Where to get Honey
Comments
2011 Nov 27
I had the pleasure of talking to beekeeper Brent Halsall of Halsall's Honey at The Piggy Market as he handed out samples of his Golden, Creamed Golden, and Buckwheat honeys.
I've been searching for a local honey that is anywhere near as good as my favourite Babe's Fireweed honey (www.getfreshguide.com) which my parents have been bringing me ever since I moved to Ottawa.
I finally struck gold! Based in Greely, Halsall's Honey produces a golden honey that is distinctly superior to anything else I've tried from local suppliers.
I've tasted buckwheat honey before and it just isn't my thing. I described it as tasting the way cow manure smells. Mr Halsall more tactfully described it as having a "barnyard flavour." People either love it or hate it. My daughter and I fall firmly into the latter category. ;-)
We chatted a bit about the honey making process and I learned a lot. There is no real definition of what "Raw" means in the context of honey. Mr Halsall refuses to put it on his labels (even though he could) because it is ambiguous and therefore somewhat disingenuous. Honey is typically warmed at least a little to make it liquid enough to be filtered. The more it is heated, the more flavour it loses. My understanding is that any honey processed below 72°C (pasteurization temperature) could claim to be "Raw."
Halsall's Honey heats their product to 43°C during processing. This facilitates filtering without having a noticeable affect on flavour. Supermarket honey is processed at higher temperatures and often contains additives to stretch the original product. The difference in flavour between big-brand honey and local honey is almost as striking as the difference between Aunt Jemima pancake syrup and pure maple syrup.
I've been searching for a local honey that is anywhere near as good as my favourite Babe's Fireweed honey (www.getfreshguide.com) which my parents have been bringing me ever since I moved to Ottawa.
I finally struck gold! Based in Greely, Halsall's Honey produces a golden honey that is distinctly superior to anything else I've tried from local suppliers.
I've tasted buckwheat honey before and it just isn't my thing. I described it as tasting the way cow manure smells. Mr Halsall more tactfully described it as having a "barnyard flavour." People either love it or hate it. My daughter and I fall firmly into the latter category. ;-)
We chatted a bit about the honey making process and I learned a lot. There is no real definition of what "Raw" means in the context of honey. Mr Halsall refuses to put it on his labels (even though he could) because it is ambiguous and therefore somewhat disingenuous. Honey is typically warmed at least a little to make it liquid enough to be filtered. The more it is heated, the more flavour it loses. My understanding is that any honey processed below 72°C (pasteurization temperature) could claim to be "Raw."
Halsall's Honey heats their product to 43°C during processing. This facilitates filtering without having a noticeable affect on flavour. Supermarket honey is processed at higher temperatures and often contains additives to stretch the original product. The difference in flavour between big-brand honey and local honey is almost as striking as the difference between Aunt Jemima pancake syrup and pure maple syrup.
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Janet