T

hey say that two heads are better than 

one; but so, too, are two passions. 

And, in the case of Casks & Flights, 

it was the combining of two heads 

and two passions that took a modest vision to a 

fully-fl edged brand with legs to stand on—and 

a product that would have customers thirsty for 

more.

The story started simply enough—much the way 

that that of many other cottage industries do, in 

fact. There was the garage-born endeavor brought 

to life through trial and error, research and testing, 

tweaking and re-tweaking. And while former loan 

offi cer John Wilson tinkered his way through 

recipe after recipe to land on one that fi nally 

brought his love of wine and the desire to create 

his very own label to fruition, it was his fortuitous 

partnership with fellow wine enthusiast and friend 

John McCorvey that ultimately took the simple 

beginnings of a wine company out of the garage 

and into a viable location. 

Naturally, all of the expected challenges were 

there for Wilson in the beginning—fi nancing, 

equipment, facility space. But so was the challenge 

of sourcing the ingredients for the wine itself, as 

Florida’s steamy climate often makes the task of 

growing grapes an arduous one. It was this initial 

challenge, however, that brought him to the 

realization that he could do something different, 

something that would make him stand out—and 

that was the very thing that is literally now causing 

all the buzz. 

Rather than using grapes for his wine, Wilson 

began using honey and creating mead, an ancient 

fermented drink that dates back to years B.C. Now 

sourcing local honey to craft their mead, Wilson 

and McCorvey have combined forces to launch 

Swan Neck Winery, their independent label of 

mead and wines that are all handcrafted with care 

in their new facility at Casks & Flights. 

While the fermentation process happens in their 

cask rooms, their guests sip and savor the taste of 

their dreams brought to life, happily taking seats 

story by

 

Liesel Schmidt

photos by

 

Kristina Wright

O

F

 G

RAPES

   

AND

 H

ONEY

36-37 Swizzle - Casks and Flights.indd   1

8/29/18   8:07 AM