“What the heck is that place?!” Some people may have asked while driving by Space Time Mead & Cider Works. I myself was not sure what I was walking towards when I saw a Spacetime stand at a Christmas event about two years ago. I just knew the astronaut intrigued me.
I had the opportunity to sit down with Dan Schreffler, the owner of Space Time Mead & Cider Works, to learn not only what mead is, but also the story of how this unique shop came to be.
Dan graduated from Penn State in 1986 and then worked for MetLife Insurance Company as a Director of IT for many years.
About 13 years ago, Dan was diagnosed and successfully treated for colon cancer. MetLife was very supportive during this time, allowing him to come back to work slowly. However, Dan knew retirement was coming. “Do I really want to retire from corporate America? Is that how I want to spend the rest of my life?”
Dan came to the conclusion that he was not ready to leave corporate America and was now faced with a new question,“Well, what do I want to be when I grow up?”
In 2017, Dan left MetLife and took a year off to figure out what he wanted to do.
“Originally, I thought I was going to open up a brewery. I was making my own beer at home; I was making wine and mead,”said Dan.
During his year off, he took the time to visit many different wineries and breweries. Then he said, “You know what? We have enough fine winemakers and breweries are coming up.” Mead was still one of Dan’s personal favorites, and he knew it would be unique, so he took the chance to see if he could make it work.
A place at 419 S Blakley Street was available for rent before Dan even knew what it was going to be; he just knew he needed to grab the location.
“It was the right time in my life; this was the right place, so we rolled the dice and said, we’re going to open up a meadery in Dunmore!” he decided.
And open up a meadery they did, choosing the name “Space Time.” Our very own Dunmorean astronaut Paul Richards served as inspiration for the name. Dan also explained, “When people come in to buy a bottle of wine, it’s always about a time and place. We wanted to make sure we had a product for any of those moments and any of those places.”
Being that Dan is now retired, and given his business background which allows him to run the financial aspects of the business smoothly, he’s able to focus on the important things: the quality of the mead. But what is mead? To my surprise, it’s fairly simple—all you need is water and honey!
Space Time Mead & Cider Works uses locally grown ingredients for their mead exclusively. They even have a Harvest Mead that is made using fruits that grow in Dan’s backyard. One of their main ingredients is, of course, honey. Their honey comes directly from the hives of NEPA, collaborating with companies such as Murphy’s Bee Farm and The Beekeeper’s Daughter.
Not only are the ingredients local, but their art is too. Space Time gives local artists a platform by using their art on bottle labels. All of them are amazing!
Another big part of their mission is to improve the quality of life in the area.
“Whatever we do, we want to make sure it’s as sustainable as possible because we are getting our products locally. So we’re worried about clean air, clean soil, clean water; otherwise, we poison the very things we use to make our wine,”said Dan.
One percent of all Spacetime sales go to the Lackawanna River Corridor Association. The LRCA is a nonprofit organization whose mission is to restore and conserve the Lackawanna River and its watershed.
Dan, along with Space Time, are at a place where they’re able to do everything they would like to do at their current location. Now, they would like to shift their focus to showcasing Pennsylvania’s local ingredients coupled with their winemaking skills.
Recently, Space Time Mead & Cider received a Platinum Award for their “Leap Year” cider in Cider Craft Magazine! This was a big moment for Dan, similar to when couples come into his shop to buy wine for their weddings.
Dan’s advice to anyone looking to open a business is to “Go in with eyes wide open and make sure you have the right financial knowledge.” He reminds us not to ruin a good hobb— if you love to bake, perhaps work for a bakery before opening your own, just to test the waters.
So next time you are driving down Blakeley Street and see the astronaut logo, “Stop on in, sample what we got, and check us out. What we’re doing here is fairly unique, not just for Dunmore, but for Pennsylvania. Mead-making and the quality of stuff we’re doing with all local ingredients, it’s a special story and it’s right in our backyard, so you should come say hello to us!” says Dan.
Space Time Mead & Cider Works is open Thursday from 11-7, Friday from 11-6, and Saturday from 11-5. You can find them on Facebook, Instagram or at spacetimemeadworks.com.
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