Honeybee_ Lessons from an Accidental Beekeeper - C. Marina Marchese [67]
Grade-A honeys are clear, have good flavor and aromas, and are free from crystallization, air bubbles, pollen, propolis, and wax particles. Grade-B honeys are considered to be reasonably clear, to have reasonably good flavor and aromas, and may have few air bubbles, pollen, propolis, and wax particles. Grade-C honeys are fairly clear, have fairly good flavor and aromas, and are fairly clear of air bubbles, pollen, propolis, and wax particles. Substandard is extracted honey that fails to meet the requirements of USDA Grade C.
THE VISUAL PROPERTIES OF HONEY
The first thing you will notice when looking at honey through a clear glass jar is its clarity or visual properties. Some of the honeys I have collected appear cloudy or opaque, while others are crystal clear. Cloudiness can be the result of air bubbles, pollen grains, or other fine particles or materials floating in the bottle and does not necessarily mean the honey is not tasty or acceptable. During the process of extracting honey from the frames, air can get into the honey, producing a foamy layer on the top. Foam or froth in honey is unavoidable. It usually rises to the top of the honey jar and will eventually disappear after the honey settles. For cosmetic purposes, excess foam should be removed with a spoon or a strainer. When describing a honey’s relative visual properties a few terms are used: clear, reasonably clear, and fairly clear.
THE COLOR OF HONEY
The color of honey is determined by its floral source and mineral content. Honey color varies naturally and comes in a wide range of tonalities, from water white or clear to light yellow, gold to amber, purple to dark amber, and in extreme cases, black. I have seen red honeys and even ones with a greenish tint. The best way to judge a honey’s color is by filling a small white cup about 1/8 of an inch (3 mm) with a sample. This way you can see the color of the honey sample against the white background of the cup. Use a designated color fan called a Pfund color grader to compare the color of your honey with the colors on the fan. Simply match the honey sample with the closest value. There is also another system that uses colored glass tiles with designated honey colors. The seven designated colors of honey are water white, extra white, extra light amber, light amber, amber, dark amber, and dark. Although there are variations on these accepted colors, all honeys can be categorized in one of these seven colors. All honey tends to deepen in color as it ages, but this change does not affect its flavor.
AROMA OR NOSE OF HONEY
The fragrance or bouquet of a honey refers to its aroma or nose. Of our five senses, our sense of smell is approximately a thousand times more sensitive than our sense of taste, and humans can detect 10,000 different odors but only five flavors. About 80 percent of our taste buds are located in our noses, so most of our knowledge of what a honey tastes like actually comes from our noses before we even experience the honey on our tongues. What we may call flavor is roughly 75 percent smell (olfaction) and 25 percent taste (gustation). Each honey has a variety of aromas depending upon its temperature and its predominant floral source. Some common words used to describe these aromas are flowery, fruity, spicy, putrid, resinous, and burned. The overall odor intensity can be rated on a scale of one to nine; one is low intensity, and nine is high intensity. Water is the best palate cleanser between tasting different honeys.
Many factors will affect the way you perceive a honey—or any food for that matter—and therefore the degree to which you will appreciate that honey. These factors include temperature of the room, time of day, degree of lighting, utensils, expectations, personal health, and even air currents. Many flavors cannot be correctly accessed when the honeys are too cold or hot.
TEXTURE, VISCOSITY, AND BODY OF HONEY