MODERN HONEY MEAD
AURUM MHM ~ or ‘Modern Honey Mead’ ~ is the brainchild of meadmaker Louis Costa, and a revolution the luxury fine wine market.
Using rare Australian varietal honeys and native ingredients, and combining traditional winemaking and modern brewing skills with years of extensive research in ancient meadmaking techniques, Louis has created a unique, complex and elegant range of premium still, sparkling and vintage meads.
Aurum Modern Meads have little to no residual sugar, resulting in dry and delicious premium wines, far removed from the sweet liqueur reminiscent of the viking era.
Balancing the aromatics of honey foraged sustainably by bees with the fermented complex character of yeasts and unique native Australian ingredients, these wines are refreshing and sophisticated, and promise to please the most conservative and discerning of palates.
Aurum aims to pioneer a change in the way mead is perceived in the fine beverage industry, with MHMs now giving consumers an exciting alternative to traditional beer, wine or cocktails.
Hand crafted in small batches to respect the unique varietal character of each honey, Aurum meads are carefully matured with minimal intervention, and following environmentally-sustainable practices.
Aurum’s range of meads includes styles reminiscent of a blanc de blanc champagne, a dry sauvignon blanc, a complex chardonnay, and the signature off-dry blush sparkling rosé, the “Aurum Blush” or “Rose Gold”. Artisinal honey and sustainably sourced botanicals combine to create subtle and elegant aromatics and flavours.
Mead is a little-known product, and the possibilities are both endless and pleasantly surprising. I want people to see how honey-based wines, made the right way, have the potential to hold their own amongst the most prestigious grape-based wines on the market.
Louis Costa
Louis Costa
Rare fruit-based reds, dessert meads and Pet Nats will also be part of Aurum's range, all founded on the various types of Australian honey carefully selected by the meadmaker.
Each mead has been carefully crafted to pair beautifully with food or as an aperitif, making them the perfect candidate to enjoy for that special occasion or on the finest of dining tables.
The company’s moniker Aurum Vinum is derived from Latin, meaning “Golden Wine”.
MEET THE MEAD MAKER
LOUIS COSTA is a winemaker, qualified brewer and passionate meadmaker, born and bred in Pauillac, amidst the vines in the heart of the Bordeaux wine region of France.
Starting out at a very young age in his family’s winery, using vines planted by his grandfather, Louis’ passion for wine was cemented at the tender age of 11.
His grandfather, also named Louis Costa, was a keen apiarist, and taught Louis about bees and pollination and the various types of floral honey harvested around the French countryside. Louis began experimenting with meads at a young age, keen to push the boundaries of what was possible and turn traditional mead, or hydromel in French, into something spectacular and sought-after by the wine connoisseurs of his milieu.
His curiosity and passion for fermentation then led him on a journey around the world to discover new world wines and other fermented beverages.
Louis has worked in some of the most prestigious chateaux of the Bordeaux region, and alongside the talented winemaker Virginia Willcock at Vasse Felix in Western Australia.
In 2012, he landed in Byron Bay, where he fell in love with the region, the lifestyle and his future wife, and decided to call Australia home.
Starting out at a very young age in his family’s winery, using vines planted by his grandfather, Louis’ passion for wine was cemented at the tender age of 11.
His grandfather, also named Louis Costa, was a keen apiarist, and taught Louis about bees and pollination and the various types of floral honey harvested around the French countryside. Louis began experimenting with meads at a young age, keen to push the boundaries of what was possible and turn traditional mead, or hydromel in French, into something spectacular and sought-after by the wine connoisseurs of his milieu.
His curiosity and passion for fermentation then led him on a journey around the world to discover new world wines and other fermented beverages.
Louis has worked in some of the most prestigious chateaux of the Bordeaux region, and alongside the talented winemaker Virginia Willcock at Vasse Felix in Western Australia.
In 2012, he landed in Byron Bay, where he fell in love with the region, the lifestyle and his future wife, and decided to call Australia home.
Inspired by the richness of the land in the Northern Rivers, and impressed by the positive environmental impacts of pollination, Louis saw the potential in local honey to continue his passion, in a climate that was not adapted to traditional grape-growing. He loved the idea of a virtually zero-waste product that could rival a traditional wine, using low-impact ingredients that enrich and sustain the local environment.
Using his secret ingredients tried, tested and developed over years and a deep knowledge of different types of fermentation across a broad range of industries, Louis has managed to create an elegant collection of wines that truly represent the place where they are made, as well as being some of the most environmentally-friendly, sustainable and healthy alcoholic beverages currently available on the market.
Using his secret ingredients tried, tested and developed over years and a deep knowledge of different types of fermentation across a broad range of industries, Louis has managed to create an elegant collection of wines that truly represent the place where they are made, as well as being some of the most environmentally-friendly, sustainable and healthy alcoholic beverages currently available on the market.
