Virginia, USA: Best breweries located inside a meadery

From styleweekly.com

SetBreak Brewing Company (1313 Altamont Ave.) and Funktastic Beer (1212 Alverser Plaza) 

When a business already has the local market pretty much cornered with its product, as Funktastic Meads and Black Heath Meadery do, it takes a special brand of confidence to add beer to the menu. But that’s what they did. And so far, their decision appears to be paying off.

SetBreak Brewing owners Rob Quicke (left) and Bill Cavender, who also owns Black Heath Meadery. Photo by Scott Elmquist

Funktastic Beer celebrated its two-year anniversary in April, and Black Heath’s SetBreak Brewing Company opened in February. Both fit nicely into the Richmond beer spectrum: SetBreak seems to favor light, refreshing beers and solid IPAs, while Funktastic often leans toward highly experimental stouts. SetBreak gets its name from a band’s pause between sets, as Black Heath Meadery owner Bill Cavender and head brewer Rob Quicke are huge music lovers.

“It feels like we are past the tuning and into full-on practices now,” Cavender says in an email, continuing the metaphor. “We’ve pushed a couple ‘tunes’ out, but we’re not really comfortable enough for any tasty jams and improv yet.” He adds that the approach has exposed strictly mead drinkers to beer, and vice versa, offering more variety. “We are working on the true mashups, the braggots,” he says. “A beer-mead hybrid that we couldn’t make with a wine license. Coming this summer!”

                                                                Exterior of Black Heath Meadery in Scott’s Addition

Matt Carroll is the owner and head brewer of Funktastic Meads. Before he became known as the guy who makes off-the-wall meads, he was the home brewer who made off-the-wall adjunct beers with friends. For him, the boomerang back to beer was a logical step.

Besides crafting pastry stouts that give The Answer and The Veil runs for their money, Carroll’s anniversary beer – a double IPA collaboration with a brewery in Zimbabwe, where he took a family trip – illustrates his willingness to experiment. After trying a popular orange concentrate there called mazoe, he thought it would work great in a beer. Clearly, he was right: it was the third-highest rated beer on Untappd in the country when it came out in early April.

                                                                                                    Funktastic Meads interior

“Our focus is still mead,” Carroll says. “But beer is something that people know… It’s a small portion of our business, but it works well. It brings people in.”

https://www.styleweekly.com/best-breweries-located-inside-a-meadery/

Virginia USA: Black Heath Meadery in Richmond to celebrate 10 years with ‘Celebration of Collaboration’ event

From wric.com

RICHMOND, Va. (WRIC) — Black Heath Meadery in Richmond will hold a grand finale event to celebrate its 10-year anniversary.

The “Celebration of Collaboration” grand finale event will take place from 1 to 9 p.m. on Saturday, May 24 at the Black Heath Meadery taproom, located at 1313 Altamont Avenue, and will feature nine unique honey-based collaborations.

According to a spokesperson for the meadery, six of these collaborations were crafted with breweries and cideries in Richmond, which are Buskey Cider, Brainstorm Brewhouse, Anytime Beer Company, The Answer, Ardent Craft Ales and Väsen Brewing Company.

The other three mead collaborations were created with Black Heath Meadery’s out-of-town partners, Manic Meadery, Columbia Meadery and Unpossible Mead.

The spokesperson said each collaboration is a “tribute to the artistry of fermentation, celebrating honey’s versatility in brewing and meadmaking” and is a rare opportunity only available at this event.

River City Wood Fire Pizza will also reportedly be on site for the event to serve wood-fired pizzas.

“This event is a true reflection of the partnerships that have helped shape us over the past decade,” said Bill Cavender, owner and head meadmaker at Black Heath. “We’re honored to celebrate our 10-year milestone with the friends, makers, and community that have fueled our passion and progress.”

Additionally, Black Heath Meadery will host a special collaboration dinner at its production facility located at 2004 Dabney Road from 4 to 7 p.m. on Saturday.

According to the spokesperson, the evening will feature an open-fire feast prepared by Two Fire Table and Autumn Olive Farms, where guests will enjoy some of Virginia’s finest seasonal produce and meats, cooked over an open flame.

Dinner tickets for the event include mains, sides and two glasses of mead selected to complement the menu. To purchase tickets for the collaboration dinner at Black Heath Meadery’s production facility, go here.

https://www.wric.com/news/local-news/richmond/black-heath-meadery-in-richmond-to-celebrate-10-years-with-celebration-of-collaboration-event/ 

USA: Virginians craft an ancient beverage - mead

From starexponent.com

NELLYSFORD — One of humanity’s oldest libations is making a comeback in Virginia.

With roots dating to at least 7,000 B.C. in China, mead fell out of favour when beer and wine took centre stage. However, the American Mead Association reports there are around 450 commercial meaderies in the U.S., with more opening as the fermented honey drink experiences a revival.

In Nelson County, Hill Top Winery & Meadery is among local crafters bringing ancient traditions back to life. What began as a you-pick berry farm in 1993 has grown into a popular spot offering over 20 meads.

“My dad made the first batch, and I saw all the possibilities,” reflected Kimberly Allen-Pugh, who owns the business with her husband, Gregory. “Making mead combines my love of history and the ability to be creative.”

She describes mead as “history in a bottle,” and visitors to Hill Top’s medieval-themed tasting room can sample varieties ranging from dry to sweet, including a traditional Viking-style mead and Gladius, a pyment made by fermenting honey and grape juice. The meadery sources honey from local and international apiaries while incorporating local flavours from foraged pawpaws, wild persimmons and mulberries.

Bottling in small batches year-round, Hill Top sells both online and in the tasting room — drawing customers from across the globe.

“When we first started, most people did not know what mead was or might say, ‘Oh I had that in Ireland,’” Allen-Pugh said. “Now more people are familiar, there are more meaderies in existence, and we have a product that’s sought out.”

                                                                  Doug Suchan (left) and John Kluge (right). VIRGINIA FARM BUREAU

Situated outside of Charlottesville, Thistlerock Mead Co. has built a sustainable ecosystem around the drink — from flower to bottle. Founded in 2022 by John Kluge Jr. and Doug Suchan, the operation’s 70 beehives and millions of bees produce much of its honey.

“At least 51% of all the honey we use is sourced from our hives,” explained Allison Wickham, Thistlerock’s director of apiary operations.

Blending their honey with sustainably sourced varieties from Colombia, Ethiopia and other regions, “the different flavours of honey carry through the mead,” Wickham said. “Just like chardonnay and merlot grapes make dramatically different wines, similarly, buckwheat honey and acacia honey make meads with different colours and flavours.”

Chief mead maker Suchan explained 3 to 4 pounds of honey produce a gallon of mead, which is fermented in steel tanks and aged in oak barrels. Thistlerock’s lineup includes a semi-dry variety with notes of pear and honeycomb and a semisweet mead infused with Ethiopian coffee beans and vanilla.

As its popularity grows, Thistlerock works to elevate mead’s presence. Kluge is collaborating with local meaderies to begin a state mead association, the Virginia Mead Guild, which received a grant to develop a Virginia Mead Tasting Trail.

“We want people to be able to go into their local shop or favorite restaurant and order mead,” Kluge said.

And with over 25 commercial meaderies in the state, “I think Virginia is well positioned to do that.”

https://starexponent.com/news/state-regional/article_d5c9142f-aadb-47fb-b179-7d0eb192c432.html 

Virginia USA: A Meading Of The Minds

From styleweekly.com

By Rachel Kester

Sip on the nectar of the gods at these two RVA meaderies 

It might be one of the world’s oldest alcoholic beverages, but mead (or honey wine) is widely overlooked in a world focused on beer, wine and spirits. Crafted with honey, yeast, water and whatever infusions strike a mead maker’s fancy, this drink marches to its own drum despite often being pushed into the shadows.

In Virginia, there are only about a dozen meaderies—a stark contrast to its over 300 wineries and 200 craft breweries. Richmond is home to two of these meaderies, each with distinct styles but the same mission: To spread an appreciation for the nectar of the gods.

Funktastic Meads & Beer

Tucked in Midlothian’s Alverser Plaza, this suburban meadery has been pouring some of the wildest mead flavours imaginable since opening in 2022. Where else can you order a mug of Sweetish Fish, a play on the popular candy?

“Making mead is very similar to traditional grape wines,” says owner Matt Carroll. “We use honey, water and yeast as a basis for all meads we make and then, us in particular, do crazy stuff to it.” Carroll, who has a chemistry background, infuses batches with everything from fruits and spices to hot peppers and coffee beans.

                                                                                     Funktastic owner Matt Carroll

While traditional mead is available, Funktastic also creates carbonated, pure fruit and cocktail-inspired options. Their flavours hit on nostalgia and are full of intriguing twists. One of their most popular selections is the fizzy F&M Root Beer, an ode to the classic soda.

Funktastic uses about 12,000 pounds of honey yearly—primarily wildflower—but other varieties will sometimes show up, like meadowfoam. This honey naturally tastes like a fresh vanilla-infused marshmallow and is featured in their Marshmallow Eyes.

Carroll is constantly experimenting and has over 200 recipes with 25 meads currently available on tap, although these rotate monthly with about three regularly available.

Black Heath Meadery

Take a drive from the ‘burbs to Scott’s Addition and you’ll find Bill Cavender making mead at Black Heath Meadery.

Black Heath was the first of its kind in the city when it opened in 2015, but Cavender’s passion for the drink slowly ignited about three decades ago after returning home from a semester abroad in England.

“I had really fallen in love with a lot of European beer styles and from there came home making beer and I kind of moved over to honey wine,” he says. Mead making was a hobby for about two decades before it became his primary job.

                                               Black Heath Meadery’s owner, Bill Cavender with office mascot Otis

“[My wife and I] started the RVA Mead Lab and ran that for about a year,” he says. “[The lab] was to explain mead to people and engage people in mead making.” Black Heath Meadery came to fruition soon after.

One of Cavender’s biggest focuses is incorporating local ingredients in his meads, especially fruit. The meadery partners with area farms like Swift Creek Berry Farm and Agriberry for fresh blackberries, raspberries, blueberries and strawberries. These can be found in batches like the award-winning Berry Goode, Red Razz and Bramble Bee.

                                                 Black Heath’s award-winning Berry Goode, Red Razz and Bramble Bee

As a beekeeper, Cavender produces the majority of his own honey with hives scattered throughout the commonwealth. Over 3,000 pounds of honey from the hives is used toward their mead.

Black Heath currently offers 12 meads on draft with about 18 in to-go bottles, including the popular Demon Sweat, a hibiscus and cinnamon blend.

You can also find Black Heath mead in local restaurants and bars that use their concoctions in cocktails, including Bar Solita, who makes their Velvet Lechance with cabernet franc, Black Heath’s blackberry mead, port wine, Spanish vermouth, mulling spices and orange.

If you’re unable to visit the meadery, Black Heath is often at local events, including the upcoming Richmond Renaissance Faire on March 7.

As this year marks a milestone birthday for the business, starting March 15, Black Heath will throw a 10-year anniversary, 10-week long bash. The kickoff party will feature Thai soul food from pop-up Eat Boi! and they’ll also debut a green mead for their small batch Spectrum series which features fruit meads with no water added.

Plight of the honey bee

While it has been around for centuries, mead is still strange to some, one of the biggest challenges for meaderies. It’s why Funktastic added beer to their menu last April. “[There were] people coming in for beer but once they got here they made their way into mead,” says Carroll.

Because mead is honey-based, the plight of the honey bee is also a concern. The insect faces numerous obstacles due to climate change and toxic chemicals which can affect honey quantities.

Despite this, Cavender feels mead provides the perfect learning opportunity. “People are more aware on a larger scale,” he says regarding the honey bee’s significance. “It’s not just honey but all these wonderful foods bees pollinate. Mead has kind of helped educate people on how important the honey bee is.”

                                                                           The exterior of Black Heath Meadery

Mead is believed to have origins in Africa and has been used over the centuries across societies as an offering, medicine and even a good luck charm.

Unlike traditional wine, mead is more resistant to oxidation and spoilage. Its notes also progressively evolve, something evident in Funktastic’s High Tide, a mixture of black currant and vanilla.

“When it’s fresh, the vanilla is really present and pops,” says Carroll. “But over time, it homogenizes into a black currant flavour.”

While made of sweet honey, mead can be savoury or dry, feature up to 20% ABV or go as low as 7% ABV, be aged in bourbon barrels—there’s really no limit to what can be done.

But perhaps for some, what makes mead so spectacular isn’t just how the drink defies expectations but how it uniquely links the world.

“I feel mead is an important cultural and social connection for people,” says Cavender. “Pretty much every society in the world has consumed [mead] in their history. It serves as a touch point for people to find commonality.”

https://www.styleweekly.com/a-meading-of-the-minds/

Mead Me in Midlothian, Virginia USA

From richmondmagazine.com

Funktastic Meads opens a taproom in Alverser Plaza

“Six years ago, I knew mead was honey wine, but that was it,” Matt Carroll says of the ancient alcoholic beverage.

Part of the mead renaissance, the professional chemist turned mead maker, along with his wife, Heather, is set to open the doors of their urban winery on Thursday, Jan. 6. Located at 1212 Alverser Plaza, Funktastic Meads will bring a new-school vision to the niche market rooted in Old World traditions.

Despite lacking a taproom until now, Funkastic Meads holds the No. 4 spot for highest-rated meadery/brewery in the world on the beer app Untappd. Its offerings have attracted drinkers across the globe, with bottles shipping to the Netherlands, Germany and South Korea. Funktastic has collaborated with fellow up-and-coming meaderies such as Pye Road Meadworks near Tampa, Florida, and Four Fires Meadery outside Toledo, Ohio. The meadery regularly sold out of pre-release bottles and took home silver and gold in multiple mead categories, along with best in show for the Mead/Cider category, in the 2019 Virginia Dominion Cup brewing competition.

“That helped me with the risk-averse part,” says Heather, an accountant by day, with a laugh. “We made baby steps into this taproom to where we already had a following." 

“My focus has always been using unique additives and unique adjuncts,” Matt says. “Smorgasbord,” one of Funktastic’s most popular meads, “has 18 different ingredients,” he says, spouting off a list that includes cinnamon, almonds and seemingly every berry under the sun.

Banana and peanut butter, marshmallow and mango, and apples and cinnamon are just a few of the creative combinations among their repertoire of meads. Bold flavours, attention-grabbing names and intriguing ingredients make up the Funktastic approach.

And while the beverage, first produced by fermentation thousands of years ago, has been considered one for more adventurous drinkers, in the lead-up to Funktastic’s opening, it seems imbibers have proven they're ready for the unexpected and unfamiliar.

In recent years, mead has made quite a mainstream return. Wine Enthusiast says, “According the American Mead Makers Association (AMMA), the number of commercial meaderies in the U.S has increased 650% since 2003. And the trade group claims that more than 200 meaderies plan to open in the next two years.”

Local meaderies include Black Heath Meadery in Scott’s Addition and Haley’s Honey Meadery in Hopewell. Statewide, there are fewer than 30 meaderies, and nationally, around 600. Combining craft beer and wine techniques, this nuanced beverage with an average ABV of 14% stands on its own in the spirit world.

Matt says he initially became infatuated with the beverage made from water, honey and fruit after a visit to Black Heath, which opened in 2015.

“I got to thinking about mead and how the backbone is a little leaner than beer,” he says. “When you make something super clean, then the things you’re adding are the things you taste.”

A food fanatic and home brewer, Matt was hooked. Shortly after, he purchased "The Compleat Meadmaker" by Ken Schramm (dubbed "the godfather of mead") and began attending beer events and mead festivals such as Sugar Belt — the first festival dedicated strictly to mead  — across the country to learn and network. He also turned to Richmond’s beverage leaders, including Bill Cavendar of Black Heath and The Answer Brewpub’s An Bui, and continued to immerse himself in the tight-knit community.

In early 2020, the Carrolls began to search for a space to produce mead commercially. Partnering with Lazy Days Winery in Amherst, they released about 300 bottles a month, typically selling out within five to 10 minutes. While the demand was there, it wasn’t until a change in Virginia law that the Carrolls made the leap to a taproom.

“At the time, if you wanted to be commercial winery, you also had to serve food,” Matt says, noting that they didn’t want to manage a kitchen, “but at the end of 2020 Virginia changed one of the requirements and [wineries] no longer had to. … In March we made the call and said, 'Let’s start looking for locations.' ”

                                                     Photo by Eileen Mellon

Looking for a spot in the Midlothian area, the couple landed in a 1,500-square-foot space that was formerly a Conte’s Bike Shop. The red-walled taproom features a huge Funkastic Meads graffitied mural, a lounge area with plush chairs and couches, and tables that offer a view of production.

Many of the selections at Funktastic take a cue from the fruited goses, decadent stouts or pastry-inspired porters of the craft beer world. Acknowledging the hard seltzer craze, the meadery also pours fizzy or carbonated meads, lower ABV, more sessionable options that include root beer and apple-cinnamon varieties. Also on tap are waterless meads, a rarity in the industry made with only juice and honey, creating a more concentrated, super fruit-forward sip with a thicker mouth feel. 

Additionally, there are grape wines available, along with Funktastic’s spin on a traditional cabernet sauvignon with a touch of honey dubbed Cab Sauv the Bees.

The meadery currently sources a number of honey varietals including meadowfoam, widely known for flavours akin to vanilla and marshmallow, and mesquite, which exudes earthy and lightly floral notes.

                                                       Photo by Eileen Mellon

"Each honey can have a different flavour depending on where the bees are pollinating," says Heather, adding that they are excited to educate the public about mead and its base ingredient. “We’re hoping that mead starts to get more and more popular in terms of the normal, non-craft beer person. We can't wait to open."

The meadery will be open Thursday from 5 to 9 p.m., Friday from 4 to 10 p.m., Saturday from noon to 10 p.m. and Sunday from noon to 5 p.m.

https://richmondmagazine.com/restaurants-in-richmond/food-news/mead-me-in-midlothian/ 

Virginia USA: Silver Hand Meadery Wins 6 Gold Medal Awards at 2021 Governors Cup

From wydaily.com/brews-and-bites

WILLIAMSBURG — Silver Hand Meadery found state-wide success in 2021 with its fermented honey.

This year, the meadery, located at 224 Monticello Ave., took home six gold medal awards at a state-wide wine competition called The Governor’s Cup. They won gold for their meads called: “Soak up the Sun”, “All Blues”, “Strawberry Swing”, “Raspberry Passion”, “Dream By The Fire”, and “Black Velvet”.

“We just had an incredible showing this year. Six of our meads won gold which is shocking to us,” said Owner and Founder of Silver Hand Meadery Glenn Lavender in an interview with WYDaily. “Winning six golds was kind of a shocker to the whole Virginia wine industry because there was only one winery that had more golds than us. So that had a lot of people wondering about what are we doing in Williamsburg with honey.”

A picture showcasing some of Silver Hand Meadery’s selection of meads. Included in this photo are some of the meads that took home gold awards at the 2021 Governor’s Cup. Including: “Soak Up The Sun”, “All Blues”, and “Dream By The Fire”. (Courtesy Silver Hand Meadery)

Lavender says that as long as you have a sugar source and yeast, you can ferment. So when you’re making wines, the sugar typically comes from the sugars of the fruit. When you’re making beer, the sugar is extracted from the grains in the brewing process. When you’re making meads, the sugars come from honey.

“So whatever flavour you have in your initial ingredients really highly contributes to the final product. So we like specializing in varietal honey. The varietal is a monofloral [produced from the nectar of only one plant] honey,” said Lavender. “Like if you have bees collecting nectar from orange trees down in Florida you’ll get like Orange Flavour honey. It has a really distinct flavour. There’s also blueberry flavour, and there’s avocado. There are all sorts of different flavours of honey based on the nectar sources. So we like to play with those, but we also add different ingredients like fruits, herbs, and spices.”

Silver Hand Meadery has been operating in Williamsburg for about six years. Lavender feels like they are just finally starting to hit their stride. He says that winning the awards is “pretty awesome not just for Williamsburg, but for the whole mead world.”

This is because they have inspired more meaderies to enter the Governor’s Cup and share their creations with judges and others in Virginia. The competition has never awarded gold to a Meadery before. Silver Hand Meadery was the first. Just recently the competition added one or two other categories that are more in line with other mead competitions. Now there are categories like “fruit mead” and “cider mead”.

As the local business prepares for 2022 Lavendar says that they’ll “just try and keep making good products.”

For more information on Silver Hand Meadery, you can check out their Facebook page, or their website.

https://wydaily.com/brews-and-bites/2021/12/24/silver-hand-meadery-wins-6-gold-medal-awards-at-2021-governors-cup/