Lehua Blossom

Early Fall 2025

12.5%

Mead Details

This beverage was made using Hawaiian Lehua Blossom honey. 

The yeast we used was QA23.

This mead was 8 months old before bottling. 

Karl’s tasting notes

Lurking in the back of Maniacal for some time now has been an exciting new series of Traditional meads, featuring honeys from Hawaii!! As a traditionalist (in spirit), I’ve personally been stoked for these! The next one up is Lehua Blossom, coming from a lovely Hawaiian flower that resembles a little red firework. I have no expectations for any specific experience, so let’s just jump in!

The nose right away is quite fascinating. Like a ripe papaya mixed with floral pollen? I need to do more research. Interestingly, it shares some of the floral notes of Michigan wildflower and clover; a soft and sweet scent of passionate flowers with a butter-silk pollen profile. It’s delicate and “smooth” as a scent.

Moving on to the taste! My first impression is like a woody flower nectar. NOT what I was expecting! It is creamy, smooth, and earthy. This profile is very fascinating. I get wooden notes akin to sherry barrels, fruit, and honey-pollen, then a tickle of creamed sweet fruit almost. A lot to ponder! While it’s sweet, the Lehua also has a dry bite similar to whiskey! This mead REALLY blindsided my expectations. Makes me very excited for this series!