Ah thank you. A bit like ours. In fact it’s probably the same. I remember once going to a honey show and they had some jars of black honey. I asked one of the stewards what sort of honey was black, to be met with an incredulous stare and the reply that it was black plastic on the jar to hide the contents which were being judged purely on taste. Heavens, what a fool I felt!
Haha… thats funny!
dang- I don’t think they do the bubble test here in Adelaide- if they did- I feel sure I’d win and my bubble would take hours! I had some honey that was so thick- it wouldn’t run off a spoon, a spoon wouldn’t sink into it- and it lingered in the mouth for an age. It was kind of like molasses. As you say my mums coastal honey tends to be more runny - even though it has relative low moisture levels.
yes- and actually there is a sort of a rim/collar at that point (which sits just below the lid when the lid is on) - and that’s the line you fill too. Leave maybe just under 1cm gap between the honey and the lid.
Another tip is to store the jars in the freezer to stop them candying if it’s a while till show day.
that pfund scale… how can they call the third one in ‘white’?? The first one isn’t even white. I might have guessed that third one as medium amber… hmm.
Have never heard it called white but have seen lucerne honey that is almost clear in colour (I think that is what it means)…
Those 3 on the bottom left are so light in color, I guess white is subjective, but they are as light as I have ever seen.
Regards
Yep, those bottom 3 on the left… however the colour is usually determined by holding a white card behind rather than putting them up to the light.
Coastal here too. I just inverted some smaller jars. It’s sort of magic to watch this golden reflective bubble rising. Bet the judges enjoy this test very much.
For my bubble to take 16 seconds, I guess my glass needs to be really really high.
A typical honey show uses rules in which raw honey will never do well. They want no crystals, ultra filtered etc. Basically, by my standards, they require you to ruin the flavor of the honey in order to do well. If you want to do well, don’t use raw honey.
Question is, how do you un-raw honey?
Ok, fine filter I can do.
What next?
I don’t have all of the judging criteria handy, but they judge on things like how perfect the jar is, how exactly it is filled, how much crystallization there is (needs to be heated to destroy these) how cleanly it is filtered, the water content is within range etc. They don’t care what it tastes like…
Phew. Good job rules are different the the uk.
What a shame that happens. Perhaps the old judges like old soldiers will fade away and sense prevails.
Woooo !
Sounds like waaay too much effort for so little. So glad I cruised this thread to warn me from even thinking about it.
I find the color each year n each hive different ! I enjoy the unique bouquet of tastes. Not going to ruin perfectly great honey for such a feeble outcome.
Heck ! If it tastes good n looks great on toast, cornbread’s, English muffin, on candied carrots, etc that’s all I want n care about…
Trying to meet some judges criteria ain’t for me one bit. Did that in gardening, photography n couple other fields. My ego is well satisfied now if the honey meet my approval. Guess I’m getting too old n crusty to care ! .
Oops Sorry about the peach
honey. It’s a little too fruity … great on my muffins !
Cheers ,
Gerald
P.S. Sorry Dawn … your rubbing off on me !
I agree with your line of thinking Gerald
Filter it again! … Flavour is important and that is down to judges individual pallet. But other factors that will score you points is:
Clarity
Brightness
Density
That’s about it… and like I said, I never do well in competitions for liquid honey but get a buzz out of winning in the other categories, Chunk Honey, Creamed Honey, Cut Comb, Frame of Comb, Wax products and Mead… it can get a bit addictive… so be careful. Haven’t managed to win any prizes for Flow Honey yet but it does sell out first at the markets everytime.
It’s not like that here. They judge on taste as well as presentation and have categories like Raw, candied, etc. From what I understand the most points come from the taste aspect. Which is what i would expect. Anything else is silly really.
The Bee Congress doesn’t have a raw honey category unfortunately.
I wonder how many entrants dehumidify their honey somehow.
In the international category (i’m Too late for that) they test for HMF, but no testing for the other categories.
Well, it will be an interesting experience.
Wow @Rodderick. That’s an impressive display! I bet your better half is responsible for some of it.
Thanks for the addiction warning. I feel it coming on.
Just me for this lot, it sure helps to have a few awards and accolades when selling. Though the honey has been fine filtered of which I don’t bother for consumers, they want the raw stuff.
Once in a while you see a “black jar” contest for honey. Those are based solely on flavor.