It all started when Nitin Vishwas read about London's first meadery in an in-flight magazine. He took a couple of pictures and sent it to his best buddy Rohan Rehani. And the idea of Moonshine Meadery took root.
Mead is the oldest alcohol known to mankind. It is not so well known in India, though it is fast catching on.
"A few kitchen experiments turned into something which was a lot bigger," said Rehani, as he recollected raising Rs 55 lakh from his close relatives for a 1000-litre tank for their meadery.
The duo did the next natural thing that engineers would do.
They launched Moonshine Meadery, manufacturing mead in the suburbs of Pune, Maharashtra. Their mission was to bring back the primitive elixir and connect it with ancient Indian culture.
The word mead comes from the Indo-Latin word 'medu' which comes from the Sanskrit word 'madhu.' This is an ancient beverage found in reference in the history of many civilisations.
Explaining the meads making process, Rehani says, "Making meads is seemingly quite straight forward. You take honey, water, add yeast, some nutrients, and let it ferment. We also add fruits so that adds a layer of complexity."
Moonshine claims not to use anything artificial, and that their honey is pure, their fruits directly derived from farmers.
The Pune-based startup has clocked cumulative sales of approximately Rs 30 crore since incorporation. The product's price point is smack where the slightly premium beer pricing starts. Rehani and Vishwas hope to prompt consumers, who would otherwise pick up a beer, to opt for a pint of mead instead. But lately their brand awareness has skyrocketed.
"Post-COVID, we have grown four times. It's been a great journey. Governments allowing deliveries to happen, allowed us as a brand to expand," Co-founder Nitin Vishwas said as their brand has entered Haryana in the last month. They are currently available across seven states and are also planning to foray into international markets — Dubai and Australia being the first two.
What about competition?
"For the first three years, we were the only meadery in the market. However, in the last two years, we have heard of almost eight meaderies entering India — which is good because it's going to help grow the category."
Moonshine Meadery already has multiple flavours on the cards and is all set to take the ancient brew to new heights.
(Edited by : Shoma Bhattacharjee)
First Published: May 27, 2023 9:47 AM IST
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