This dry pyment is a tribute to Elimelech Löw, whose nickname was Melo. A blend of Grüner Veltliner grapes and local wildflower honey. Enjoy with an assortment of cheeses or sip with company.

As part of the tribute series, each of the Loew descendants has the opportunity to help Rachel produce a mead in honor of one of the Löw family members. This series provides us the chance to share stories of the family members whose lives were affected by the horrors of the Holocaust, bringing their story forward in a unique and meaningful way.

This mead was produced with help of Rachel’s brother, Alex, who chose to name this mead in tribute to Melo. When asked why he chose to name this mead Melo, he wrote:

I wanted to make a mead in honor of my grandfather’s older brother, Elimelech. Eli, who was also named “Melo,” was charming and clever. My grandfather and Melo didn’t always see eye to eye, but they always had a soft spot for one another. Naming a mead after Melo is a way of not only recognizing a person who was so full of life, but someone who meant so much to my grandfather. We hope that the suaveness you’ll find in this wine truly embodies my grandfather’s brother, “Melo.”

More about Elimelech Löw

According to William, Elimelech was first sent to Janowska Concentration Camp for trying to help a woman escape deportation.

Part of William’s testimony of survival that was recorded by USHMM: “One day I heard that Eli is in concentration camp in Janowska, and he tried to escape. And he did escape, and he went into the larger ghetto in downtown Lwow. But, how long he stayed there I don’t know because there was one day that I was told that there was an Aktie (action) in the larger ghetto because the smaller ghetto was gone, was completely eliminated. There was a rumor that my brother is in ghetto, in the larger ghetto and that he is hiding and he left word to let me know that he’s there and that could I help him. So, I went with another group to the ghetto during the Aktie (action) because I was sure that I could pass, they wouldn’t hurt me because I had that arm band. I was going to rescue my brother and bring him back with me because I had an extra arm band for him. When I got there, he was gone. They took him away; and I lost him completely from then on.”