Sweet Melissa is Medovina's answer
to late harvest grape wines. In particular our goal was
to offer a dessert mead that rivals the best German eiswein
from the Mosel and Rhine valleys - at a fraction of the cost.
Our first comercial
production of Sweet Melissa was bottled in October of 2004.
It was truely a home run, getting great reviews by ratebeer.com
and by our customers. It was sold out by mid summer, but
next year's Sweet Melissa is well underway and is already exhibiting
great character.
Sweet Melissa finishes
with about 9% residual honey and just under 14% alcohol.
The honey character is distinctive, luscious and mouth watering.
It is balanced by the higher alcohol level and the natural acidity
and tartness of the honey. In addition it delivers wonderful
sherry like notes and character found in fine ports.
Sweet Melissa can be enjoyed without
accompanying food. If you think its a girly libation,
try it with your favorite cigar. My very favorite
accompaniment is a rich custard or flan. Go easy on the
sweetness in the custard. If you choose creme brulee,
try omitting the carmelized sugar topping, the creme, hold the
brulee, if you will. Sweet Melissa's residual honey on
your palate compliments the rich custard in a way that carmelized
sugar can only aspire to. Give yourself at least
30 minutes to enjoy this dessert combo.
In Greek mythology,
Melissa was a mountain nymph
that saved Zeus
from his father, Cronus
, while he was trying to devour him. She hid him in the
hills and fed him milk from the goat Amalthea
and plundered beehives for honey. When Cronus discoved
this, he turned her into a worm, but Zeus felt sorry for her
and changed her into a queen
bee instead, to be forever connected with honey.
Check out the review at:
http://www.ratebeer.com/Beer/Medovina-Sweet-Melissa/41648/
2007 Sweet Melissa now available, 2012 vintage will be available
Fall, 2012