Austin Corrigan, a Santa Barbara native, suffered a right leg injury and spent a year recovering, rerouting his career from nomadic chef to a maker of mead, a fermented honey wine. He now sells his fizzy High Seas Mead in four all-organic varieties to an increasing number of stores and restaurants in Santa Barbara, has recently created a mead club, and is looking to expand.
Corrigan graduated from Santa Barbara High School in 2011 and by the age of 21 was studying at the Culinary Institute of America in Napa, where he worked for restaurants, caterers, and wineries. After a six-month stint in Jackson Hole, Wyoming, he'd just started a full-time job when he returned to Santa Barbara for Thanksgiving with his folks. He was heading back from Whole Foods in a little car when a large truck tried to make that tricky left on Alamar and collided with Corrigan.
While Corrigan was regaining strength, a buddy and trainer suggested they brew some mead, which is honey fermented with yeast in water in its most basic form. Early people undoubtedly discovered rain-soaked hives filled with a sweet, slightly sour liquid that made them feel strange in East Africa, where the drink's human history begins. He discovered the Goleta warehouse while also working as a firefighter for the Los Padres National Forest, and used money from his car-crash compensation to make his ambition and vision a reality. Corrigan chose the name High Seas to honor his passion for the ocean, which was strained owing to his injuries.
The honey flavor, which gives many other meads a generic sameness, is noticeably absent here. Corrigan buys Brazilian wildflower honey from a family-owned company called Bee Seasonal Honey since regionally sourced honey is too expensive. He buys fruit from Whole Foods and Sprouts, but he also takes the Driscoll's culled berries that would otherwise go to waste. He'll use a gluten-free cider yeast instead of the champagne or white wine yeasts traditionally used in mead since it's faster and crisper.
Juicefly discovered the potential of High Seas Mead and has been delivering it to its customers for some time. We deliver all kinds of alcoholic and nonalcoholic drinks to your address in Los Angeles in an hour! You can even schedule your delivery and pay when your order arrives.
Here are some of our favorite High Seas Meads that you need to try.
HIGH SEAS CHEAP THRILLS
This tangy, delicious mead is bursting at the seams with juicy, organic raspberry and coconut.
HIGH SEAS LOST HORIZON
With Lemon, Crystalized Ginger, and Vanilla, "High Seas Lost Horizon" will have you lost and in the wonder of the surrounding splendor with no end in sight.
HIGH SEAS MYSTIC VIBRATION
With this one, you may enjoy the flavor of summer all year long! This classic flavor is bursting at the seams with tangy, organic, and freshly pressed fruits. Meyer Lemon, Watermelon, and Polyflora Honey were used to organically sweeten the fermented dry product.
HIGH SEAS MEADACOLADA
Organic, fresh-pressed fruits infuse this effervescent beverage with flavor. Pineapple, Coconut, and Polyflora Honey are the main characteristics of the flavor.
