Mead, from Norse legends to the present day
As we often say on our site, mead is one of the oldest alcoholic drinks made by humans. Its story is written in Norse legends: among the Vikings, their Valkyries, their gods and their paradise, Valhalla. It was also highly prized in Antiquity, by the Greeks, the Romans and the Celts. It is even said to have been Julius Caesar's favourite drink.
In France, mead was rediscovered some time ago. We offer Clos des Sentinelles meads, sparkling meads and even chouchens, the mead of Brittany. In Northern Europe, as well as in Germany and Poland, mead is still widely drunk. In the United States, there is even an international mead fair.
Valhalla: a mead born in Seville
In Spain, mead was less well known. That was before two entrepreneurs from Seville, fans of Viking mythology, came along. In the middle of the craft beer boom, they decided to bet on this drink and make it modern while staying true to tradition. Ten years ago, they created their brand: Valhalla.
A wildflower honey rich in rosemary
They first developed their "perfect" blend of honey, water and yeast, which triggers the alcoholic fermentation of the honey. Their wildflower honey comes from a cooperative in Castilblanco de los Arroyos; it contains 80% rosemary, which gives their meads their characteristic flavour. One of the partners' families owns a probiotics factory, which helped them find the yeast combination they wanted.
Handmade meads
Valhalla meads are entirely handmade, with no preservatives. They are 11% vol.
The paperwork challenge
Once the recipe was perfected, the hardest part remained: the administrative formalities, both for the product (health and food registration, bottlers' register, labelling) and for the production premises. The founders say that when they went to the regional government's bottlers' register, the officials did not know which category of drink to put mead in: a regulation existed, but nobody had ever used it. After several months of procedures, production could finally begin.
The Valhalla range
Originally made up of four meads, the range now has five, available in 33cl and 75cl:
- Aesir, the classic;
- Tradicional, with a more roasted taste;
- Doble Miel;
- Freyja, with red fruit;
- Ragnarök, the latest addition.
To taste them, choose a tasting set of 5 Valhalla meads in 33cl. And to learn more about mead and the Vikings, read Viking mead and Valhalla.
Please drink responsibly. Alcohol abuse is dangerous for your health.