“Mead is definitely mainstream now!” says Colleen Bos, Madison’s first mead maker, who started Bos Meadery in 2012. It is a positive status update for what is likely the world’s oldest alcoholic beverage. “When we first opened, people were constantly asking what mead was and trying to peg it into a beer or wine framework. But at some point, in 2018 or 2019 that conversation really disappeared and there seemed to be a greater openness to mead as simply the local alcoholic beverage we made here.”
Mead, in its simplest form, is made by diluting honey with water and adding yeast; some amount of nutrients are usually added by modern mead makers since honey lacks sufficient nutrition for yeast to complete fermentation stress-free. Yet even in this simplest form there are a plethora of options that can influence flavor: honey variety, dry or sweet, still or bubbly, low or high alcohol. Honey is flavorful and leaves its fingerprints on even the most delicate meads. The places and specific flowers bees visited determine many of the floral, fruity or even spicy flavors perceptible in the final product. Fruit and spices also are often added to mead.
Mead’s emergence as yet another option among locally produced alcoholic beverages is likely due to a variety of factors. Modern mead makers in the United States have been gradually growing the mead market for the past two decades, delighting and educating new fans along the way. Yet the shift from niche market to mainstream option is likely tied to trends happening with other beverages in the past five years.
Hard seltzer—fermented cane sugar with or without flavoring added—rapidly grew as a category over the last decade and did much to disrupt the alcoholic beverage scene, shifting more people beyond a limited beer or wine dichotomy. Meanwhile, consumer acceptance of a broader range of beverage ingredients grew as fruit and spices were finding their way into craft beer. The latter has deep roots in mead traditions.
Bos Meadery’s best-selling product has long been their Hammer Smashed Cherry, a sparkling 6.5% abv session mead that is made with Door County cherries. Meads made with fruit fit into a category known as melomels. When spices are included for balance and complexity, they may be called a metheglin; Bos Meadery’s lineup features several. Another sparkling session mead, Magic Carpet Ride, includes cardamom, saffron, vanilla and star anise for a crisp yet heady experience. The stronger 12% abv Hibiscus & Ginger Mead is brightly spicy from the ginger with a touch of tart fruitiness from the hibiscus, adding balance and dimension to the mellower honey flavors; a dry finish and moderate carbonation make it a compelling pairing with seafood or dairy-based dishes.
A world of crossover meads also exists. Bos regularly collaborates with Giant Jones Brewing on two braggots—a honey and grainbased beverage—both made at the brewery since the state of Wisconsin licenses grain-based beverages differently than fruit- or honey-based beverages. Brix Cider and The Cider Farm both feature cyser, made by using apple cider instead of water to make mead. In a similar vein, pyment is made using grape must in place of water, like in Bos’s award-winning Pomegranate Pyment.
At present, the greater Madison area boasts four mead producers and “there is definitely space for all of us in the Madison market,” Bos says. Yet, having this many mead producers would have been hard to imagine a decade ago when Bos Meadery launched. “Making a meadery a viable business was a tough go and we basically had to become a local music venue—which has been an incredible joy on its own—to get enough people coming through the Mead hall.” In 2021 the building that housed Bos Meadery & Mead hall sold; an agreement could not be reached and Bos is in the process of opening a new mead hall—including music venue—with intention to reopen in 2023.
At the moment, the only dedicated mead hall in the area is Mead King in Rock Springs in central Sauk County. Mead King has a wide range of meads, mostly in the 11-13% abv range, sold in 750 ml bottles or by the glass on-site.
Bos’s production now happens at Mershon’s Cidery in Stoughton. After a few months' interlude, bottles and kegs of their mead started popping up again over the summer. The stronger Wildflower Oaked Mead and Equinox were the first to return. Equinox is a seasonal release for the warmer months made with clover honey, rosé grape juice and a bit of lavender. It’s a bright bubbly mead with a mediumlow strawberry flavor that opens with notes of cherry-skin, blanched almond and a cinnamony floral note from the lavender; lots of bubbles and a dry finish. The session meads and other favorites from their lineup are appearing this fall on store shelves.
New producer Kindred Spirits Meadery, also operating out of Mershon’s Cidery, started releasing meads in fall 2021. Their lineup includes two strong wildflower meads of differing sweetness levels and two melomels—one raspberry and one blackberry & basil. Also new to the scene in 2021 was Nottingham Nectar, working out of Restoration Cider in Madison. Their lineup focuses on sparkling 6% abv session meads; two wildflower meads of varying sweetness and two melomels—one with cherry and one with strawberry.
“I am really excited to see Madison’s mead scene growing like this,” Bos says. “With this many meaderies here, I can totally see us become a destination spot for mead fans. And we are all doing something different from each other which just makes it all the more exciting for people to explore.”
Wildflower Three Ways
Bos Meadery, Wildflower Oaked Mead
Complex, dry and light bodied. Impressions of yarrow and dandelion blend with notes of nectarine and stewed rhubarb to dance across light prickly tannins and hints of vanilla from the toasted oak.
750 ml bottle, 12% abv
Kindred Spirits Meadery, Dry Elven Mead
Gentle, fuller body and off-dry. Rounded apple notes— juice, sauce and fresh—and apricot nectar flavors are prevalent with a deeper turmeric-like earthy complexity, a hint of allspice and a touch of warmth.
750 ml bottle, 11% abv
Nottingham Nectar, Bonfires & Battlecries
Effervescent, delicate and semi-dry. Floral apple impression gives way to a honey glazed croissant character with hints of golden raisin, daisy and burnt sugar, yet the whole thing is so crisp and refreshing it is easy drinking.
12 oz bottle, 6% abv
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