Bob Liptrot

Beekeeper + Mead Maker


Robert Liptrot became interested in bees at the age of 6. He helped a neighbor in East Vancouver keep bees and was rewarded with pieces of fresh honeycomb. Bees became his lifelong passion and along with big wall climbs, incredible mountaineering feats, and several years with Outward Bound, he always found a way to keep bees. He earned a Masters Degree in Entomology and has been experimenting with making mead for over 35 years. There really is no Mead Making School and although some of the principles of winemaking do apply, mead is a different animal!

He and partner Dana LeComte started the first meadery in Western Canada in 2003 and have never looked back. While keeping over 100 beehives in the local Sooke area they produce hand crafted meads with local honeys and fruits from their area. Their meads have won several awards and have even been named one of the best BC Wines of 2012 by CBC.

A passionate beekeeper, Bob teaches beekeeping at Royal Roads University every year, actively promotes bees through social media, and is an active member of apicultural research projects. He is the past president of the Langley, South Fraser Division of the Fraser Valley Bee Keepers Association, is a member of the B.C. Honey Producers & Capital Regional Beekeepers Association.

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