Liquid Gold at Red Bee

Over the weekend I attended a honey tasting at Red Bee Apiary in Weston, CT. The beekeeper, author and honey sommelier, Marina Marchese first gave us a background on the honey bees and how she found herself trading city life for farm life after her first experience being around a hive.

Honey bees aren't native to the United States, and Marina's bees are Italian. The worker bees are all female, and don't stray much more than four miles from their hive. Because of that fact, farmers can plant four miles of a specific flower which will result in the bees creating a honey with a distinctive flavor profile.

Four our honey tasting, we tried Orange Blossom honey, which is floral, fruity and rich in vitamin C with goat cheese, rosemary, and mandarin. I really enjoyed this pairing, all the flavors worked well together, sweet, tangy, savory. Of course I love goat cheese, so I might be biased.

Then we sampled Blueberry Blossom honey, which is fruity and a good source of antioxidants with brie and blueberries. Even though I'm not the biggest blueberry fan, this was delicious too.

The darkest and most unusual honey sampling was the Buckwheat honey - robust and a good source of iron, the smell was unlike a typical honey and it reminded me a lot of molasses. We sampled it with a piece of dark chocolate and almonds.

The most common honey, clover, was presented in a different way, in its crystallized state. The Creamy Clover honey that would take longer to melt on the tongue presented an amazing sensory experience and paired with shredded coconut was like eating the most delectable dessert.

Finally we sampled raw Gold leaf honeycomb, another unique way to enjoy honey with bits of the honeycomb.

Marina also uses the honey and beeswax to create skincare products, which we got to sample in the second part of the event. The balms are so moisturizing and I got a sample of the lip balm and body oil to take home. Because it's been so cold and dry lately, these are just what I need!

Honey is such a unique product, it can offer some health benefits, especially if you have honey from your local bees, as it can help reduce seasonal allergies. Now that I know all the work that goes into creating honey, I understand why it's referred to as liquid gold, and I really enjoyed experiencing all the different varieties of honey. I also happily brought home a jar of honey from Marina's italian bees, and I'm excited that I can enjoy it every day!

                

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