I'm in Houston for about a month and I was wondering if there were any people living in Houston who might know places I could go to buy a bottle of mead. Just any sort of liquor store or grocery store, anything like that. I'd prefer not to buy a bottle online if I can avoid it, but if there are no places in Houston that sell then I guess I'll end up doing that.
Houstonians
- Thread starter Pollochicken
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Spec's. It's huuuuge. And over the store they have a giant bunny in spectacles.
It's the best liquor store in Houston and they sell bottles of Redstone Meadery. I got the solstice bottle (vanilla/cinnamon) and a bottle of the boysenberry nectar. Good stuff. Also, it's very entertaining to go to Spec's. They have a zillion samples, especially on weekends. Last time I was there I had a shot of amazing luxury vodka, I have no idea what the brand was. They have stuff I've never even heard of before. They also have a gourmet foods section.
I think I need to go to Spec's.
It's the best liquor store in Houston and they sell bottles of Redstone Meadery. I got the solstice bottle (vanilla/cinnamon) and a bottle of the boysenberry nectar. Good stuff. Also, it's very entertaining to go to Spec's. They have a zillion samples, especially on weekends. Last time I was there I had a shot of amazing luxury vodka, I have no idea what the brand was. They have stuff I've never even heard of before. They also have a gourmet foods section.
I think I need to go to Spec's.
Makes me wish I lived in a real city... Cedar Rapids doesn't have anything even approaching this... We have a couple of wine stores but none of them stock any significant amount of brewing supplies. Maybe Long Island Meadery will allow me to distribute their stuff out here. Of course, WW's stock room is only 1 1/2 hours away...
From the middle of nowhere,
Pewter
From the middle of nowhere,
Pewter
You know, I've seen Spec's stores all the time and I don't think I ever actually paid attention enough to realize it was a place to get liquor. In fact, I think theres one right down the street from me. Thanks a lot for the help.
I go to the downtown Spec's on Smith street. The Redstone mead is kept in the opposite end of the store from the entrance, on the low shelves next to the white Zin.
I went to the Spec's at Bunker Hill, and all they had was Chaucer's and some imported Mead that was described as "white wine mixed with honey and water to recreate the meade taste", which didn't seem to be the same to me, so I got the Chaucer's. I've heard that it isn't that great, but its ok for people who've never tried mead before, so I think I'll be ok. I couldn't see anything on the bottle about how to serve it without the spides, so is it supposed to be chilled or served at room temp?
Pollochicken said:
Pollo,
That second one was "Bunratty Meade", and you were right to steer clear of it. It's not mead, and it's not very good. I refermented a bottle of it over the summer, adding honey and an aggressive yeast, turning it into a pyment, and it was pretty tasty then. Anything short of this, though, and it's a waste of time and money.
-David
I went to Spec's last week and picked up a bottle of each of the following:
Black Raspberry Nectar
Boysenberry Nectar
Sunshine Nectar
Traditional Mountain Honey Wine
Juniper Mountain Honey Wine
Spec's had numerous bottles of Boysenberry and Juniper, but the other three I grabbed were the last bottles of that type that they had - and they didn't have any more in stock.
I ended up giving the bottle of Boysenberry away as a gift, so I'll need to go grab another bottle of that. I opened up the bottle of Traditional mead over Christmas, and I must say...it's very good.
I can't wait to try the others.
Black Raspberry Nectar
Boysenberry Nectar
Sunshine Nectar
Traditional Mountain Honey Wine
Juniper Mountain Honey Wine
Spec's had numerous bottles of Boysenberry and Juniper, but the other three I grabbed were the last bottles of that type that they had - and they didn't have any more in stock.
I ended up giving the bottle of Boysenberry away as a gift, so I'll need to go grab another bottle of that. I opened up the bottle of Traditional mead over Christmas, and I must say...it's very good.
I can't wait to try the others.I tried the Black Raspberry Nectar a couple months ago. It was pretty decent. Sweet, fruity, bubbly. My only complaint is that it had some flavor undertones that I associate with an immature mead. I found that distracting me from enjoying it more. I have no idea when it was produced or bottled, but it just tasted too young. Otherwise I think it would have been great. I have a bottle of Redstone's Traditional mead I plan on opening for New Year's. It says it was bottled Feb. '04, so I think it'll be nice and smooth.
I'm interested in hearing your thoughts on the Sunshine and Juniper when you've had the opportunity to sample them.
Cheers,
Kirk
I'm interested in hearing your thoughts on the Sunshine and Juniper when you've had the opportunity to sample them.
Cheers,
Kirk
Black Raspberry Nectar is from Redstone Meadery. I like the liter bottle (re-usable . . . thanks Gntlknight) and the fact that you get a liter of the stuff. Most of the girls I know really like it. It's made with Narbonne yeast, so I'm guessing 71B and then added black raspberry puree. Overall it's pretty well balanced. It is a bit "thin" for my top ten list, but still very pleasant and drinkable. We woofed down a couple of liters last night at my buddie's house.
Cheers,
Oskaar
Cheers,
Oskaar
