Field Work: Rohan Meadery
Several weeks ago — before the wedding was looming too badly — my then-fiance and I took off for Burton, Texas to stay at the Knittel Homestead Inn. We had a voucher from flash-sale site, and we desperately needed some time to ourselves, so it seemed like a fine destination.
I had forgotten that I spent some time in Burton several years ago while working on Republic of Barbecue, but it all came flashing back when we walked into the Burton Meat Market. The market is worth a stop-by if you’re into meats, and the Burton Cafe is worth a visit if you’re into German food or baked goods. Oh, the baked goods. I had a pecan meringue the size of my face. It was decadent.
The B&B was nice, and we thoroughly enjoyed exploring the area. In particular, I fell a little in love with Rohan Meadery. The tasting room wasn’t too busy, so we enjoyed a tasting and then enjoying several glasses of mead. We got to chat with Wendy Rohan, who co-owns the meadery with her husband John, quite a bit.
We were not only charmed by the product — which includes sweet and dry meads in several varieties — we were very impressed by how personable and knowledgeable Wendy is. We came away with three bottles, including the Raspberry Melomel. I’ve tried mead several times, and the Rohan meads we tried were by far the best I’ve tasted. The flavor profiles are complex and rich with the floral and herbal notes that tend to creep into honey. Even the sweeter meads were not overly sweet.
If you’re in the central Texas area, I highly recommend making the drive out. If you aren’t, well, distribution is limited, but you can come by bottles a few places around the state. If you’re outside the current distribution range, which is somewhat limited, try begging your favorite shop to stock a few bottles. It will be worth the effort.
