scott Neeley talks about making customers happy with KingView meads and wines, he means a lot more than just a responsible buzz for the 21-and-over crowd.
“I always wanted to start a business that hit three major marks: It had to be fun, had to be something I was interested in, and it had to benefit society in some way,” said Neeley, 40, of Pleasant Hills, Pennsylvania.
KingView Meadhouse & Winery aims to open its first tasting room and restaurant by the end of this summer, just about one year after the property, a former gas station building, was purchased. Located at the apex of Banksville, McFarland and Beverly Roads, KingView is a Mt. Lebanon business, though a stone’s throw from the Dormont line. It’s a welcomed update to a previously underdeveloped property, giving new dimension to Neeley’s desire to benefit society.
KingView Meadhouse and Winery Abby Mackey
“We’re excited that they’re coming, we’re excited about the location,” said Eric Milliron, Mt. Lebanon’s economic development officer. “The condition that property was in prior, it is just a radical improvement to one of the major gateways into our community.”
Neeley’s less accidental societal contribution has everything to do with bees.
The fermentation of honey (and sometimes flavourful additions, such as fruit or spices) creates the alcoholic beverage known as mead. Wine-like in its range of flavour and mouth-feel, there’s a mead for almost any palate: dry to sweet, thick to thin, with an incredible amount of tasty subtlety coming from additions such as fruit and spices.
The honeybee population that creates that honey, however, has been dropping precipitously for the past several decades — a trend that Neeley is attempting to curb.
Neeley’s less accidental societal contribution has everything to do with bees.
The fermentation of honey (and sometimes flavourful additions, such as fruit or spices) creates the alcoholic beverage known as mead. Wine-like in its range of flavour and mouth-feel, there’s a mead for almost any palate: dry to sweet, thick to thin, with an incredible amount of tasty subtlety coming from additions such as fruit and spices.
The honeybee population that creates that honey, however, has been dropping precipitously for the past several decades — a trend that Neeley is attempting to curb.
KingView collaborates with the Pennsylvania Beekeepers Association in order to source all 10,000 pounds of its yearly honey usage from Pennsylvania beekeepers. In an effort coined Mead-for-Bees, Kingview pledges to donate 10% of all sales to fight the bee population decline and periodically holds beekeeping equipment giveaways.
“We need to eat, and a lot of our food comes from plant-based things, and you need pollinators for that,” said Neeley. “If we’re supporting the pollinators in a fun way, we’re supporting sustainable food. It all creates a circle, which is great.”
After graduating from Thomas Jefferson High School, Neeley earned a degree in finance and management information systems from the University of Pittsburgh’s Johnstown campus.
Visits to the winery-studded Niagara Falls region in his 20s inspired this entrepreneurial outlet. The paucity of mead-creators — or methiers, as they were called in medieval times — made mead the focus.
KingView Mead was born in 2011. Neeley began entering, and winning, amateur competitions by 2015. Until now, the business has relied mostly on internet, festival and liquor store sales, but that model is on the verge of a significant evolution.
KingView’s Mt. Lebanon location will feature on-site and retail sales of its libations, and a food menu.
Covid-19 restrictions aside, patrons will have the choice of indoor or outdoor dining, though the outdoor space might easily steal the show.
“If we were open right now, we could take advantage of it from a Covid perspective, but it’s more about creating that Garden of Eden-type of atmosphere where we’re actually going to be growing food out there,” said Neeley of the mid-construction patio whose wood-planked enclosure already hints at the vibe.
While the on-property parking is limited, on-street parking is readily available and negotiations are ongoing for spaces at an adjacent lot.
As Neeley and Milliron are both quick to point out, however, the area is known as a walking community.
“All sidewalks lead to KingView,” Milliron said. “It’s a destination-type business. So, if someone is seeking out mead, they’ll find a way to get there. I think he’ll find a lot of success here.”
https://triblive.com/local/pittsburgh-allegheny/mt-lebanons-kingview-is-making-mead-saving-bees/
“We need to eat, and a lot of our food comes from plant-based things, and you need pollinators for that,” said Neeley. “If we’re supporting the pollinators in a fun way, we’re supporting sustainable food. It all creates a circle, which is great.”
After graduating from Thomas Jefferson High School, Neeley earned a degree in finance and management information systems from the University of Pittsburgh’s Johnstown campus.
Visits to the winery-studded Niagara Falls region in his 20s inspired this entrepreneurial outlet. The paucity of mead-creators — or methiers, as they were called in medieval times — made mead the focus.
KingView Mead was born in 2011. Neeley began entering, and winning, amateur competitions by 2015. Until now, the business has relied mostly on internet, festival and liquor store sales, but that model is on the verge of a significant evolution.
KingView’s Mt. Lebanon location will feature on-site and retail sales of its libations, and a food menu.
Covid-19 restrictions aside, patrons will have the choice of indoor or outdoor dining, though the outdoor space might easily steal the show.
“If we were open right now, we could take advantage of it from a Covid perspective, but it’s more about creating that Garden of Eden-type of atmosphere where we’re actually going to be growing food out there,” said Neeley of the mid-construction patio whose wood-planked enclosure already hints at the vibe.
While the on-property parking is limited, on-street parking is readily available and negotiations are ongoing for spaces at an adjacent lot.
As Neeley and Milliron are both quick to point out, however, the area is known as a walking community.
“All sidewalks lead to KingView,” Milliron said. “It’s a destination-type business. So, if someone is seeking out mead, they’ll find a way to get there. I think he’ll find a lot of success here.”
https://triblive.com/local/pittsburgh-allegheny/mt-lebanons-kingview-is-making-mead-saving-bees/
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