'Bee on Board' with Mead: California Master Beekeeper Program Hosting Course

Want to celebrate May Day by learning about mead, the world's most ancient alcoholic beverage? Remember mead? It's also known as "honey wine," created by fermenting honey with water. Sometimes mead makers add fruits, spices, grains, and hops.  

There's a "me" in mead. The American Mead Makers  Association says mead has exploded 130 percent since 2011, making it "the fastest growing alcoholic beverage category in the United States."

And now a me-and-you mead course is buzzing our way.

The UC Davis-based California Master Beekeeper Program (CAMBP) has announced it will sponsor an online introduction to mead on Saturday, May 1. It's a time to learn, taste and sip--and you can do so with friends who also register for the course, says CAMBP program manager Wendy Mather.

The virtual event is set from 9 a.m. to noon. Master Beekeeper candidate Mark Carlson "will lead us in a general mead and honey appreciation class," said Mather,  adding "We will leave the mead-making lessons to the experts at the UC Davis Honey and Pollination Center. "Mark will identify what makes one single source honey different from another, presenting them both from a flavor perspective, but also as a scientist who loves chemistry. The emphasis will be on nectar origins and equipment sanitation for the most part." Special guest Michael Zilber, owner and mead maker at Heidrun Meadery, Point Reyes Station, "will join us at 11:15 to share his passion and lead us in a mead tasting."

The course, "Introduction to Mead 2021," is designed to:  

• Understand honey and mead, using comparative sensory analysis and other scientific tools
• Review options for sanitizing equipment
• Introduce the process of fermentation, and 
• Engage in a honey and a mead tasting

The event is open to the public at $40 per ticket. Register at https://registration.ucdavis.edu/Item/Details/718.

Mather noted that the three-hour course will include a guided experience of honey and mead-tasting. Thus, each participant will "bee on board" with three varietals of honey and two to three different meads. The Heidrun Meadery (415-663-9122)  is offering a 10 percent discount (use coupon code CAMBPSIPS).  Honey can be purchased locally or regionally--from the UC Davis Stores, a beekeeper, farmers' market or at a  grocery store. UC Davis Stores provides "all things honey" (access link).

Extension apiculturist Elina Lastro Niño of the UC Davis Department of Entomology and Nematology faculty directs the California Master Beekeeper Program, which uses science-based information to educate stewards and ambassadors for honey bees and beekeeping. Its vision, as detailed on its website, is to train 2500 Apprentice beekeepers over the next five years "so they can effectively communicate the importance of honey bees and other pollinators within their communities, serve as mentors for other beekeepers, and become the informational conduit between the beekeeping communities throughout the state and UC Cooperative Extension (UCCE) staff." Check out the website for upcoming courses. For more information on the program, contact camasterbee@gmail.com.