Zeke Freeman's The Buzz

The Color
of Honey

What's behind the color of your favorite honey? The nectar source, or the blossoms visited by the honey bees. There are more than 300 unique types of honey available in the United States, each originating from a different floral source. Honey color ranges from nearly colorless to dark brown, and its flavor varies from delectably mild to distinctively bold, depending on where the honey bees visited.

Quite often, light-colored honey is milder in taste and dark-colored honey is stronger.
Honey is indeed produced in every state, but depending on the floral source location, certain types of honey are produced only in a few regions. Honey is also produced in most countries of the world.

Here's a look at the inside story behind the color of honey.

Alfalfa

Alfalfa honey, produced extensively throughout Canada and the United States from the purple blossoms, is light in color with a pleasingly mild flavor and aroma.

Avacado

Avocado honey is gathered from California avocado blossoms. Avocado honey is dark in color, with a rich, buttery taste.

Blueberry

Taken from the tiny white flowers of the blueberry bush, the nectar makes a honey which is typically light amber in color and with a full, well-rounded flavor. Blueberry honey is produced in New England and in Michigan.

Buckwheat

Buckwheat honey is dark and full-bodied. It is produced in Minnesota, New York, Ohio, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin as well as in eastern Canada. Buckwheat honey has been found to contain more antioxidant compounds than some lighter honeys.

Clover

Clover honey has a pleasing, mild taste. Clovers contribute more to honey production in the United States than any other group of plants. Red clover, Alsike clover and the white and yellow sweet clovers are most important for honey production. Depending on the location and type of source clover, clover honey varies in color from water white to light amber to amber.

Eucalyptus

Eucalyptus honey comes from one of the larger plant genera, containing over 500 distinct species and many hybrids. As may be expected with a diverse group of plants, eucalyptus honey varies greatly in color and flavor but tends to be a stronger flavored honey with a slight medicinal scent. It is produced in California.

Fireweed

Fireweed honey is light in color and comes from a perennial herb that creates wonderful bee pasture in the Northern and Pacific states and Canada. Fireweed grows in the open woods, reaching a height of three to five feet and spikes attractive pinkish flowers.

Orange Blossom

Orange blossom honey, often a combination of citrus sources, is usually light in color and mild in flavor with a fresh scent and light citrus taste. Orange blossom honey is produced in Florida, Southern California and parts of Texas.

Sage

Sage honey, primarily produced in California, is light in color, heavy bodied and has a mild but delightful flavor. It is extremely slow to granulate, making it a favorite among honey packers for blending with other honeys to slow down granulation.

Tupelo

Tupelo honey is a premium honey produced in northwest Florida. It is heavy bodied and is usually light golden amber with a greenish cast and has a mild, distinctive taste. Because of the high fructose content in Tupelo honey, it granulates very slowly.

Wildflower

Wildflower honey is often used to describe honey from miscellaneous and undefined flower sources.

Whatever your favorite honey, one thing is clear: nature's gift reaches far beyond it's color and lands squarley in it's delicious taste.—The Buzz

Single Varietal Raw Honey > Rare Varietal Raw Honey > Raw Honey Recipes

So
Rare

Raw honey has many beneficial properties—taste being the one we care about most. But science suggest a few more, namely it's vast array of vitamins and minerals and health beneficial antioxidants.

An antioxidant is a molecule capable of inhibiting the oxidation of other molecules. Oxidation is a chemical reaction that transfers electrons or hydrogen from a substance to an oxidizing agent. Oxidation reactions can produce free radicals. In turn, these radicals can start chain reactions—often harmful over time to the human body because when the chain reaction occurs in a cell, it can cause damage or death to the cell. Antioxidants terminate these chain reactions by removing free radical intermediates, and inhibit other oxidation reactions. They do this by being oxidized themselves, so antioxidants, like those found in raw honey, are often reducing agents such as thiols, ascorbic acid, or polyphenols.

Known antioxidant compounds found in raw honey varry from chrysin, pinobanksin, and vitamin C to catalase and pinocembrin. Unlike most other sweeteners, honey also contains small amounts of a wide array of vitamins, minerals, amino acids, and antioxidants, which include a wide array of vitamins, such as vitamin B6, thiamin, niacin, riboflavin, and pantothenic acid.

What's more, raw honey is composed of two main sugars: levulose and dextrose. Unlike processed table sugar these sugars do not need to be broken down by the digestive process, thus honey is quickly absorbed into the bloodstream, giving a quick energy boost to the body. It also contains protein vital for muscle sustanance, and vitamins and minerals, yet no cholesterol.

We still care far more about the taste of raw honey and the myriad of ways you can use it in your everyday cooking. But more and more it seems the evidence is stacked in our healthy favor.

Imagine that—something pleasurable that's also potentially good for you. So rare.—The Buzz

Single Varietal Raw Honey > Rare Varietal Raw Honey > Raw Honey Recipes