I love Purple Possum Cranberry Mead. It's a TX wine. It is fantastic!

amilham wrote:I've had a similar experience. I've had wine delivered three times in recent weeks, once by FedEx and twice by UPS, and ID was never checked.

The first time I got my wine delivered to my new apartment I offered my ID to the driver(note: I was still 21 at that point), and he told me that "[I] was the first person in seven years to do that". So I doubt it would be a problem. I've also picked up wine after the third delivery. the UPS people usually save it for a few days at least, more if you call and let them know when you will be back. UPS is very flexible on that sort of thing.

thrawn1020 wrote:The first time I got my wine delivered to my new apartment I offered my ID to the driver(note: I was still 21 at that point), and he told me that "[I] was the first person in seven years to do that". So I doubt it would be a problem. I've also picked up wine after the third delivery. the UPS people usually save it for a few days at least, more if you call and let them know when you will be back. UPS is very flexible on that sort of thing.

It depends on your UPS office. If you call and let them know to hold it at the office, they'll hold it for up to 7 days. Anything past that, or not calling them, is a crapshoot.

Do we know who the rats are going to be yet? (I'm still hoping, but I'd like to know when to give up home.)

copperpixie wrote:Do we know who the rats are going to be yet? (I'm still hoping, but I'd like to know when to give up home.)

Rat packages would have been sent out Thursday. Earliest we could expect to hear from anyone would be mid-day Friday. Usually it is late date, or sometimes even Saturday before all rats check in.

So don't give up hope, yet!

I've read that mead is honey wine like beer is hop wine.

koneco wrote:I've read that mead is honey wine like beer is hop wine.

A more accurate descriptor would be "mead is honey wine like beer is barley wine". Hops are a flavor additive, like spices in a recipe.

IMHO this is the best mead there is. Here in Texas it can be bought at Spec's for roughly the same price per bottle. I don't like wine at all, but love this mead.

p.s. smuggle it into the next Renaissance Festival you go to. :-)

esperath wrote:I've had the regular variety of Chaucer's Mead a few times in the past. It's not bad (though not exceptional) when mulled, and is relatively cheap and easy for me to acquire ($9.99 at the local BevMo).

This doesn't strike me as a particularly good deal unless you're having a LARP get-together. It's pretty hard to finish four bottles of mead without getting bogged down in the cloying sweetness.

Chaucer's olallieberry wine, on the other hand, is friggin' delicious as a dessert wine (and tastes great on top of vanilla ice cream, with fresh berries and crunchy hazelnut sticks!)

I concur, a Chaucer's olallieberry wine reduction sauce poured over vanilla bean ice cream, and served with a glass of the Olallie wine is fantastic for dessert!

I sit down at my desk and what do I see?
A square FedEx box and it’s addressed to me!
Curious it is, as I’m not expecting anything,
so I grab the knife wondering what it could be.
I fold back the top with building anticipation.
Could it be the Salami? No that’s Monday
and the JanKris just shipped that can’t be it.
To hell with the packaging I’m going in!
And what do I find once I’ve gutted the parcel?
Why it’s a Golden Ticket shining back at me!
What’s this not one but two bottles!?
And they are both bottles of Mead!
With great excitement I snatch the first bottle
wondering, should I open it now for a tiny litle swallow?
No, must be strong. Must not violate Number 8!
A call has gone out to friends of this gent,
to accompany me for this most wonderful event.
The time shall be 9 the place will be Naples,
any and all in the area are welcome to join in.

I thank thee for this wonderful opportunity
and end with a hearty Huzzah!

bkarney wrote:
Why it’s a Golden Ticket shining back at me!
What’s this not one but two bottles!?

Why thou errant ill-breeding charlatan!!

Congrats.

I got a golden ticket as well! I'm so excited!

(Also two bottles.)

I can't wait for tonight and some tasting!

bkarney wrote:I sit down at my desk and what do I see?
A square FedEx box and it’s addressed to me!
Curious it is, as I’m not expecting anything,
so I grab the knife wondering what it could be.
I fold back the top with building anticipation.
Could it be the Salami? No that’s Monday
and the JanKris just shipped that can’t be it.
To hell with the packaging I’m going in!
And what do I find once I’ve gutted the parcel?
Why it’s a Golden Ticket shining back at me!
What’s this not one but two bottles!?
And they are both bottles of Mead!
With great excitement I snatch the first bottle
wondering, should I open it now for a tiny litle swallow?
No, must be strong. Must not violate Number 8!
A call has gone out to friends of this gent,
to accompany me for this most wonderful event.
The time shall be 9 the place will be Naples,
any and all in the area are welcome to join in.

I thank thee for this wonderful opportunity
and end with a hearty Huzzah!

+1 nomination for best labrat post ever!

MarkDaSpark wrote:This offer last year was my first labrat (Raspberry Mead), so here is a copy of my report (remember, it came with a Golden Ticket):



Hope this helps ....

You're packed. And this was the most annoying packing I ever had to do, so I don't want to hear you complaining about "Why haven't you packed me yet?" Stupid quotes within quotes. Doesn't work so well, y'know.

I've had Chaucer's Mead before. It's wonderful. It definitely smells like Alfalfa and honey, but once you get used to it, it's delicious! Worst case scenario, swig it out of the bottle like a true knight.

LOVE this mead. The rasberry mead was exceptional. We invited our neighbors to try some and before you knew it we polished off the bottle. Good stuff.

That's odd that I can go down to the grocery store and buy this mead, and I can get all other wine woots shipped to me, but this isn't available in Missouri.

The 750ml bottles of this mead (which is VERY tasty indeed) are at my local BevMo half a block away for $9.99 per bottle, if you are a club member (which is free).

They do not have the raspberry mead in sock, but I'm somewhat of a purist anyhow....

Labrat reporting in:
It's cold outside and inside because we're cheap, so I decided to start with some spiced mead.

We opened the regular mead and gave it a sniff. It smells to me dead on like sparkling white grape juice. Which I've since figured is a bit floral, a bit like honey, and a bit like sparkling white grape juice.

I poured some and gave it a sip at room temp. It is quite sweet, but I like it. There's lots of sweet, definitely some honey, and a bit of floral. I thought there was very little alcohol taste to it.

I then dumped half of it into a pot to warm and mull. I let it get just warm enough that bubbles were starting to form, but it wasn't actually hot yet. While doing that, I prepped two wineglass shaped mugs like I would for tea -- hot water swished around to warm the mugs. Once it was nicely spiced and warm, I poured two mugs.

I gave my co-taster a mug and he said, "Tell them it tastes like spiced apple cider with hints of nectar. That's good, right?" He also says, "Full, round mouthfeel."

I think when warm, it has a nice weight on the tongue, that has decreased as it has cooled. It's still sweet and tasty. (A non-drinking friend interjects "It smells like honey in here!") It still has a sweet smell to it -- a bit floral. It's sharper when warm, but I tend to think that of alcohol. Overall, I find it to be very easy to drink. I'm glad I have more coming.

I have not found the sweetness to build or be cloying. It's held nicely as I've had my mug, but not been overpowering.

I will be back later with more to say, I'm sure.

Part Two: Slightly chilled.

A bit chilled, it has a longer finish. Definitely honey on the palate. Delightful.

Sam (my co-taster) says, "Teh awesome!" He did actually say "teh", not "the".

We'll be back for the raspberry. Also, thanks very much for this opportunity -- I don't speak winese, but I'm really enjoying sharing my thoughts.

I'm drinking some of the raspberry mead right now, and it's delicious. The regular mead is also wonderful.

copperpixie wrote:Part Two: Slightly chilled.

A bit chilled, it has a longer finish. Definitely honey on the palate. Delightful.

Sam (my co-taster) says, "Teh awesome!" He did actually say "teh", not "the".

We'll be back for the raspberry. Also, thanks very much for this opportunity -- I don't speak winese, but I'm really enjoying sharing my thoughts.

Great report. While I(and probably many others) value the reports from the "pros" here, yours and those like yours are equally important... esp to non-pros like myself(rpm- lots of corks to pull, and remember the wines). Actually, I considered your report professional... just without some of the "winese" terms.

I lived in Germany near the BE/NL border for 7 years. I came to fall in love with the meads sold at the local fairs...i remember that with each sip, my lips and tongue would get more and more numb. Is that a typical physiologic response to fermented honey products?

In case enough positive comments have yet to flow forth, I'll summarize:
This is not a fine wine. It isn't something to whip out when you want to impress people with your wallet or palate. But if you want something different that is a blast to drink and is unlike every wine you've ever had, this is a great, no, fantastic product. Honestly, it will change the way you taste honey. All of a sudden you will notice the flavor profile of honey and not just the sweetness. It's great room temperature whenever, or chilled on a summer night. A nice cold glass of Chaucer (which you can get many places for less than here on Woot, though I credit WD with introducing me) on a humid summer seems to hit the spot much better than any beer could.

Give it a shot. If not here, from your local store.

Well, I’m about as far from being a “Mead Expert” as one can get…in fact, this is the third time that I’ve ever had it (first two being at Renaissance Festivals). I was worrying myself due to the fact that I don’t have much of a comparative base to work from, but then I realized that’s ok. Those of you that are familiar with its characteristics should hopefully be able to convert my ramblings into something coherent and relevant, or so I hope!

Anyway, once I got out of work I took these gems with me to Naples. After dealing with some nasty fog (and even nastier drivers – don’t get me started) I, along with the cargo, arrived at my destination a few hours later. I decided against trying to use the in-room coffee maker’s heater to warm with the Mulling Spices, for obvious reasons!

So, round one with the regular mead is at room temp. Round two will be chilled, undoubtedly sometime tomorrow as I’m having trouble keeping my eyes open already! I’ll open the Raspberry tomorrow as well and give it the attention it deserves.

Nose: Honey, but not like a honey comb, just smooth rich fragrant honey. I am also picking up on some notes of orange blossom and maybe some lavender. Perhaps some molasses??

Taste: It is sweet, but not offensively so. Tongue, mouth and lips completely coated with the sweet lingering finish of the Mead. At one point I could have sworn I tasted apricot, and maybe I did, but it hasn’t reappeared since. Is it wrong for me to want to try some in my morning tea!?!? I mean, I usually add honey in place of sugar anyway…enough justification, awesome – will do I bet you could make some pretty cool sauces with this if reduced enough, turn it into a glaze of sorts.

No noticeable heat. This is quite the easy drinker for a dessert-styled wine, especially after the first glass… Funny how that happens It does get a tad bitter on the finish and I think it would be nice if it was a little more crisp. All in all, it’s pretty straightforward, very enjoyable but not all that complex. We’ll see if some more defined secondary flavors develop tomorrow (or if my taste buds just needed some Zzzz). Gotta say, it's quite fun to drink, if that makes any sense...

Reading the label the suggestion is given to use as a marinade for fruit and fowl. I would imagine that it would be amazing used in a fruit salad.

I’ll be back for more on this, and the Raspberry, tomorrow. I’m just too damn tired right now! Cheers, bk

Part Two: Revisted the Regular Mead chilled and I find it to be even more appealing. The slight bitterness that was on the finish last night is basically gone now, of course, the bottle has been open for over 12 hours by now. I am really looking forward to trying it warm with the mulling spices but that will have to wait until I get out of this hotel room!

Part Three: Raspberry Mead...
It has the color of rose gold while the regular mead was more of "dark canary yellow", according to my girlfriend
This one was tried both at both room temp and chilled. It has the crispness that I was looking for earlier and the raspberry is evident on both the nose and palate. It is pretty strong, but expected. It does have tiny bit of paper clip minerality going on, but very faint. I personally enjoyed the raspberry over the regular when they are cool, and I prefer the regular over the raspberry when at room temp.

As far as my girlfriend's take on it, well, she didn't like them. BUT, I didn't think there was a snowball's chance in hell of her liking them. She likes Pinot....and Pinot, you get the idea right!?

I can hear the regular mead calling out to me.....it is dying to be heated with the Mulling Spices. Based on what I'm tasting, and using a bit of imagination based on the make-up and scent of the spices, I would be surprised if it's anything short of awesome!

Thanks again WD for this opportunity and for the offering itself. It really is fun to drink! I won't be pulling it out for any of my serious wine drinking buddies, but the OTHER drinking buddies....well, let's just say that I'll have to hide it from them if I want any for myself

I haven't paid attention to wine.woot too much... I know they used to be able to send to Missouri, and it is even/still on the list at: http://wine.woot.com/WhatIsWoot.aspx#qw13 - why can't this offering be shipped to MO?

Never tried mead before and my first wine.woot.com purchase. Gonna attempt it! Sounds tasty .

We also had the chilled raspberry last night. I really like raspberry flavored things, but I'm also very sensitive to what I consider an issue with them. Sometimes when I eat fresh raspberries that aren't the best, there is a metallic tang to them. It gets repeated and emphasized a lot in raspberry flavored things when they use raspberries and not fake flavor (fake flavoring is even worse though because "raspberry" is just gross). I thought there was an off putting smell to the raspberry mead and a strong metallic tang. The smell and taste are highly related. The metallic taste did seem to diminish some as I drank my glass. I wish I'd thought to taste it at room temperature to see if it was at all temp related.

Other than that, there was a lighter raspberry flavor to the mead that was really nice and it was much easier to pick out the honey tones, having just had the other mead.

Sam drank a bit of it and declared it sweeter than the regular, more like drinking candy, but still delicious. He didn't notice anything off about it. I did point out the smell at which point he said, "I guess, a little."

We are both definitely looking forward to getting my shipment now. Before this, Sam was very anti-mead, but I left my glass alone for a few moments last night (half full of raspberry mead) and when I came back it was empty.

I've held out long enough. Never had mead but the labrats and all the comments sold me on it - especially drinking it on a humid summer night. Texas has lots of those!

My resolve crumbled... in for 1. And just when I was all caught up and didn't have any outstanding deliveries.

I had no intention of jumping on this, but now I'm having second thoughts- great lab rat reports this week!
I've always been curious what mead is like, and am hesitant to jump in for 4 bottles, but I do love raspberry....

For the East Coasters at least it's 10.99 at Total Wine and they don't carry the Raspberry mead so it's about the same, not bad...

copperpixie wrote:We are both definitely looking forward to getting my shipment now. Before this, Sam was very anti-mead, but I left my glass alone for a few moments last night (half full of raspberry mead) and when I came back it was empty.

classic!

Isn't it Sunday? Time for a clue?

Winedavid39 wrote:Clue? Italian city but not Italy

Well, there's a Bella Napoli Winery, a Venezia Winery, and a Milano Family Winery.

Only the Milano Family appear to have a (crappy) web site.

Winedavid39 wrote:Clue? Italian city but not Italy

I just finished John Adams... You should buy this DVD set... It's great...

copperpixie wrote:I don't speak winese, but I'm really enjoying sharing my thoughts.

Well you convinced me! After waiting it out, I just made my first wine.woot purchase!

MaskedMarvel wrote:I just finished John Adams... You should buy this DVD set... It's great...

And Target has it for $15.99, yep you heard right.