Mason making Tree Hive a household name
PROTECTED CONTENT
If you’re a current subscriber, log in below. If you would like to subscribe, please click the subscribe tab above.
Username and Password Help
Please enter your email and we will send your username and password to you.
After twenty four years doing masonry work, Corey Mason needed a change. He began working as a sales representative for Triptych Brewing Company in Savoy, Illinois. In 2011, he started home brewing.
“I enjoyed craft beer and it was a natural progression to try and brew my own. Adding my own twist to my brews was one of my favorite parts,” Mason told us. “Then I found that I could do the same thing with mead, and I eventually started a meadery, which I really enjoy.”
In 2019, Mason started ‘Tree Hive’ and his first batch of mead was sold in February 2021.
Mead is made in the same process as wine, but Corey uses honey instead of grapes. “I start with honey, adding enough of it to produce the alcohol strength I want, then I add water and yeast, controlling the environment surrounding the mead, mainly the temperature,” Corey said.
The yeast is then fed with nutrients to avoid undesired flavors. Within a few weeks, mead has been made. “I usually ferment until there are no sugars left, then add more honey to sweeten. The same process is used when I want to make unflavored mead, but I add fruit and or spices with the honey.”
After primary fermentation, the mead is put into a secondary vessel where it sits until the mead is to Mason’s taste. In order to achieve that taste, sometimes oak or other types of wood is added to impart flavors and tannins that mingle well with the mead. “There are many forms of wood out there that I use. Chips, powders, staves, barrels and sometimes spirit barrels,” Mason said. “The aging process is done when I get my desired flavor.”
Flavor combinations is something that comes to Corey’s mind all the time, but mainly through his experiences from food. Sitting at a restaurant looking at a menu item that has some unique blend of ingredients that he hasn’t thought of creates a spark. “Sometimes I find flavors that just really pair perfectly together and I want to try them as mead,” he said. “It’s hard, but I do try to come up with something other mead makers haven’t tried or expand on their ideas. A lot of my most popular meads are simple honey meads or ones that focus on a single flavor.”
This statement rings true as his best seller is blueberry. With hundreds of kinds of honey and unique flavors from the flowers the bees gather the nectar from, the possibilities are endless. “I’m really looking forward to making mead out of Sunflower Blossom Honey, but it’s difficult to source right now.”
As a home brewer, Corey has competed in many competitions. In 2019, he entered the Mazer Cup International Mead Competition and brought home first place, second place and second best in show. As a professional, he entered the 2021 Indiana Brewers Cup, receiving a Gold and Bronze as well as Best in Show.
In the 2021 National Honey Board Mead Crafters Competition, Mason received Gold, Silver and Bronze. In the 2022 Indiana Brewers Cup, he was awarded Gold, two Bronze, and Best in Show. At the 2022 National Honey Board Mead Crafters Competition, he obtained a Silver and Bronze.
Tree Hive is currently based in Rantoul, but Corey has plans to move it closer to Newman where he lives with his wife and children. “I plan to have a tap room where people will be able to come and enjoy mead while also learning about it.”
If you would like to purchase a bottle of Tree Hive, it is available at all Binny’s Beverage Depots in Central Illinois, Friar Tuck in Springfield and Savoy, Riggs Beer Company and Famous Liquors in the Decatur area, Gateway Liquors in Charleston, AJ’s Wine and Spirits in Mahomet and C&C One Stop in Newman, Illinois. It can also be found on tap in various craft beer bars across Illinois.
“I enjoy the process of making mead more than I do beer because it’s a bit simpler, yet it gives me a lot of room for creativity. Also, there are so many breweries around now that I didn’t want to be just one more in the crowd,” Mason said. “I really enjoy teaching people about mead – its history, ingredients and flavors.”
