Involvement

[Oskaar]

So . . .

What kind of help is needed for the Association?

I bring a number of different skills to the table in the areas of business, technology, organization engineering, strategic sourcing and logistics. Also, according to my last girlfriend I make a wicked-cool pineapple-banana margarita!

Cheers,

Oskaar

 

[Talon]

She must have been from Boston or there abouts...

 

[Vicky Rowe]

Hi Oskaar,

We don't know yet. The committees to form up the Association are set up, but we have to get off the ground before we'll know what all we'll be doing. I'm heading up the R&D group, working with Dan, Ken Schramm, Connie Mills from Knowne World Meads, a couple meadery owners and a couple soon-to-be meadery owners.

Once we know more, we'll let everyone else know.....

Vicky

 

[Dan McFeeley]

So . . .

What kind of help is needed for the Association?

I bring a number of different skills to the table in the areas of business, technology, organization engineering, strategic sourcing and logistics. Also, according to my last girlfriend I make a wicked-cool pineapple-banana margarita!

This is something with a lot of potential, but it's going to gain ground slowly. In the meantime, the best way to be involved is by getting involved in talking about and promoting mead, asking questions and sharing new ideas on dicussion boards, and of course, learning more about mead and meadmaking and puting that knowledge to good use! ;D

The discussion boards have been very helpful -- a lot more people have been picking up on new and better ways to make mead as a result. Interestingly, mead used to be infamous leaving the indulger with terrible headaches, but now that no longer seems to be the case. These days, people are commenting that they can drink lots of mead, wake up the next day and not feel too terribly bad. What happened? In the old days, people were making bad meads with lots of fusel alcohols, which of course were causing the headaches. With improved meadmaking, this is no longer as common as it once was.

Another example, about 15 or 20 years ago people would say that mead was good stuff, but it was an acquired taste. Not everyone likes it, was the maxim. Now? A first taste of mead usually makes an instant convert. Again, there has been a distinct improvement in meadmaking, a direct result of discussion and swapping of ideas.

And that is a major goal of the IMA, promoting mead, improving education on mead and meadmaking, and in the long run, making even better meads. In other words, so long as everyone on this forum keeps doing what they're doing, they're supporting the IMA.

 

[Oskaar]

Hey Dan!

I think that slow is much better than no movement, and that progress is paramount to success whether it be slow and steady or fast and furious. I'm sure that with all the folks named above there's no shortage of ideas and talent that will be beneficial to the IMA in its fledgling state.

I hope that the folks involved will keep the clamouring masses (us homegrown meadmakers) in the loop as things progress and will not be shy about asking for help when necessary because we're not shy about pitching in whenever we're needed.

Based on the things I read here every day, I have to say that there is a wealth of information and talent that frequents this forum. As the apparent target demographic for the IMA, what better sounding board could you all possibly have for ideas?

Give a man a fish and feed him for a day.

Teach a man to fish and feed him for a lifetime.

Teach a fish to operate a 50 caliber machine gun and then you've accomplished something!

Cheers,

Oskaar

 

[Dan McFeeley]

Back when the American Mead Association caved in, there was an effort to bring it back by Andy LaMorte and Keith Wanless, both based in Colorado and running their own homebrew shops. They gave it a good go, but found out there were way too many legal problems involved with the AMA, and the effort to start a grass roots organization took a *lot* of time, much more than what they had to give. The effort to revive the AMA never got off the ground.

Interestingly, Andy LaMorte was talking about goals that were much the same as what the IMA people are talking about -- promoting mead, getting involved with the legislation process of changing laws shackling winery and meadery owners, and so on. Given what the new AMA was starting with, I thought these goals were overly ambitious.

This time, things are different. There is a good base to start with -- the International Meadfest, having finished a third year and looking forward to the next meeting, better information on meadmaking, more people involved with meadmaking, and a stronger industry base for commercial meadmaking. Just the Meadfest alone gives a big boost -- it established a precedent for annual meetings of mead folk from commercial and amateur levels. This gave just the right momentum to get an International mead organization rolling. The people are there, they're organized, and we all have a common interest.

I hope that the folks involved will keep the clamouring masses (us homegrown meadmakers) in the loop as things progress and will not be shy about asking for help when necessary because we're not shy about pitching in whenever we're needed.

That'll happen once the membership committee gets things set up. Direct involvement? I'd say mark your calendar for the next meadfest and be sure to come on out. They'll get you involved.

I wasn't at the organizational meeting for the IMA because I had the impression it was a closed industry meeting. Next thing I know, Ken Schramm found me and said I'd been put on the Research & Development committee, and that I'd better hustle on over there!

Not sure who did that -- bet it was Vickie. ;D

So yeah, just show up and someone will grab you! ;D

 

[Oskaar]

Now that sounds like fun!

Grabbing is good, especially by a mead wench! :

Oskaar

 

[Dan McFeeley]

Re: Now that sounds like fun!

Grabbing is good, especially by a mead wench! :

Oskaar

Ok, so that's a promise to come out next year? ;D

We'll be looking for you!

 

[Oskaar]

I'll be there by hook or by crook! Probably by crook, I hear there are plenty of liquor stores on the way!

Oskaar

 

[exmoor_cat]

A few comments/fugues I suspect wil lalready have been touched upon, but designed to help trigger more debate (apologies of any hint of egg-sucking) -

Other forums - chasing down and contacting other forum/site operators to ensure they're on board. (e.g. meadmadecomplicated - chap who runs it is in Singapore)

Promotion of this website - I'm presuming a lot of co-ordination will be from here or denizens of such. I've been passing the word and nudging people in this direction via Livejournal.

In or out? - To what extent do we cross-fertilize with other brewing formats? Stuff like wine and beer usually have established magazines other forums. At min, gettng this board known amongst them and encouragement of dabbling, as they'll be hitting shared problems, as well as shared campaign/promotion ideals, e.g. CAMRA of Britain.

Commerical marketing - to what extent do we ally with commerical mead brewers and national honey boards? Afterall, whilst it is damned good fun to brew mead, on a complete amateur level we'll be reliant on cluster propagation of activity. Commerical meaderies would be useful both in helping promote the drink and its uses, as well as improving the quality available in shops. This will have long term ramifications in terms of diverging agendas and markets.

Lobbying - a more long term issue, not just laws, but also such issues as awareness of the likes of the EU ban on Chinese honey over the Streptomycin scare. This will probably be expansion into wider aspects of honey.

Internationalism - development of other groups abroad. Mead occurs in a lot of societies, so keeping the IMA international will be a factor too.

Food/Ambrosia for thought.

 

[exmoor_cat]

PS am willing to help in any way within my means on the British side of things.

 

[exmoor_cat]

PPS add -
Literature - consolidation of exsting sources, promotion and dissemination of it, development of new material, cyclic nature, plugging into existing outlets (e.g. SCA, homebrew, bookshops, hobbyists, new age - e.g. www.druidry.org *spot the pagan *, etc).

 

[Vicky Rowe]

I wasn't at the organizational meeting for the IMA because I had the impression it was a closed industry meeting. Next thing I know, Ken Schramm found me and said I'd been put on the Research & Development committee, and that I'd better hustle on over there!

Not sure who did that -- bet it was Vickie. ;D

So yeah, just show up and someone will grab you! ;D

Guilty. I saw what Ken had in mind, and realized that you *had* to be on the committee......LOL. I only got to go because Julia buttonholed me and *told* me to be there.

We had a great conversation on the phone last night, and I'm getting the IMA forums up asap (I'm waiting for Mike Faul to call me, he's doing a server for us), so the committees will have talking spaces. I'm going to put up a prelim website too, not very big, but with the beginning info, so folks will know what is going on. It will be at http://www.meadfest.org for the moment. Eventually it will move to a more descriptive domain name....

Vicky

 

[Vicky Rowe]

Other forums - chasing down and contacting other forum/site operators to ensure they're on board. (e.g. meadmadecomplicated - chap who runs it is in Singapore)

Yeah, thats on my list. I'm already coordinating with Julia at Honeywine.com, and will be posting the info for MeadHQ. I'll get up with the other top mead sites (and anyone else who's interested) so we can get together...

Promotion of this website - I'm presuming a lot of co-ordination will be from here or denizens of such. I've been passing the word and nudging people in this direction via Livejournal.

Quite a bit. I'm chairing the R&D committee for the IMA, and will be contacting as many of the world's meaderies as is possible, and also working with all y'all to help spread the word. Watch the front page for articles and updates as things develop.

In or out? - To what extent do we cross-fertilize with other brewing formats? Stuff like wine and beer usually have established magazines other forums. At min, gettng this board known amongst them and encouragement of dabbling, as they'll be hitting shared problems, as well as shared campaign/promotion ideals, e.g. CAMRA of Britain.

We're already hooking up with the NHB, and the National HomeBrewing Association is also working with us. One of the judges was Paul Gatza from the NHB. I'm working with him on some ideas.

Commerical marketing - to what extent do we ally with commerical mead brewers and national honey boards? Afterall, whilst it is damned good fun to brew mead, on a complete amateur level we'll be reliant on cluster propagation of activity. Commerical meaderies would be useful both in helping promote the drink and its uses, as well as improving the quality available in shops. This will have long term ramifications in terms of diverging agendas and markets.

The IMA was originally formed with the professional meaderies in mind. The goal being to define and grow awareness of mead as a drink. The hobby meadmakers will also have a membership level, and that is being determined by the membership committee. But for the association to have teeth, both to the drinking public and in the lobbying area, we need the funding that we can only get from the businesses involved, including meaderies, apiarists, and brewshops, as well as us, the mead drinkers and makers.

Lobbying - a more long term issue, not just laws, but also such issues as awareness of the likes of the EU ban on Chinese honey over the Streptomycin scare. This will probably be expansion into wider aspects of honey.

We have some folks who have contacts both with the powerful CA wine lobby, and in the government itself, and that is being explored.

Internationalism - development of other groups abroad. Mead occurs in a lot of societies, so keeping the IMA international will be a factor too.

Food/Ambrosia for thought.

The association is intended to be worldwide. There were 7 countries represented this year at the MeadFest. We hope for even more next year. But the group name *is* the International Mead Association. The push will be to make it live up to that, as a worldwide group.

Vicky - working on project plans for the R&D group...

 

[Vicky Rowe]

PPS add -
Literature - consolidation of exsting sources, promotion and dissemination of it, development of new material, cyclic nature, plugging into existing outlets (e.g. SCA, homebrew, bookshops, hobbyists, new age - e.g. www.druidry.org *spot the pagan *, etc).

Yup, my thinking exactly, and one of my top goals as the R&D committee head. Knowledge is power. One of the things that will be coming out fairly soon (read: a couple months) is a basic blueprint for starting a meadery, courtesy of Julia at Redstone Meadery. We'll be putting together what I hope will be the largest collection of mead-related information on the web, and actively seeking input from those who have knowledge to share. I intend to see that an online, printable newsletter happens regularly, and that the website will have a comprehensive list of honey sources, both for hobbyists and large consumers. We'll be coordinating with the NHB and apiarists go gain a better understanding of the state of honey in the country, and lots of other things!

Vicky - getting ahead of myself again.....

 

[exmoor_cat]

Thanks for the feedback, as I say, give me a shout if you think I could be a hand at something.

 

[Vicky Rowe]

Once we've reached some form of stability, I'll be pulling on all y'all to help.

Right now, we're just getting the organization up and running, so things are still a bit amorphous. But rest assured you'll get the opportunity to pitch in!

 

[jackwolfe]

I'm new to this board, but I would like to see what info comes out of this thread. Looks like you could use people from all over, so I'm here in Canada. Looking at trying to get a mead community going and growing here. I've managed to get a few people hooked on mead, not hard to do, but I'm having difficulty finding other zymurgists in the local area. I think an international community on the web would be great. Let me know what comes out and if there is anything I could do to help.

Thanx,
John