Wild Blossom Meadery and Winery
Now here’s a factoid I’ll bet you didn’t know, Road Trips Foodies: Each bottle of mead contains the nectar of two million flowers. That means ten or twenty million seeds were pollinated by those busy bees. Mead, therefore, is evidence that the cycle of plant life has been renewed.
Mead, of course, is wine produced from honey (it might be news to some city slickers, but bees produce honey from flower nectar). Wild Blossom Meadery & Winery is Chicago’s first winery and the only Illinois meadery on the Northern Illinois Wine Trail. You’ll find it at 10033 South Western Avenue in Chicago’s Beverly neighborhood.
They use local honeys, grapes and other fruits in both the traditional and contemporary styles of meads. Their bees roam not only the Illinois prairies and Lake Michigan sand dunes, but the meadery maintains hives in the City of Chicago where industry has left and nature has reclaimed vacant lots and parking areas with wild flowers.
The wines are made by Greg Fischer, who grew up raising honeybees and making wine in New Paltz New York. Greg, who opened Wild Blossom in 2000, tends to his 80 hives and also teaches wine and beer-making classes at Beverage Art.
On my list to try? Wild Blossom Raspberry Peach — a honey mead with fermented raspberries and peaches. Or maybe a bottle of Wild Blossom Chocolate Honey Buzz. Or Wild Blossom Cran-Nectar (the perfect Thanksgiving choice? it’s made with Wisconsin cranberries!).
For more information on visiting Chicago’s Southland, go online.
(Photo courtesy of Wild Blossom Meadery and Winery)
