AMMA
Mead Makers Short Course at UC Davis: The first of its kind An Epic ENDEVOUR & A Resounding Success
Chris Webber AMMA President So, how do I even begin to describe the recent Mead Makers Short Course at UC Davis this last February? Epic? How about historic? On the level of the Judgment in Paris historic! The significance may not be realized for many years to come, but like the
event will mark the turning point for Mead.
Let me begin with a little background for those few who are not already up to speed. UC Davis is the premier wine school in the United States. I think it would be safe to say that the Robert Mondavi Institute (RMI) for Wine and Food Science is the Ivy League of wine schools. The Teaching and Research Winery and the August A. Busch III Brewing and Food Science Laboratory are the only LEED Platinum Certified winery/ brewery in the UnitChris Webber, Ken Schramm & Mike Faul discussion on Getting Started in the Mead Industry ed States. Judgment in Paris, which had a huge (Learn more about LEED Platinum impact on the long term growth of here: http://www.usgbc.org/projects/ the American wine industry, so this uc-davis-brewery-winery-and-food) 20 | MEADMAKERS.ORG
Their goal is to be ‘Zero Waste’ and off the grid. A little over a year ago RMI started a new department called the Honey and Pollination Center (http:// honey.ucdavis.edu/) with the goal of research and education in all things related to honey, pollen and bees. Its new director, Amina Harris, was speaking at an event where Frank Golbeck of Golden Coast Meadery was in attendance. They talked and a few weeks later Frank pitched the idea of a Mead Makers Short Course at the 1st Annual AMMA Business Meeting in Boulder, CO. The membership took to the idea like bees to pollen. Over the course of the next ten months Amina worked with industry leaders, including Vicky Rowe (GotMead.com), Ken Schramm (The Compleat Meadmaker), Mike Faul (Rabbit’s Foot Meadery), Petar Bakulic (The Mazer Cup International) and yours truly (American Mead Makers Association) to put together a three day event focused on mead production and marketing, the mead industry and what the future holds. Invitations went out to both the mead and honey industry to fill the