Bee Chama - Carrot Honey

• Packager:          Bee Chama Honey, 233 West Frontage Road, Polvadera, New Mexico 87828 USA www.beechamahoney.com
• Nectar Origin:    Unknown. Presumably somewhere in the western United States.
• Color:                No color given, but it looks White or Extra Light Amber to me.
• US Grade:         Not Listed - It claims to be extra virgin, just like the olive oil.
• Filtration:           Raw.
• Price:                About $13.00/pound.  (I bought a small bottle mislabeled as 12 ounces, it's probably about eight).
• Flavor:              This honey has a woody flavor similar to burning wood, but I wouldn't say it has a smokey flavor.  Incense comes to mind.  If you have ever smelled carrot seed, this tastes kind of like the way those seeds smell.  I liked it.

Topanga Quality Honey - Eucalyptus

• Packager:          Bennett's Honey Farm, 3176 Honey Lane (Highway 126). Fillmore, California 93015  www.bennetthoney.com
• Nectar Origin:    Presumably California.
• Color:                Not listed.  My guess: Light Amber.
• US Grade:         A
• Filtration:           Raw
• Price:                 $7.99/pound retail from Whole Foods; $5.25/pound directly from Bennett's Honey. 
• Flavor:              This is not one of my favorites.  Put the idea of a eucalyptus throat lozenge our of your mind.  I didn't notice that flavor in this honey.  The predominate taste reminded me of weeds in springtime.

Langnese - Linden Honey (Boxwood)

• Packager:         Langnese Honey, 22933 Bargteheide, Germany www.langnese-honig.de
• Nectar Origin:   Unstated, Presumably Germany.
• Color:               Unstated.  Looks lighter than this picture; looks Extra White.
• US Grade:         A
• Filtration:          Presumed Filtered 
• Price:               About $9.00-$10.00/pound.  Again, I bought this before I thought about doing this blog.  I found it at Tip-Top German Deli in Carlsbad, California.
• Flavor:             Strong, fruity flavor with an aftertaste similar to green bananas.

Varietals Video

I came across this interesting video posted by UCTV Seminars on November 3, 2011 on the subject of honey varieties.  It is a lecture given by Eric Mussen of the Department of Entomology at UC Davis.  He is very knowledgeable on this subject.  In his lecture he discusses a number of honey varieties produced in California, including almond honey, cotton honey, sunflower, eucalyptus, and fireweed among others.  There is also an interesting discussion of honey imports from China and honeydew -- which is made when bees collect the sweet secretions of other insects.

Some Honey - Cranberry Honey

• Packager:          Some Honey Co., New Lisbon, Wisconsin 53950
• Nectar Origin:    Unknown
• Color:                Light Amber to Amber
• US Grade:         None Listed
• Filtration:           Raw 
• Price:                 $6.00-$7.00/pound.  I bought my jar at Pirate O's in Draper, Utah before I started this blog; hence the price-range guess.
• Flavor:              A pleasant honey with a fruity -- more precisely -- berry flavor.  Don't think of cranberries, but berries in general.  

Estancia Las Quinas - Lemon Honey

• Packager:         AGLH, S.A., Buenos Aires, Argentina  www.aglh.com.ar
• Nectar Origin:   Province of Tucuman, Argentina,1,200 km north of Buenos Aires.
• Color:               The company designates it as Light Amber, it would probably be Extra White under US standards.
• US Grade:        N/A
• Filtration:          Presumed Filtered 
• Price:                About $12.00/pound,  Purchased at A.J.'s Fine Foods in Phoenix, Arizona.  
• Flavor:              Mild with a hint of lemon.   

Introduction

In his monumental work, On Food and Cooking, Harold McGee writes, "[t]hough most honey is made from a mixture of nectars from different flowers, some 300 different 'monofloral' honeys are produced in the world . . ."  Harold McGee, On Food and Cooking, page 663-64, Scribners, 2004. In 2012 I began a quest to try a few of these monofloral honeys.  After a while I began looking for a book that would guide me in my quest and found nothing that met my demands.  The reason for this was that I looked too soon.  As far as I can tell, only in the summer of 2013 were two popular books published which cover this topic, The Honey Connoisseur by Marina Marchese and Ken Flottum and Taste of Honey by Marie Simmons.  Not having had these books available, I took to the Internet -- that repository of all truth -- and found helpful information from the National Honey Board.  On its website, the Board provides a catalog of honey varietals that gives a good description of each floral source and sometimes a description of the honey's flavor.  So, why isn't that the end of the story and the end of this blog?

One need only try a few of the many clover honeys available to discern that clover honey from one region tastes a bit different from clover honey from another region.  There are regional differences in honey that make a noticeable difference.  The Board's information is too general to take this fact into account.  In addition, the Board doesn't review the honey of a particular supplier, as I intend to do.  As for the books, they limit their discussion to 30 and 40 varietals, respectively, and I intend to go beyond that number.  Another reason for soldiering on in this quixotic quest is that the Board's list is incomplete in some respects, as it readily admits.  I suggest you consult both the Board and this blog when learning about a particular honey.

Accordingly, for the benefit of all mankind, I reluctantly take up the task of eating my way through as many honey varieties as possible and sharing some information what I learn about each variety.  I hope you find something useful in what I write and return regularly as I slowly build this database. You see, I intend not to gain any weight in doing this project, so it will take years to complete. Spoons at the ready?  Get set! Go!

A Note on Color

No, I am not color blind.  I too can see that amber-colored honey is not white.  Then why would I call any honey white?  In the United States the US Government has classified honeys in seven categories: (1) water white, (2) extra white, (3) white, (4) extra light amber, (5) light amber, (6) amber and (7) dark amber. I have used this classification system because it appears on some labels.  I might have used the Pfund honey grading system (which is in millimeters), but I don't want to pay for the equipment to take those measurements and you wouldn't care about those measurements if I had.

Cox's Clover Honey

• Packager:         Cox Honey Farms, Inc., Shelley, Idaho 83274 USA www.coxshoney.com
• Nectar Origin:   Southeastern Idaho
• Color:               White
• US Grade:        A
• Filtration:          Raw 
• Price:                $6.65/pound 
• Flavor:              A solid honey flavor with a noticeable honeycomb flavor.  There is also small hint of cinnamon (see Comments).  Great for everyday use.