Sour Meads Have Been An Unexpected Boon For Mead Lovers

In 2020, after our move to Smyrna, we famously struggled with a infection in the brewing process. Our investigation took months as each usual suspect was eliminated. We collaborated with Scofflaw Brewing who labs that they could do the testing. What we found was a happy little lacto bacillus living in about 6,00 gallons of mead. Harmless, but not as expected. Lacto is a common bacteria in brewing.

Though we found the answer, we had still not found the source. As unlikely as it was, we found that the infection came from the honey itself - which is incredibly rare.

Unplanned, we had stumbled onto an entirely new style of mead - Sours. The base mead has a distinct flavor to it. Far less sweet and a little tart. What should have been Solifaction, our base mead, was something completely new. After more than a year of work and testing, Sour meads have become staple of the Viking Alchemist.

In 2022, we created a unique mead to celebrate the innovation and offer the market something different. Enter Cha-Cha-Cherry Bomb. The mead was crafted as an homage to the shear randomness of life and how sometimes things work out and you win the jackpot. With cherry, mango and habenero, the Sour mead is a journey in itself.

But bringing a mead to market means more than just the taste. We also have to name it and create a label. While all labels are equal, some are more equal than others! Most of them are designed by Tamara, and this one deserves a shout out.

Each symbol on the label has a meaning whether a flavor, an ingredient or a life outcome. When they line up, you win! We chose a 70's illustration style for the label, alluding to the hit "Cherry Bomb" written by Joan Jett (Hero!) for the The Runaways. A surprise hit, too!

You may just enjoy the mead or even enjoy the label. But that label tells a story that has become lore in our family. Today, the meadery is producing more than a half dozen Sour meads regularly and has won awards for many of them. While mead lovers have embraced them, Sour meads have been even more popular with non-mead lovers who wanted something a little less sweet.