Honey For Dummies

C. Marina Marchese is an author, beekeeper, and honey sensory expert. She is also the founder of the American Honey Tasting Society and the Red Bee ® brand.Howland Blackiston is the bestselling author of Beekeeping For Dummies and Building Beehives For Dummies, and founding board member and past president of Con­necticut’s Back Yard Beekeepers Association.

• Introduction 1About This Book 1Foolish Assumptions 3Icons Used in This Book 3Beyond the Book 4Where to Go from Here 4Part 1: Honey, Give Me the Lowdown 7Chapter 1: Dipping into Honey’s History and Its Importance Today 9Introducing Discoscapa apicula — the World’s Oldest Bee? 10Raising Bees in Ancient Egypt 11Embalming with Honey and More 12Discovering the World’s Oldest Beehives 13In Praise of Honey 14Islam 15Hinduism 15Judaism 15Buddhism 15Christianity 15Sikhism 15Finding Honey in Literature and Folklore 16Honey Bees Come to America 17Honey Today: Celebrity Status 18Chapter 2: Looking at How Honey is Made and Harvested 19Gathering Their Groceries 19Understanding the Composition of Honey 23Harvesting Honey: From Bee to Bottle 24It’s all about timing 25Driving the bees out of the honey supers 27Removing the honey from the comb 27Chapter 3: Appreciating the Different Styles of Honey 29Walkin’ Talkin’ Honeycomb 30Savoring Liquid Gold — Extracted Honey 31Getting Chunky with Chunk Honey 31Whipping Your Honey 32What’s the Story on Honey Straws? 34Part 2: Nutrition, Health, and Honey 37Chapter 4: All About Apitherapy 39Bee Venom 40Bee Pollen 42Royal Jelly 43Propolis 44Beeswax 44Enjoying the Many Benefits of Honey 45Cuts, burns, and scratches 46Fixing sore throats and coughs 46Getting the honey glow 47Chapter 5: Making Honey Remedies at Home 49Mixing Up Some Honey-Based Hair and Skincare Products 50Honey-Based Elixirs 61Part 3: Honey Varietals 69Chapter 6: Discovering the World’s Top Honey Producers 711 China (500,000 tons) 722 Iran (112,000 tons) 723 Turkey (110,000 tons) 734 India (85,000 tons) 735 United States (81,000 tons) 741 North Dakota (19,000 tons) 742 South Dakota (19,000 tons) 753 Montana (7,000 tons) 754 California (6,850 tons) 755 Florida (5,950 tons) 766 Minnesota (3,905 tons) 767 Texas (3,700 tons) 768 Michigan (2,650 tons) 779 Idaho (1,650 tons) 7710 Wisconsin (1,500 tons) 776 Russian Federation (70,000 tons) 787 Ukraine (66,500 tons) 788 Mexico (57,000 tons) 799 Brazil (42,400 tons) 7910 New Zealand (23,000 tons) 80Chapter 7: Getting to Know 50 Varietals of Honey 81Learning about Varietal Honeys 821 Acacia 822 Ailanthus 833 Alfalfa 834 Avocado 845 Basswood 856 Bell Heather 857 Blackberry 868 Black mangrove 869 Blueberry Blossom 8710 Borage 8711 Buckwheat 8812 Chestnut 8913 Coriander 8914 Cranberry Blossom 9015 Dandelion 9016 Eucalyptus 9117 Fireweed 9118 Gallberry 9219 Goldenrod 9220 Honeydew 9321 Honeysuckle 9422 Huajillo (pronounced wa-HE-yo) 9423 Japanese Knotweed 9524 Kamahi (pronounced car-MY) 9525 Kiawe (pronounced kee-AH-vay) 9626 Kudzu 9627 Lavender 9728 Leatherwood 9829 Ling Heather 9830 Litchee 9931 Macadamia 9932 Manuka 10033 Meadowfoam 10134 Mesquite 10135 Ohi’a Lehua 10236 Orange Blossom 10237 Rapeseed 10338 Raspberry 10339 Rhododendron 10440 Rosemary 10541 Sage 10542 Saw Palmetto 10643 Star thistle/Knapweed 10644 Strawberry tree 10745 Sunflower 10746 Thyme 10847 Tulip poplar 10848 Tupelo 10949 Ulmo 11050 Yellow Sweet Clover 110A Word about Wildflower Honey 111Chapter 8: All That Glistens is Not Liquid Gold 113Laundering Honey 114Transshipping Honey 115Removing Pollen to Conceal the Honey’s Origin 117Blending Honeys 118Cutting Honey 119Intervention of Humans 120Part 4: Becoming a Honey Tasting Expert 121Chapter 9: Thinking Like a Honey Sommelier 123Differentiating Taste and Flavor 124Taste sensations 124Flavor sensations 124Other taste sensations 125Are You a Supertaster? 126The Nose Remembers 128Describing What You Taste 128Tuning Up Your Taste Buds and Sharpening Your Sniffer 129Training your sense of taste 129Refining your sense of flavor 131Chapter 10: Knowing How to Taste Honey 133Looking, Smelling, and Tasting: Sensory Analysis 134Creating the Right Environment for Tasting 135Making certain you are fresh and rested 135Staying healthy 136Fasting before tasting 136Avoiding extraneous smells 136Setting Up For Honey Tasting 137Picking honeys to sample 138Gathering your tasting tools 138Getting organized using a tasting mat 139Picking a palette cleanser 140Writing Tasting Notes 140Starting with a basic look-see 140Determining liquid or solid 141Discovering undesirable stuff 142Evaluating clarity 142Defining the Color of Honey 142Smelling Your Honey 143Profiling Honey Characteristics 145Using the Aroma and Flavor Chart 146Trigeminals 147Determining the Honey’s “Finish” 148Talking About Texture 148Chapter 11: Taking the Terror Out Of Terroir 151Capturing the Flavors of Local Foods 152Ensuring quality standards 152Certifying and protecting honeys 154Influencing Nectar 155Getting the Dirt on Honey (Geology) 156Honey and Geography 157Knowing What Weather Has to Do with It 157Rain, rain don’t go away 157Here comes the sun! 158Chapter 12: Looking at What Can Go Wrong With Honey 159Recognizing Defects 160Burnt honey 160The brood factor 160Medico mayhem 160Smoky stuff 161Just one word — plastics! 161Metal madness 161Crossing Crystallization Defects 162Incomplete crystallization 162Crystal striping 162Separation of honey 162Knowing Why a Honey Tastes Like Beer 163Part 5: Hey, Honey, Let’s Party 165Chapter 13: Shopping for Your Honey 167Knowing Where to Shop 167Go straight to the source 168Farm stands and farmers markets 168Gourmet markets 169Cheese shops 170Deciphering Labels 170Nutrition labels 171True Source 173Gluten-free 174Vegan 174Raw, natural, organic, all natural —Descriptors that mean nothing 174GMO 175Fair Trade Honey 176Chapter 14: Brewing Honey Wine (Mead) 177Discovering Mead’s Long History 178Introducing Seven Types of Mead 179Traditional mead 179Sack mead 179Hydromel 180Bochet mead 180Metheglin 180Sack metheglin 180Mead made with fruit juices 180Getting the Necessary Mead-Making Equipment 181Understanding Useful Mead-Making Terms 184Chapter 15: Cooking with Honey 201Chapter 16: Baking with Honey 223Swapping Out Sugar for Honey 223Checking Out Some Recipes 225Chapter 17: Using Honey for Thirst-Quenching and Celebratory Beverages 243Making Honey-Inspired Beverages 243Mixing Honey-Based Cocktails 247Gin 247Tequila 248Vodka 250Scotch whisky 250Whiskey (bourbon or rye) 253Rum 255Chapter 18: Pairing Honey with Cheese and Other Foods 257Pairing Honey with Cheese 258Understanding the dynamics of honey and cheese 259It’s a matter of taste 259Conjuring Creative Pairings 261Choosing complementary duos 261Considering that opposites attract 261Taking texture into account 261Staying local 262Just go for it! 262Considering Classic Pairings of Honey and Food 262Chapter 19: Honey, Let’s Have a Party 265Planning the Party 265Deciding on the theme 266Setting the mood 266Assembling the Right Stuff 268Developing Your Menu 268Creating Honey Grazing Boards 270Piloting Tasting Flights 270Including Fun Honey Games 272Trio tasting game 272Honey spelling game 273Show Friends How It Went 273Part 6: The Part of Tens 275Chapter 20: Ten Great Honey Festivals 277Oregon Honey Festival, Ashland, Oregon 278Philadelphia Honey Festival 278NYC Honey Week, Rockaway Beach 278Honey Bee Fest, New York 278Sweet Bee’s Honey Festival, New York 279Vermont’s Golden Honey Festival 279Arizona Honeybee Festival, Phoenix 279Michigan Honey Festival 279Tennessee Honey Festival 280Uvalde Honey Festival, Texas 280Chapter 21: More Than Ten Frequently Asked Questions about Honey 281What’s the best way to store honey once the jar has been opened? 282Does honey ever spoil or go bad? 282Why does my honey look like it has two different layers? 282My honey has crystallized; can I get the honey liquid again? 283What’s organic honey? 283What’s the difference between Grade A and Grade B honey? 283What accounts for the different colors and flavors of honey? 284Why do honey bees make honey? 284Is it true that eating local honey will relieve pollen-related allergies? 285What does “raw” honey mean? 285How can I test my honey for authenticity? 285Why does honey from the same local beekeeper taste different sometimes? 286Why shouldn’t you feed honey to a baby? 286How many flowers must honey bees visit to make one pound of honey? 286How much honey does a worker honey bee make in her lifetime? 286What famous Scottish liqueur is made with honey? 287What’s the U.S per capita consumption of honey? 287How many honey-producing colonies of bees are there in the United States? 287Do all bees make honey? 287Chapter 22: Ten Honeys for your Bucket List 289The Most Expensive Honey in the World: Elvish 289Most Sacred Honey: Sidr 290Most-Difficult-to-Get Honey: Pitcairn Island 290Most International Awards: Sourwood 291Most Bitter Honey: Strawberry Tree Honey 291Psychedelic Mad Honey: Deli Bal 292Most Unique Texture: Ling Heather Honey 292Volcanic Honey: Wenchi 293Silkiest Honey: Ulmo Honey 293Most Buttery Honey: Kamahi 294Part 7: Appendixes 295Appendix A: Glossary 297Appendix B: Helpful Honey Resources 305Index 317