A wonderful 3 year old semi-dry berry mead that has been aged for the last 12 months in Merlot oak casks to give it interesting structure and depth. The barrels come from two so-called wild goose wineries in Bordeaux.
An exceptional, unique mead, a lively, attractive drink with a decadent richness. This mead won the Drink of the Year award from the Irish Food Writers’ Guild.
Wild Red Mead - Merlot Barrel Aged is a wonderful 3-year-old berry mead fermented to semi-dry. The result is an exceptional, unique mead, a lively, attractive drink with a decadent richness.
Enticing and warm, juicy with flavors of bright red and black fruit from Wexford blackcurrants and dark sweet cherries, well balanced with attractive honey notes of forest honey and caramel from Bordeaux oak barrels.
Our beautiful label was inspired by the story of the 'Wild Geese' of Irish people who emigrated in waves from Ireland to the Continent at the end of the Jacobite Wars and settled in France to trade and make wine. Today in Bordeaux, you will find the names of these hardy Irish emigrants on the streets and vineyards of the region – Lynch, Barton, Boyd, Phelan – along with other trade connections to Ireland's wine ports.
Kinsale was a thriving port in the 18th century, one of several in Ireland licensed to import wines from France, Spain and Portugal. The harbor and warehouses were full of casks of the best wines, port and sherry. In a sense we are coming full circle and bringing those precious casks back to Ireland.
All bottles hand numbered and signed. Naturally gluten free.
mead
Mead is an alcoholic beverage fermented from honey and water, with possibility of addition of other ingredients such as spices or herbs or in combination with fruit juices.
Melomel
Melomel is a fruit mead with is fermented from honey and fruit juices.
Awards
Drink of the Year Award from the Irish Food Writers’ Guild.
Producer Kinsale Mead
Artisanal production of mead from the Irish county of Cork
Artisanal production of mead from the Irish county of Cork. Kinsale Mead is produced in West Cork, at the family mead farm in Barrack Lane, Kinsale (near the site of the Battle of Kinsale in 1601). Each batch is carefully blended, fermented and matured with care and passion and an emphasis on quality and sustainability. Pure honey, local water, yeast and also various fruits are used in this authentic mead, as is traditional.
Kinsale Mead Co was founded by Kate and Denis Dempsey in 2016 to revive the ancient art of mead making and create a world-class range of light and refreshing drinks. They use the best natural ingredients and make their meads dry and vinous with care and passion.
In 2016, they decided to start the journey to open their own business and revive the tradition of mead making in Ireland after 200 years.
They did a lot of research, tried a lot of meads from Europe and America and read a lot of books, both modern and historical. They started lots of small batches at home and tried different honeys, different yeasts, and different combinations of fruits, spices, and herbs. They kept improving the recipes. It was also very important to them how mead goes with food.
Meads have won an amazing number of awards in just a few years, including gold at The International Mazer Cup, which is something of a mead Olympics. They were also delighted with the Irish awards, gold and silver at Blas na hEireann, gold from the Free From Food Awards as the mead is naturally gluten free. They then won the prestigious 2-star (Outstanding) Great Taste Award, a British competition with literally thousands of entries at a very high level, as well as gold and silver at the European Mead Madness Cup. They were also awarded Drink of the Year by the Irish Food Writers' Guild. In the family mead farm, they simply produce world-class mead.
Kinsale (Cionn tSáile, meaning 'Head of the Tide') is a beautiful historic seaside town in West Cork, situated in a safe anchorage where the River Bandon flows into the Atlantic Ocean. Today it is known for its historic street, colorful buildings, many fabulous cafes, gastropubs and restaurants, bookstores, yachting, fishing and world-class golf.