The magical effects of local honey wine

You can now pick up a bottle of honey wine at Saturday’s Santa Barbara Farmers Market.

Dylan Wylde of Dylan’s Raw Hive Honey first began experimenting with turning honey into booze with a friend and fellow amateur brewer. Then he traveled to Europe to learn more about making mead. Now, he collaborates with winemakers in the Santa Ynez Valley and uses oak barrels from Sanford Winery to make his elixir.

KCRW market host Katie Hershfelt met up with Wylde to learn more.

Honey wine is basically honey and water. Wylde uses water from a spring on his property, and honey he makes from bees he keeps in the mountains off San Marcos Pass.

“It’s pretty simple. With grape wine, you ferment the juice from the grapes,” said Wylde. “With honey wine, you ferment the mixture of honey and water.” The yeast consumes the sugars, which leaves just the floral elements. He then ages that fermented liquid in oak barrels for about a year and a half.

Wylde calls his honey wine magical because he’s never gotten a hangover from it.

“We had this at my wedding, and it was the best wedding in history. This is just pure happiness, and not a lot of falling down,” he said.

Although you can’t get a sample at the farmers market (liquor laws…), you can try Wylde’s honey wine at the Wild Brew Fest on Saturday, March 11th at Soho Santa Barbara.

To check out all our past farmers market segments, head to kcrw.com/meetatthemarket.