The Queen Bee, Stacy McGee: Mead maker, beekeeper, gardener, chicken lady, cook, collector of critters, Labor & Delivery nurse, wife, and mom.

I decided to become a mead maker after a trip to Vancouver Island, BC  in 2016. That is when I tasted my first mead and it was like “Magic in my mouth! Sunshine in a glass!” Upon returning to the Napa Valley, I was surprised to find that a region renowned for food and wine was without a meadery! I returned to Vancouver Island in 2017 and 2018 and while sipping mead I would say, “someone should be making this stuff at home.” After the trip in 2018, I decided, “Why shouldn’t it be me?”

I started beekeeping and reading everything I could get my hands on about bees, mead making and starting a meadery. With the help of my four sons, I started brewing up as many batches of mead as I could, asking questions to online groups of mead makers and practicing my new found craft. Lucky enough to live near UC Davis, the first university to offer mead making classes (along with world renowned beer and wine making classes), I jumped on the opportunity! Since then, we have been putting all the pieces together; creativity, artistry, small business building, gardening, beekeeping, a hint of magic, and of course the mead making.  There’s been no looking back. The idea has blossomed into a grand adventure.

Mead Man, Quinn Randall-Darter: very enthusiastic about starting a business. He is learning to make mead, along with other aspects of building a business, primarily in permitting and sustainability. Quinn assists in many stages of the mead making process, from beekeeping, to lifting the heavy loads, managing a fermentation, and bottling. He’s also great at PR. Quinn is a recent graduate of Sonoma State University with a BA in Geography, Environment, & Planning.

Kai Randall-Darter: is learning the mead making process from building and managing a batch, bottling, as well as prepping, packing and delivery. Kai is a current college student majoring in the sciences.

Sage Randall-Darter: he’s doing his own thing right now but is always willing to jump in and help when he’s around for things like lifting the heavy stuff, fetching equipment, taste testing, modeling and lending his expertise in sales as well as packing up shipments.

Zachary Hill: he’s behind the scenes. He helps out when he can. Zac is a good reference person when we need Viking lore and Greek mythology.