Sweeter than sugar and far more interesting: Honey

Growing up my father raised bees.  He imported a small, dark honey bee from Italy and we were raised to view our 7-8 hives as part of the family.  The little Italian bees were good natured and would seldom sting. Each time it came time to take their honey in the fall, my father would remove the frame so honey without protective equipment and without smoking the bees. For those not familiar with the concept of smoking, when a hive thinks it is on fire (ie, when you burn near the hive), they eat as much honey as they can. This might seem like a great way for them to save their honey but not only do they get too heavy to fly but they also waste a tremendous amount of honey in the process.  By having such good natured little bees, my father prevented the stress of the smoke and saved the honey they would have uselessly consumed.  We had a large bank of blackberries which our bees adored.  Consequently, our honey had a very berry-like flavor.  I have found most commercial honey’s lacking in flavor.  Mimi Sheraton in her 1,000 Foods to Eat Before you Die, choose not only one but THREE honeys for the list.  I good naturedly bought all three.  How did they stack up to not only delicious honey but a childhood memory?  Pretty well.

I’m going to start with my most favorite of all.  This, I thought, was one on the list called Narbonne Honey from France.  somehow, rather than purchasing the Rosemary honey from Narboone, I purchased a lavender honey from Normandy from Maison Pelitier which is a family run beekeeping business which has been producing this amazing honey since 1946.  It is a tough  one to find but Yummybazaar.com has an amazing price. This honey is THICK and it amazing on cheese, on toast, on cheese. Yes, amazing on cheese….

Heather Honey from Scotland was thinner than the French honey but was really tasty on stronger cheeses.  I also really enjoyed this one mixed into yogurt or on granola. It has a bit of a dusty.  You can close your eyes and see the heather growing and the bees doing their best to impart that flavor into the honey.  I found this one, easily, on Amazon.  I am writing about this one second but it really is a strong tie with the last of the honey’s that comes from Tasmania.

“Bees do have a small, you know, and if they don’t they should for their feet are dusted with the spices from a million flowers.”  – Rad Bradbury, Dandelion Wine

The final type of honey recommended to try, as Tasmanian Leatherwood honey.  This honey was STRONG.  Talk about flavor-forward. You know you are eating honey in this case and the honey was far thinner.  Interestingly enough, this one was easy to find at World Market.  I loved the strong taste paired with strong other flavors such as blue cheese AND it was amazing for baking.  So often honey only adds sweetness w/o flavor but not this honey. It is able to stand up to other ingredients and still keep the honey taste.  I think all three of these honeys are worth trying and I AM still trying to track down my Narbonne honey.  More on that if I am successful.  Do they beat out my blackberry honey? Maybe the lavender from Normandy can compete but I think my father’s honey holds it’s own.  Maybe it is getting it from the bees, or the fun of extracting the honey, or chewing on the warm honey comb.  Maybe it is just the memory of my father who has been gone for so many years.  I think, however, it is the taste of the blackberries…..