Our Natural, Pure, Local, Raw Honey

 Our natural, pure, local, raw honeys are made by honey bees that pollinate farms in South Jersey.

Our local raw honey is lightly filtered and never processed (i.e. heated) so that it may retain its wholesome properties as the bees produced it. All the honey we sell, whether our own or from other locations, is natural honey NOT commercial.

Natural vs. Commercial Honey

 Our "local, natural, pure, raw honey" means that the honey you buy is as it existed in the beehive located as indicated on our label.   

The  temperature that a hive may sustain in the summer months is about 105F.  Our honey never goes above that temperature.

Some filtering is done (with a stainless steel strainer) to remove the larger bits of wax and such which comes off the honeycomb when the honey is extracted. Natural pure raw honey contains minerals, valuable enzymes, pollen and possibly small particles of wax and other debris. 

Natural raw honey may have a cloudy appearance because of the included pollen - and may also tend to crystallize more quickly than commercially produced honey. 

Most commercially available honey is a blend - a mixture of honeys differing in floral source, color, flavor, density or geographic origin.  It is also heat-treated - up to 180F, after extraction from the bee hive.  This reduces the moisture level, destroys yeast cells and enzymes, and liquefies crystals in the honey but providing the manufacturer with the  crystal clear appearance on the shelf for a long time.  Heat-exposure may also results in product deterioration, effects sensory qualities, reduces freshness and can darken the natural honey color. Finally, commercial honey is also micro-filtered to remove pollen, considered one of the values of raw honey. 

Honey Flavor & Color 

Based on the nectar sources (i.e. types of flowering plants) that are found within a few miles of each beehive's location, the flavor and color of the honey will vary. Color and taste will also vary with the seasons - as flowering plants come and go with the advance of summer and fall.  We typically extract and bottle most of our honey in the late summer and fall - and leave substantial amounts for the bees to feed on for the ensuing winter months.  We usually also leave the bees' mid-fall nectar collection.  This usually ensures sufficient winter food stores - and avoids the need to supplement the bees' food stores with sugar syrup supplements. A typical hive needs about 60 lbs. of honey to survive the winter! In general, wildflower honeys will tend to have a similar taste since there is little variability in the flowers and flowering trees that grow in this region.  And neither will the makeup of the honey (e.g. pollen) vary very much - unless of course the bees are located in areas that have a predominance of one plant over another.

Our Varietal Honeys 

Our varietal honey offerings come from beekeepers in southern New Jersey.  These honeys are made by bees who visit specific plants, and whose qualities of taste and texture we find interesting and notable.  

BUTTER BEAN Honey (NJ)  Our Butter bean Honey comes from bees pollinating butter beans (lima and other beans) in southern New Jersey. Butter bean Honey has a very smooth and mild taste, and is not super sweet or super strong. It is an excellent sweetener for just about anything from that cup of tea, to a bowl of cereal, to sweet cakes and gooey treats. A perennial favorite among honey lovers and our best seller.   

WILDFLOWER Honey (NJ) Our Wildflower Honey captures the nectar from a myriad of flowering trees, shrubs and flowers in New Jersey  Honey bees busily fly from flower to flower returning the nectar from a multitude of blossoms to their hive.  When all these nectars combine to create a full-bodied, hearty honey, it is best described as Wildflower. Wildflower Honey has deep, rich flavor and is typically not as sweet as a Clover Honey. Many enjoy this heartiness and prefer to use Wildflower Honey as their table honey and in their cooking and baking.  

CRANBERRY BLOSSOM Honey (NJ) We are able to offer (sometimes limited) quantities of lightly filtered New Jersey Cranberry Blossom Honey. This is NOT honey to which cranberry flavor has been added rather, it is the result of bees gathering nectar while pollinating cranberry plants grown in cranberry bogs in southern NJ. Our Cranberry Blossom Honey is always from New Jersey - albeit in your travels you may find cranberry honey from New England and the northern Mid-West. Cranberry Blossom Honey is medium (sometimes reddish) amber in color and has a delicate cranberry aroma reflective of its floral source. Smooth and yet slightly pungent and mildly tart with subtle floral hints, cranberry honey finishes with a lingering flavor aftertaste. It is a good table honey and pairs well with dark chocolate, apples, cornbread, pork, poultry, tangerines, walnuts, chamomile teas and is also used in place of sugar in fruit preserves.  

BLUEBERRY BLOSSOM Honey (NJ) We are able to offer (sometimes limited) quantities of lightly filtered New Jersey Blueberry Blossom Honey.  This is NOT honey to which Blueberry flavor has been added rather, it is the result of bees gathering nectar from flowering blueberry plants.  Our honey is always from New Jersey made by bees from nectar they collect while pollinating the tiny white flowers of the blueberry bush in southern New Jersey blueberry fields in late spring. Blueberry honey is typically light amber in color, has a pleasant, full, well-rounded flavor, a slight spicy tang, and a blueberry aftertaste that lingers on.  A good table honey that is not too sweet and is also very popular among tea drinkers.  

CLOVER Honey (NJ) Clover honey is the best known varietal honey and has the highest annual production in the USA.  From the limited production in New Jersey and the East Coast to the wide open sweet clover fields of the Dakotas, Montana and Idaho, honey bees diligently produce millions of pounds of wonderful tasting, light, golden Clover Honey during the late spring and the warm summer months. Clover honey is sweet, light honey with possibly just a hint of cinnamon undertones. It is a great table honey, goes well with just about anything that can use sugar.  Drizzle it on your cereal and yogurt you will be in for a pleasant surprise!