Natural Thai Forest Honey

[Trevor]

It's usually sold in old whisky bottles and might look a bit manky with pollen in the neck. But absolutely delicious and healthful, with a spicy kick and around Baht 200-300 a bottle. One Thai told me there is even coffee-flavoured honey where the bees forage on coffee plantations.

Where can I buy REAL Thai honey in Bangkok?

[lomatopo]

I often see vendors selling honey (in what looks like old whisky bottles) and honey-combs walking around on the street. I think you just have to look around a bit. I can't vouch for the provenance, forest or coffee plantation. Storage is of course a problem, as even the slightest drop will bring out hundreds of little bugs. I've been tempted to buy some but I default to Imperial brand in a 400g squeeze bottle.

[Thetyim]

Yes I love this honey.

Sorry don't know where to buy in Bangers.

Can you answer this.

When they show you the stuff they are always pouring out a bit and then sticking a lighted match in it.

Whats that supposed to tell me ?

[chownah]

The flavor and color of honey depends on what flowers are producing nectar when the bees are collecting. If bees find a large mass of lowers within a reasonable distance of their hive they will communicate this fact to each other in the hive and the nectar gatherers will go exclusively to that type of flower in that location and collect it. In this way if there is a big enough supply of flowers you will be able to abtain a fairly pure honey type. If there is not a large supply of one type of flower then the bees will take whatever is there. Honey from forests varies alot in taste and color. I've had honey that was so strong tasting that I couldn't use it so it it probably best to taste before buying. Of course honey can be adultered. Corn syrup or sugar syrup can be added or it can even be fed to the bees. A honey with an overpowering flavor can be diluted with corn syrup or sugar syrup to make the taste more acceptable.

Bee keeping is a fascinating hobby and even if you don't want to try it you might want to read a little bit about it just out of interest. For instance, did you know that bee keepers have made a study of the lengths of the tongues of various types of bees? and did you know that bee keepers have made imitation queen bees and dragged them through the air on a fine filament while photographing the male bees attempting to mate with it?....yes indeed...bee p0rno!!

[Sir Burr]

I have a few varieties of oleander plants in my garden which bees are attracted to in great numbers. Trouble is, is that every part of these plants are deadly poisoness (alkaloids). I have read that honey made from bees collecting pollen from poisonous plants is also poisonous.

Does anybody know more about this?

This is why I don't buy the wild honey.

[chownah]

I have a few varieties of oleander plants in my garden which bees are attracted to in great numbers. Trouble is, is that every part of these plants are deadly poisoness (alkaloids). I have read that honey made from bees collecting pollen from poisonous plants is also poisonous.

Does anybody know more about this?

This is why I don't buy the wild honey.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

I have studied bee keeping quite a bit but it was years ago. I don't recall reading anything about any flowers producing poisonous honey. I think that this is because the nectar and the pollen (the two plant products that the bees collect) do not contain any of the alkaloids found in the body of the plant....but I don't recall specifically having read this so I'm not sure if I'm correct here....I have never heard of poisonous honey. Good question. After dinner I think I'll google it a bit.

[Judge]

A Thai girl that I know who is in the detox business swears that most beekeepers are feeding their bees white sugar in Thailand and that it is very difficult to get honey with nutrients that come from flowers unless you know the beekeeper personally.

Can anyone confirm or refute this?

[chownah]

Well I googled for poisonous honey and found quite a few links....read some of them and they tend to conflict with each other a bit. Many use azalea and rhododendron honey as examples....but....some sites say that these flowers have nectar which is poisonous to humans but not bees and some sites say that nectar from these plants is poisonous to humans and bees and some sites say that the toxin in the honey only rarely causes a reaction in some individuals and some sites say that people have been known to become ill after consuming this honey.

So...I've changed my opinion about this and now think that there probably is toxic honey but that its rare....and I did not read of any fatalities.

[Sir Burr]

Just googled this:-

"The locals would have been well aware that honey produced during certain times of the year was naturally poisonous. Honey yielded from the nectar of such plants as Rhododendron ponticum and Azalea pontica contain alkaloids that are toxic to humans but harmless to bees. After the offending blooms have stopped flowering, beekeepers in areas where these plants are common (such as the area of present-day Turkey where this incident occurred) routinely remove this toxic honey so it doesn't contaminate subsequently produced stores".

This comes from www.beekeeping.com/articles/us/war_bees.htm (sorry, still don't know how to create a link).

Saw another couple of articles that also mentioned honey made from bees collecting from Rhododendrons is poisonous. Have a feeling that Oleanders would have the same result.

[chownah]

Just googled this:-

"The locals would have been well aware that honey produced during certain times of the year was naturally poisonous. Honey yielded from the nectar of such plants as Rhododendron ponticum and Azalea pontica contain alkaloids that are toxic to humans but harmless to bees. After the offending blooms have stopped flowering, beekeepers in areas where these plants are common (such as the area of present-day Turkey where this incident occurred) routinely remove this toxic honey so it doesn't contaminate subsequently produced stores".

This comes from www.beekeeping.com/articles/us/war_bees.htm (sorry, still don't know how to create a link).

Saw another couple of articles that also mentioned honey made from bees collecting from Rhododendrons is poisonous. Have a feeling that Oleanders would have the same result.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Here is a link that say that oleander honey is toxic:

http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/ency/article/002884.htm

[Sir Burr]

Thanks Chownah, just read your link.

It sort of strengthens my belief that honey comes from supermarkets.

PS. Congratulations on reaching your 2000th post.

Edited October 30, 2005 by Sir Burr

[lomatopo]

It sort of strengthens my belief that honey comes from supermarkets.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

My local Foodland has ~ 9 different varieties of Thai natural honey. (I'm excluding the big brands like Imperial, and the imported brands. In total there must be close to 25 different styles/brands!)

Anyway of these ~ 9 brands at least two are packaged in glass or plastic bottles and have residue floating in the neck.

Growing up a neighbor kept bees, and my Mom had lots of Azelas and Rhododendrons, among hundreds of other types of fruit trees (apple, pear, plum, cherry), plants, flowers and bushes. Not sure what the local bees liked but we all ate the honey and survived! Also I can't remember when these bloom vs. when the bees were doing their thing? BTW, one summer I got stung by bees 62 different and separate times over the course of three months. Mostly on the bottom of my feet as we went around barefoot and there was a clover everywhere. The beekeeper got stung once in all the time he kept bees!

[bina]

the jmore sugar, the more likely the stuff will flare up and burn as sugar as opposed to honey which doesnt burn so quickly

rather resembles the flame test for real olive oil as opposed to real fake olive oil (blue flame, real; regualr flame, adulterated etc)

[howler]

Did you know that honey is the ONLY food that will never go rancid?

Saw it on Jepardy, so it must be true!

[bangkokian]

Honey is an essential ingredient in ancient Egyptian mummification. Honey that goes rancid probably have too much moisture/water content.

[lomatopo]

I'm about halfway through a 325 ml bottle of Vejpong Natural Honey . It is reasonably priced at my local Foodland, and tastes quite good. I use it in tea (brewed, hot and iced).

Edited December 4, 2005 by lomatopo

[Simbo]

There is an outlet in Carrefore, Pattaya, selling honey in what looks like old whisky bottles. 100baht each. I think they come from the Lopburi area. They are professionaly labelled. And this week, I went to khon Khen. Somewhere between Korat and there, on route 2, they were selling it at the roadside for 100 baht also.

Needless to say, I have 6 bottles stored now. I use it mostly for pork ribs. Yummy!

[IMA_FARANG]

The flavor and color of honey depends on what flowers are producing nectar when the bees are collecting.  If bees find a large mass of lowers within a reasonable distance of their hive they will communicate this fact to each other in the hive and the nectar gatherers will go exclusively to that type of flower in that location and collect it.  In this way if there is a big enough supply of flowers you will be able to abtain a fairly pure honey type.  If there is not a large supply of one type of flower then the bees will take whatever is there.  Honey from forests varies alot in taste and color.  I've had honey that was so strong tasting that I couldn't use it so it it probably best to taste before buying.  Of course honey can be adultered.  Corn syrup or sugar syrup can be added or it can even be fed to the bees.  A honey with an overpowering flavor can be diluted with corn syrup or sugar syrup to make the taste more acceptable.

Bee keeping is a fascinating hobby and even if you don't want to try it you might want to read a little bit about it just out of interest.  For instance, did you know that bee keepers have made a study of the lengths of the tongues of various types of bees?  and did you know that bee keepers have made imitation queen bees and dragged them through the air on a fine filament while photographing the male bees attempting to mate with it?....yes indeed...bee p0rno!!

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Not that this has anything to do with the topic, but while I was in western Turkey some years ago the local farmers would sell a honey beside the road that was from bees that fed on pine flowers from a local pine forest. (Yes, Pine trees do have small flowers before the new Pine cones develop.) The honey had a tangy sweet taste and a darkish color. It was the best honey I've ever tasted. They usually sold in in glass jars containing about a pint of honey, each.