Crafting lavender honey is something we've been doing for years now and we like to think we've perfected the art. Through a collaboration dreams are made of between us at the farm, the bees that live here, and the beekeepers who tend to them, the result is a honey that's a little different to the norm.
It all starts with the bees
The honey bees at the Wānaka Lavender Farm keep themselves busy all summer by drifting through our array of flower gardens and relishing in the blooming rows of lavender.
The bees collect the nectar offered by the flowers and carry it back to one of two lots of hives that we currently have on the farm. There, the clever worker bees turn nectar into honey and proceed to store it in the awaiting honeycomb cells.
Did you know that lavender’s calming properties can also have an effect on animals? We think that's why the bees at our farm are so chilled out.
Then the beekeepers step in
Although we often see the beekeepers at Wānaka Lavender Farm checking in on the bees, they are only here to harvest the honey once a year. And that's usually in late-summer. It's important to harvest the honey at the right time as the taste relies on this, any earlier or later and you might not find the sweet spot of flavour.
The harvesting process involves taking the full boxes from each hive and replacing them with empty boxes that the bees can keep storing honey in for their winter dining. As beekeepers know from studying bee behaviour their nature is to always follow the quee therefore the queen bee's box is kept in place whilst the others are taken away. This protects the rest of the colony and makes sure they stay put... then they're free to start work in their newly renovated homes!
The boxes full of this delicious, dripping liquid are transported to an extraction plant where the honey is pulled from the combs through a spinning mechanism. It is filtered to ensure that it's clean, pure and ready to be enjoyed! And as a last touch of love, before being poured into pots, a drop of our Pacific Blue lavender essential oil is blended into the honey. This subtly enhances the uniquely lively floral flavour profile that many guest here at the farm savour.
Finally, we offer this delicious honey to you
Thanks to the flowering plants, hard-working bees and stewardship of our beekeepers, our lavender honey is now ready to hit the shelves at the farm. We love our lavender honey so much that we have a special tasting section within our cosy tearoom. Guests are most welcome - in fact, encouraged - to try and experience the flavour of our range of honeys.
If you can't visit Wānaka Lavender Farm in person but want to enjoy our mouth-watering lavender honey, we have you covered. You can get your hands on our Lakes Honey range through our online store.
We hope you adore this one as much as we do...
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