By TR Robertson
The Ninth Annual Meading at the Gardens started a little earlier than the scheduled 1 PM opening for the event as 120+ participants in the 6-course VIP Gourmet luncheon and mead pairing anxiously wandered into the Ceremonial Rose Garden area of the Alta Vista Botanical Gardens close to 11 o’clock. Circular tables set up with 8 chairs per table filled the area, wonderfully decorated as those that had paid the extra fee to attend the VIP Luncheon picked out that perfect place to sit. Large umbrellas provided shade for those that wanted to sit out of the sun. This year’s menu featured fruit and spice themes for each of the food selections.
Volunteers must have been exhausted by the end of the 2+ hour luncheon as they quickly served and cleaned up the food being served as well as beginning each food pairing by serving the different drinks selected to go with what was served. Another unique feature this year was a dollop of hot sauce selected to go with the food. Sunfire Hotsauce provided the hot sauce. The first selection was the Primer – Fruta Boule compressee with Zeste Bruine and the hot sauce Apricot Ginger. The hot sauce added to a good flavor for this Primer. Meadiocrity Mead’s Rose Lemonade was served, a zesty flavor for the first mead. Next was the Starter – Sour Apple Balsamique with Jalapeno Honey Apple and a hot sauce of Jalapeno Honey Apple Lime. This was quite tasty, the hot sauce good but a little too spicey for this reviewer. Raging Cider & Mead’s Midas Gold was served with the Starter.
The Appetizer was my favorite dish for the day, next to the Entrée. The Appetizer was a Shrimp Glase Epice with Tamarind Glacage and the hot sauce served was Habi Mang, a Habanero/Mango flavor. The mead served was from Lost Cause Mead called Law and Order, also my favorite mead for the day. Two large shrimps were fixed tempura style with delicious sauces accompanying the meal. The mead had an excellent flavor of Tropical Melomel. The Entrée served was a sizable portion of Ahi Poele with Wasabi Croute and Filet Mignon with Wasabi Infused with Pomme de Terre. The hot sauce served was Soy Good Garlic. The mead served was from Wild West Mead, called Sparkling Traditional. For Dessert a Strawberry Kiwi Sables with Fresno Pepper Confit was served with a Kiwi Strawberry hot sauce. This was very refreshing and liked by everyone. Finishing the meal was a small portion of Fresh Local Honeycomb and a mead from Batch Mead called Heart of Darkness. The luncheon was unique, cleverly paired with just the right meads and sauces. The staff is to be congratulated for their hard work in trying to make sure everyone was served as quickly and timely as possible. They could certainly use more help for the large turn out and anyone looking for a way to assist Alta Vista Botanical Gardens for this event is highly encouraged to contact Alta Vista Botanical Gardens when this event rolls around next year.
Once the luncheon was over, the Meading at the Gardens had opened, and it was time to wander from tent to tent to get tastings of the different meads, spirits, ciders and brewery drinks being served using the taster glasses. Close to thirty meaderies, cideries, spirit distilleries and breweries were in attendance to entice visitors to try what they had to offer. Some of those groups in attendance included 117 Spirits, Arcana Brewing, Barrel and Stave Brewing, Batch Mead, Bear Roots Brewing, Belching Beaver Brewing, Blue Honey Country Wines and Meads, Chubby Cheeks Meadery, Golden Coast Mead, Grafted Cellers Urban Winery, Hidden Hive Meadery, Inzane Brewing, Lost Cause Mead, Mead Made Mod, Meadiocdrity Mead, Meteor Mead, North County Homebrewers Association, Prey Brewing, Prohibition Brewing, Raging Cider & Mead, Shield Wall Mead, Society of Barley Engineers, Somerstate Winery, Sword and Barley Brewing, Twisted Horn Meadery, Wild West Mead. Each of these groups offered several tastings with the Home Brewers and Barley Engineers offering a number of selections for visitors to their tents and tables.
This year three additional food options were offered including Baby’s Badass Burgers, Cocina de Carmen and Urban Pizza. Handels was on hand for those that wanted something sweeter. Many of those attending also had necklaces of pretzels around their necks to munch on between tastings. The Viking Village was once again promoting their upcoming Viking Festival, set for September 21 & 22 this year at The Gas & Steam Engine Museum Park. The Viking themed mini-village featured axe-throwing, live blacksmithing and leather working. Savage Beaches Honey Company offered honey tasting as well as the San Diego Bee Sanctuary. The San Diego Bee Sanctuary educated visitors to Bee Rescue and Hive Management and had a small hive for people to see. Aaron Pyne was promoting his book Unleash your Majik with the Elven Wizard, a fantasy adventure meditation experience. There were also Raffle tickets to purchase to try and win gifts donated from local breweries, homebrewers, mead-makers and businesses.
The Clay Colton Band was the featured musical entertainment for the day. Clay and his band provided an eclectic blend of Classic Rock Covers, Alternative Rock favorites and authentic Americana/Southern Rock original music. His group was a popular group for visitors to gather around and listen to as they tried mead, cider, beer, wine and spirit tastings as well as purchasing gourmet popcorn and beef jerky at nearby tents.
As well as walking through the Meading at the Gardens, many of those in attendance used the chance to wander through the over fourteen acres of botanicals, art and sculptures that make up Alta Vista Botanical Gardens. Numerous walking trails meander through the garden and there is even a large turtle pond. The Alta Vista Botanical Garden Gift Shop was also open where you could purchase turtle food for a nominal price. Alta Vista Botanical Garden will soon be receiving a Proclamation from County Supervisor Jim Desmond’s Office honoring them for the work they do officially celebrating Earth Month for April.
The weather was perfect for the day, the crowds manageable, the meads and other drinks available awesome, the food choices just right and the VIP luncheon excellent, the entertainment a great choice for this event and the Alta Vista Botanical Gardens a perfect spot for this popular event. If you missed it, there is always next year, but don’t miss it again. Go to www.altavistabotanicalgardens.org to find out all of the events held at the Gardens. April will feature Earth Day on Saturday, April 20th.
