Honeybee_ Lessons from an Accidental Beekeeper - C. Marina Marchese [65]
Mother Nature must cooperate too. The flavor profile and essence of any bottle of honey will depend largely on its terroir, which fundamentally determines the type of plant life in a specific growing area. Plants will bloom and produce nectar according to climate, elevation, weather and rainfall, nutrients in the soil, temperature, and available sunlight. Each flower has its own distinct type of nectar, which is produced at specific times of the season, in specific regions, and more complexly, at specific times of the day. Ultimately, the type of nectar and the flowers dictate the composition of a honey, like the grape dictates the resulting wine. Honey harvests can have “good” years and “bad” depending upon the climatic diversity. Changes in weather dictate which years or vintages were bountiful. Limited harvest honeys or honey from a rare nectar source can command higher prices than commonly available honeys. In the near future, beekeepers will begin identifying these vintages and provenances on their honey labels.
A honey’s flavor profile will vary not only from year to year but also from hive to hive. The exact same field of flowers, if produced by two different hives that stand right next to each other, can bear honey that is completely different in color, flavor, texture, and aroma. Blueberry-blossom honey from Maine might be lighter in color than a blueberry-blossom honey from Michigan. A clover honey harvested from a hive in 2006 could have a slightly different flavor profile from the clover harvested from that same hive in 2007. There are certain locations around the world that hold prestige when it comes to making honey. Georgia is known for its tupelo honey, Hawaii for its kiawe, France for its lavender, and Australia for its manuka. Honeybees foraging in these specific provenances harvest nectar only from these plants. I refer to these honeys as single origin, meaning from a specific region.
In Europe, there are certifications granted to protect agricultural products that are produced in respected geographic regions. These certifications are a guarantee that the products produced in these specific regions follow stringent rules and traditions with regard to manufacturing, purity, and origin. In France there is the Appellation d’origine controlee (AOC) In Italy the Denominazione di Origine Controllata e Garantita (DOCG) and in Spain the Denominación de Origen (DdO). Food and wine are commonly granted these certifications and recently, honey has begun to be certified as well.
Honey from the island of Corsica was the first to be granted this respected AOC status. Presently, there are six certified varietals of Corsican honey: Printemps, Maquis de printemps, Miellats du maquis, Châtaigneraie, Maquis d’été, and Maquis d’automne. Miel de la Alcarria, produced near Guadalajara, Spain, has also been granted the DdO certificate.
Also in France, the label rouge (red label) guarantees that a honey product is of the highest quality available. Lavender honey from Provence, as well as that region’s fennel, thyme, and chestnut honeys, have been granted the label rouge.
TASTING AND JUDGING HONEY AND HONEY PRODUCTS
How do we judge the quality and flavors of a honey? I found answers to this question in the center of London, where I attended the National Honey Show, a three-day event complete with lectures, foods, crafts, books, equipment, and paraphernalia all relating to honey and honeybees. One large room was dedicated to the judging of honey samples from all over the world. The entries were meticulously lined up on endless rows of white-tiered tables. Beekeepers had painstakingly prepared and imported their honey entries from their home countries according to the show’s strict guidelines.
Decorated honey judges, who spoke of honey by its color, texture, and aroma, had their own official tasting vocabulary and even scorecards ready for use. These judges were trained and certified by the strict Welsh method. Not only