Clear Honey
A full flavoured honey varying in colour, flavour and clarity depending on the time of the year, from which flowers and shrubs the bees collect the nectar and pollen, some honeys may have a less than clear appearance this is usually due to the amount of pollen that may be in the honey.
Most honeys will eventually set this is a natural process some faster than others, if a honey starts to go cloudy this is the first signs of setting, by placing the honey jar in warm water will return the honey to being runny, a word of warning do not place in the microwave to warm the honey or over heat as this will destroy the flavour to some extent.
Creamed or Set Honey
A honey which is referred to as either creamed or set honey. Both look the same in the jar nectar being taken from a wide variety of flowers and shrubs, in the case of the set honey this is honey that is naturally set probably from the Oil Seed Rape flower which has large crystals and sets very easily and may be of a course gritty texture a bit like eating sugar granules.
Creamed honey is a proportion of liquid honey mixed with a smaller proportion of quick set honey which is then creamed to break up the larger crystals in the honey giving the honey a much smoother texture.
All of our honeys are creamed and may set hard as set honey but is easily creamed with a knife or even warming the honey as required when it will reveal it’s full flovour and smooth texture.
Borage Honey
Nectar which is collected from Borage or star flower as it is sometimes known, farmers welcome beekeepers to their fields of borage as it is a plant that grows in three stages and requires as many bees or pollinators to visit the plant many times over to give good pollination.
The nectar produces a very sweet and pale honey with a delicate flavour. Borage honey can be used to sweeten tea or coffee. It adds flavour and sweetness without overpowering other tastes.
Borage honey is ideal for your morning porridge and can be used as sugar in many cases and is probably better for you.
Heather Honey
For this honey I take my bees to the Derbyshire Moors for the wild heather.s is a rich honey with a strong flavour
and distinct aroma,
it is a honey with a huge following, once tasted it will always be remembered for its rich aromatic flavour.
The initial taste maybe slightly of toffee followed by an after taste at the back of the mouth giving a cooling sensation.
This an exceptional honey to be dribbled over ice cream for a wonderful desert or spread onto thick buttered toast or crusty roll.
Lavender Honey
For this honey I take my bees to the Lavender Farm in the Cotswolds.
This a very nice smooth honey.
Not being able to taste the Lavender (although some of my customers say you can) nor can you smell the Lavender in the honey as it comes from the nectar which bears no smell.
Some people tell me they have had Lavender Honey with a smell, that is quite possible as some Beekeepers infuse the Lavender into the honey thus giving it a light smell.
A honey that can be enjoyed in many ways particularly on a new crusty roll.