Redstone Honey Wine With Pinot Noir Concentrate

Brewed by Redstone Meadery
Style: Mead
Boulder, Colorado USA

2002 production. No head (still). Body is light purple. Aroma is notes of red wine (sour cherry, grape, oak), and light notes of honey, anise, and alcohol. Flavor is heavily sweet, moderately acidic. Finish is moderately sweet, heavily acidic. Medium body, lightly syrupy, flat carbonation, lightly astringent. Potentially the driest mead Redstone makes, and thus for me the best balanced and most drinkable. Very wine-like, though not terribly complex...would also prefer a bit more honey essence in the nose. Very nice. After reviewing, I enjoyed it with some gruyere cheese, a nice (albeit obvious) pairing. Final question: is there better wine at the same price? Perhaps, but this is very good stuff.

A pale amber mead. The aroma is sweet with strong notes of red wine as well as notes of wood. The flavor is very spicy including ginger and cinnamon, but also with strong notes of red wine and some notes of wood. The alcohol warms the body. Nice one.

<b>July 2004 Production Date; Sampled November 2008</b>
Served lightly chilled into a large Cabernet wine glass. This mead is still and has a concentrated red color that has a bit of purple to it. When held up to the light it shows a clear, full, cherry red color. The aroma smells of honey with an expressive, bright berry note. The honey actually accentuates the vibrancy of the berry aromatics, pushing it almost into a candy realm; notes of fresh blackberries, a touch of strawberry, and lots of dark fruit make me think of... Ah there it is, I was trying to put my finger on it, but I finally figured out what this reminds me of; fruit cake, or more specifically the alcohol laden, concentrated, dried / candied fruit that one finds in fruit cake; fig, prunes, rum soaked raisin, lots of dried currant and notes that are quite similar to mince-meat pie. What an interesting aroma.

Lightly sweet up front, towards the middle a grape-skin tannin character contributes a bit of structure, this tannic note continues on and lingers in the finish. Lots of berry flavors abound in the flavor, though it does not have the fruit-cake like concentration found in the nose; this last is a good thing as that would likely have been too much. This finishes with a touch of warm alcohol that leaves a soft glow in the throat and belly. There also seems to be some spicy oak notes towards the finish that provides a touch of astringency. Hints of tobacco, a touch of apricot, ripe - slightly concentrated fig, blueberry, blackberry and maybe even a touch of chocolate in the finish at times is noticeable.

I like that this is not overly sweet, it definitely has enough sweetness to showcase the honey notes, but note enough to make this cloying. I also like how the piquant honey notes mix with the soft berry flavors of the Pinot grape. This is really good, certainly the best I have had from Redstone. I was beginning to wonder if they made a serious mead, this one certainly fits the bill, though I could see a characteristic oak touch kicking this up a notch (as long as it was a soft touch). Perhaps a touch too simplistic to be fantastic, but damn this is quite tasty.

(Bottle 50 cl) Courtesy of Ungstrup. Slightly hazy reddish amber golden with a small, rough white head. Piquant aroma of honey and....coconut! Medium-bodied with ligh honey notes, coconut and a whiff of red wine. Has a light acidity in the finish. 310808

Draft at detroit beer co. Pours a light redish pink color with no head. Nose is very sweet and sugary, some honey and alcohol. Taste is fruity, sweet, astringent, syrupy. Has a light cherry quality to it and som elight alcohol warmth.

50 cL bottle, 2004 bottle. Pours cloudy and golden amber with a fully gone head. Aroma is malty and spiced mead towards honey and wineous. Fruity and wineous grapefruity. Smooth and honey to a solid malty base flavour. Slight alcohol bite into the finish. Smooth yet also warming.

Bottle. Clear orange red coloured with a small off white head. Sweet and fruity aroma of caramel and butterscotsch with notes of honey and grapes. Sweet and fruity flavour of spices, honey, berries and caramel with motes of alcohol and grapes. Warming alcoholic finish.

A commercially produced pymet - nice - production date July 2004 - hazy purplish pour - nose of honey (duh), a lot of soft herbal notes, light acidity, sweet, juicy red grapes, very light tannic character - the flavor is initially all sweet honey, but some notes of herbs swell up through the middle (mostly sage), as well a mild wildflowers - the qualities of the wine gradually build from under this, and the moderate tannins work well with a slightly vinegar-like acidity that develops - some sweetness returns in the end, combining with the wine to produce a flavor not unlike port - spicy, peppery alcohol in the finish - warming, but not boozy - not as refined as it could be, but quite tasty.