“It’s the season for sweet olive. How about a mead that captures the scent of the sweet olive plucked from our garden?”

Autumn 2024.
Exactly six months ago today, I received an email from the Shiga restaurant "SOWER." This is our third collaboration project with SOWER, following meads made with Mexican marigolds and cherry blossoms.
Due to certain circumstances, this might be the last collaborative mead we release in Japan.

“Above all, we want something dry and fizzy, just like hospitality for our guests.”

There was only one request.
Since we always use domestic honey for our collaborations with SOWER, we once again chose honey from Mr. Shiomi of Shiomead. The scent of sweet olive is one everyone knows. To ensure the honey's aroma remains even when the mead is dry, we chose honey with notes of mandarin orange.

A bottle that allows you to enjoy the Japanese seasons has been released.
The reason for the general release at this timing is due to certain circumstances.

〈Yasu → SOWER Garden〉

Just like with the sweet olive, they asked, "It’s in full bloom. Can you come?"

Emails from SOWER are always sudden, but this time we were well-prepared as we had planned to use sweet olive in another mead anyway. Okada-kun and Sena-chan went over and worked calmly with the SOWER team to separate the flowers from the debris. The sweet olive they brought back looked so beautiful, I thought it would even be delicious in a salad.

The highly fragrant sweet olive was immediately steeped in the mead, and this time, we finished it with barrel aging. We also took on a new challenge for ANTELOPE: "bottle-conditioned mead."

〈Tasting Note〉
The ABV is 12%. To perform bottle fermentation with mead, we had to allow for a very long fermentation period, significantly reduce the sugar content, and monitor the progress closely to prevent over-fermentation.
Compared to beer, it underwent a much longer aging process to develop carbonation. The complex nuances support the scent of the sweet olive, and it has taken on an aroma reminiscent of freshly baked bread.

ーーー

Style: Japanese Seasonal Mead
ABV: 12%
Carbonation: Yes
Volume: 750ml (Champagne bottle)
Ingredients: Honey (produced in Hamamatsu, Shizuoka Prefecture), sweet olive
Sweetness (10-point scale): 1 (Dry)
Recommended Serving Temperature: Thoroughly chilled (4-8°C)
Pairing: Seasonal grilled vegetables, mixed salads, white fish meunière

〈Label〉
Features a line drawing of the sweet olive in full bloom that graced SOWER’s garden.

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