Heidrun Meadery

Winery Solar Electric Installation Project Profile

Harnessing the power of the sun with a new 33.4 solar power installation, Heidrun Meadery of West Marin has increased the sustainability of their operations while cutting their operating costs by over $11,000 annually.

The solar photovoltaic system is ground mounted in a field north of the Winery residence.  Comprised of (88) high-efficiency 380 watt solar panels, the solar array will produce over 46,000 kWh of clean, renewable power every year.  This will offset 100% of Heidrun Meadery’s electrical needs, allowing their operations to run completely on solar power.

Along with world-class meadmaking, Heidrun has a beekeeping operation and a bee forage cultivation program, on which their honey wine depends.  Their commitment to sustainability not only benefits the environment around them, but the community as a whole.

“As with our efforts to create a biodiverse bee forage farmscape to provide habitat for pollinators and other critters in the wild, going 100% solar is in keeping with the meadery’s mission to develop a company that has a net beneficial impact on the environment. This solar array is a thrilling accomplishment for us!”  –Gordon Hull, Owner, Heidrun Meadery

The new solar electric system will offset over 32 metric tons of carbon dioxide every year that would otherwise be emitted by fossil-fuel based utility power. This impact is equivalent to saving 76 barrels of oil, removing air pollution produced by over 82,000 miles of driving, or the pollutants removed by planting 40 acres of trees annually.

Customer Profile

In 1995 Gordon Hull, a geologist-turned-brewer, tried his hand at making sparkling wines from honey. What began as a casual experiment led to a singular fascination with the remarkable variability of flower nectar and, subsequently, to the formation of Heidrun Meadery. Heiðrun is producing a mead that is unlike an other: a sparkling mead produced in the French Méthode Champenoise tradition. The winery includes a commercial beekeeping operation, experimentation in the cultivation of bee-friendly, high-yield nectar crops and an extraordinary travel destination for worldly enthusiasts of wine, nature and conviviality.

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