Stardust Cellars:
A Symphony of Honey, Nature, and Tradition
Nestled in the picturesque landscape of North Wilkesboro, North Carolina, Stardust Cellars has carved a niche for itself in the world of mead-making. This exceptional meadery offers an authentic taste of the region by using local honey spontaneously fermented by indigenous microorganisms. Here's what makes Stardust Cellars a destination for mead enthusiasts and curious explorers alike.
Our Cherry Blood mead is a classic European-style mead, intertwined with pagan lore and sacred ritual. Cherries and honey, the staple ingredients, were mixed with sour cherry and vanilla to create a new-world flavor suitable for the American palate. The result is a balanced and delicious mead, which pays homage to the Norse peoples who mastered the art of mead-making.With 14% ABV, our Cherry Blood mead is perfect for any occasion.
Mead and Melons each have their origins in ancient human civilization. The Sān hunter-gatherers--indigenous to Southern Africa--first tasted mead after rains forced bees out of hives in the cavities of baobab trees. The abandoned honey combined with rainwater and wild yeasts and began to ferment; nature's own alchemy. Melons storing thirst-quenching moisture dotted the landscape, symbols of survival and self-sufficiency in the arid Kalahari. Migration towards the Nile brought these commodities to the Mediterranean, and centuries later, to the US South and Caribbean. After emancipation across the New World, members of the African diaspora continued to cultivate their ancient and lucrative crop in the sandy loams of the US South, Central America, and the Caribbean. Fearing successes of Black farmers during the 19th and 20th centuries, white supremacists turned the watermelon into a racist trope. In a joint effort to reject that image and reclaim the powerful and life-affirming origins of these ancient fruits, we partner with the nonprofit, beeYounited, to use profits from our Melon Mead to establish BIPOC-owned bee farms and pollinator sites across the US South.
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Inspired by the indigenous herb of the Tibetan plateau, our Lavender mead is a unique creation. The giant honey bee, collecting "mad honey" high in psychoactive alkaloids, alongside the herb, was foraged by Buddhist monks to counter psychosis. The mix was then fermented spontaneously with rainwater and native wild microorganisms, resulting in a floral and herbal aroma. With 14% ABV, our Lavender mead provides a unique and relaxing drinking experience.
Our signature mead that serves as the base for all our creations. Made using the over-wintering method ancestrale technique, it features local raw honey stirred by hand daily and fermented dry. The result is a golden honey mead with notes of wild Appalachian wildflowers and yeast, providing a unique bouquet that sets the foundation for all our meads. Ancestral has 14% ABV.
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