Wye Valley Meadery Traditional Mead (70cl Bottle), 14.5% ABV

Product Information

Possibly the most well-known of all the references to mead (and therefore stereotyping of mead) is its prominence in Norse folklore. It is said that the Viking Gods created a man who was so wise he had the ability to answer any question. When he was killed, his blood was mixed with honey, and anyone who drank the concoction was instilled with his intelligence and knowledge.

I was about 13 or so when I approached a beekeeper at a country show and said I’d love to learn how to keep bees,” he explains. “The wages were terrible – a jar of honey for a day’s work – but I learned a lot.”Guided tours and wine tasting are popular with groups (we can cater for 8 to 25 people) and can be taken in the day or evening during the summer months. (Please see more details below.) They are also great for hen parties!

We had rapidly outgrown our old space near Chepstow train station (which we had only just finished renovating) and wanted to future-proof our business," he said. vines of 15 different varieties cover an area of approximately a hectare. These old vines produce high quality grapes from which our white, rosé, red and sparkling wines are made. Over the years many awards, both national and international, have been won by our wines. Our specialities are Bacchus dry white, Pinot Noir rosé, and white and rosé sparkling wines. Further to all of this, there are references to Mead in ancient Hindu scriptures, in the Bible, writings by Chaucer and Aristotle and references to it in old English and Welsh poetry.The green pastures of Monmouthshire are well-known for being home to some of Wales’ best food and drink. We bit the bullet and decided to heap even more work and stress after what had already been an exhausting 12 months." He’s never made mead, so we’ve introduced him to that, and he’s introduced us to some beer-making, which we’re now doing too.”

There are quite a few beekeeping clubs and hobby beekeepers, and we buy any surplus they have,” explains Matt. Unusually, the business also takes in honey that has been harvested too early. This is known as ‘wet honey’, a waste product that beekeepers struggle to use.Looking further ahead, the business will revamp its branding and move all products to the Hive Mind name, as it looks to widen its reach and appeal. This will also see a switch from bottle to can for the core 4% lines. With far more honey sold in the world than bees produce real and good-quality honey is hard to come by and can be an expensive and lucrative trade. Monday to Thursday, the area is production space, and then on Friday we tidy up, fold down the tables and open it to visitors,” says Kit. “We’ve got a really lovely core of regulars who come in and sort of treat it as their living room.”

There is a free car park and picnic benches in the garden which has mature and unusual trees and shrubs. Plants grown on the farm are for sale in the shop. The plan now is to have the taproom and seating area open to the general public by the end of July, with the view to hosting boardgame nights, comedy nights and events featuring local food suppliers.For over forty years this award-winning vineyard has overlooked Tintern. Visitors are welcome to stroll among the vines and try our wines.