Folks, thanks for the update, all the entries summarised. Last question, any body have any idea of blackberry/bramble honey?
Borage honey, if very pure looks like water in a jar. Usually a slight tinge, but very pale and translucent.
Buckwheat honey
Very Black colour and runny. When set can look brown. Tastes musky? Not a sweet honey
Heather
Bell heather honey (the elusive gold) is red and spins out of frames.
Heather
Ling heather Honey ( is amber and thick and needs pressing out.
heather honey is one of the few honeys that smell of the flowers it comes from. It's the scent of the moors in a jar. Plus must be thixotropic, jelly like when stood but turns to liquid when agitated.
Hawthorne Honey
A rare beast of another monofloral honey is Hawthorn. Its a medium amber colour with a distinct nutty taste (according to Eva Cranes, Honey).
You often see it appearing in frames as the OSR is finishing. I sometimes come across some noticeably darker honey in them just as OSR going over and Hawthorn coming into bloom.
Also this season we had a distinct smell of "cats pee" in the supers when the hawthorn was in bloom this year.
it doesn't yield much nectar most years. Like lime it need s some very specific conditions, warm and humid.
Horse chestnut Honey
should also be dark with reddish tints, only yields when it's warm.
Sweet Chestnut honey tends to be thick in consistency and darker in colour than some. My bees collected it in the warm summer of 2018 however it doesn't yield too well as it needs warm temperatures being a Mediterranean tree.
Ivy Honey
Ivy is strong in taste and smell. Starts off dark liquid and sets as fast as sunflower and OSR. Eventually turns white when set and can be mistaken to set OSR. Have to get the timing right when taking off the hives, too soon and it will easily ferment. Leave on too long and it has set solid in the comb. When removing frames best to extract straight away.
When ivy honey sets in the comb it looks like lard. The strong aroma does reduce to some extent after a few months in the jar.
Knotweed honey
I believe it has a red tinge to it
OSR / Oil seed rape Honey (canola)
The whiter the honey and the harder set the honey, more OSR nectar is in it. Tastes very sweet
Phacelia Honey
From what i have seen and tasted from Borage i would say Phacelia is very similar in colour and texture but slightly stronger in aroma and taste. Phacelia yields a Blue/Purple pollen..
Lime honey (also known as linden or basswood)
Has been described as having a light mint flavour
Lime honey is greenish and MUST have a mint taste. The number of keepers with so called "lime" honey that is green but no mint taste amazes me.
Ragwort Honey
Ragwort honey is supposed to be quite yellow/orange. Described as unpalatable. You can tell if bees have been on a lot of ragwort when you take the roof off the hive the smell hits you. Honey tastes as revolting as the smell (my opinion) but if left in a bucket for a year or so the taste mellows. If they draw comb with it, it is bright yellow.
Rosebay willow herb Honey
I believe should be very pale
Sunflower honey
starts off light brown with orange hints then within a few hours begins to turn orange. The higher percentage of sunflower in an extraction the more orange it is. Medium taste I would. Sets quickly and another one that you can't hang around with but helps when you have poly hives.
Water balsam
Light coloured honey, sweet
Let me never fall into the vulgar mistake of dreaming that I am persecuted whenever I am contradicted - Ralph Waldo Emerson
