Thursday, 16 May 2024

Retro Meadery introducing a different taste to North Carolina this summer

From wwaytv3.com

BURGAW, NC (WWAY)– There’s a new business coming to Downtown Burgaw, and it’s the first of its kind in the Cape Fear Region.  

Two men and some friends started experimenting with some simple ingredients to develop their recipe for mead.  

“Mead is pretty much a honey wine. Instead of using grapes, we use honey to make our wine.”   

That’s “mead”, not to be mistaken for “meat”, because this may be the first you’re hearing of it.   

“Mead is the first known adult beverage in the world. Before there was beer, before there was your traditional grape wine, there was mead,” said Michael Fields, Co-Owner of Retro Meadery. “A lot of people haven’t heard of it because being that you use honey, honey is a more expensive product to use to make an adult beverage.”   

Fields, along side his Co-Owner, Matthew Clemmons and other friends, decided to make mead one day. And after many attempts to perfect their craft, “Retro Meadery” was born.   

“A couple of friends got together, we decided to make some mead together. Our first batch turned out not so well, so we decided to get some quality honey and try it again. After multiple different batches, we shared it with friends and family who really enjoyed it, and said to ourselves ‘hey maybe this is something we can do’,” said Fields.  

Retro Meadery is brand new to the business world, but is quickly becoming increasingly popular, as it is the only meadery on the North Carolina coast.   

“Last year has been one full year of us in business. We did very well last year,” said Fields. “The demand for our mead has been overwhelming to where we actually just purchased two more tanks, and we are expecting to double our profits this year and grow from there.”  

Retro Meadery is set to open this summer in Downtown Burgaw as a tasting room that will feature vintage arcade games, hence “retro”, and other activities.  

“Burgaw is growing, and we just figured this is a place that we can bring something special, and also with our tasting room, some entertainment,” said Fields.  

Michael Fields and Matthew Clemmons are both Brunswick County natives.   

Their mead is completely made in Burgaw and is sourced by local ingredients and supplies from other businesses in the Cape Fear.   

Fields notes that it takes about two weeks for fermentation, and depending on what batch is being made, it may take anywhere from one to five months of aging before it’s ready to be bottled. He also adds that each batch requires 245 pounds of honey. It can be dry, semi-sweet, or sweet. 

The grand opening for Retro Meadery is projected to be in mid-July of this year. 

The meadery is located at 112 South Dickerson Street in Burgaw, right across from the train depot.

https://www.wwaytv3.com/retro-meadery-introducing-a-different-taste-to-burgaw-this-summer/ 

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