A church located in a pyramid in Salt Lake City’s Poplar Grove neighborhood is also licensed to make wine, according to records at the Department of Alcoholic Beverage Services (DABS).
Specifically, the Church of Summum — which was established in 1975 and has been in its location at 707 Genesee Ave. for almost 50 years — has a manufacturing license and a special use permit with DABS, said spokesperson Michelle Schmitt.
“This allows them to make wine at their premise and drink it as part of their religious organization,” Schmitt said via email. “They do not sell wine and are only permitted to use it as part of their religious practice, similar to other religions that use wine as part of their practice.”
Schmitt added that Summum received the first wine manufacturer license issued in the state, in 1981, according to the DABS’ records.
In an emailed statement, a representative from Summum said the faith “creates its own sacrament.”
On Summum’s website, it says that the faith creates wines that it refers to as “Summum Nectar Publications” because “they contain spiritual concepts and information.”
According to the faith’s website, the “nectars” are “natural condensers of charged elemental energies” that are based on a pre-Egyptian formula. In the bronze Summum pyramid, the nectars are left in a “creative state” for 77 days, then aged anywhere from one to 15 years, the website states.
Because of a nearby bakery’s proximity to the pyramid, the business has been denied a liquor license by the DABS.
