>At least in my area (in which we don't often get strong honey flows), I can
often scrape out four different honey flavors from a single comb.

I think that I hear a voice whispering in my ear that all beekeeping is local. I too will find combs that have several or at least 2 distinct honeys varying greatly by taste and color especially early in the season. I know them by flavor, color and observation of what is the predominate bloom in the yards local. Black  Hawthorne (Crataegus douglasii ) has such a strong aroma, flavor and dark color that it can not be mistaken. It is one of the few honeys in my area that smells and tastes much like the bloom and is dominate along the creeks in May. Walk into the yard and the smell is distinct and to me not pleasant but others crave it. At the same time up on the hills will be thousands of acres of Purple Vetch (Vica americana). It's honey is water white and very mild similar to Black Locust (Robinia pseudo-acacia) that is also blooming in profusion around old farmsteads. Add to that the lesser sources such as dandelion (Taraxacum officanale), Maple (Acer) species, Jim Hill mustard (Sisymbrium altissimum) and what comes out of the extractor can, to me, only be called Wildflower and that is how I label it. When sold in drums it is graded as "mixed floral source" and by Pfund Scale color. When the comb is uncapped you often see bands or patches of very different colors and each will have distinct taste. I pull and extract this before the summer honey comes in. Later in the season the sources get much better differentiated. I know Yellow Starthistle (Centaurea solstitialia) by color, taste, and observation of fields of it where I seek locations. Nothing is 100%, but the honey is so uniform and dependable (and the world's best IMHO) that I call it single source or varietal. I'll usually get 3-4 medium supers per colony and it has high demand from repeat customers. The same is true of Fireweed (Epilobium angustifolium). Water white and mild and if your yard is surrounded by miles of it  you can be confident that that is what it is.

So I sell both Wildflower and Starthistle and in the old days Fireweed and Blackberry. What is on the label is to the best of my knowledge accurate but the true test is taste. "A rose by any other name" as they say. "Local" has high appeal to many, I think because of the belief that it helps with allergies. But local honey that tastes bad is still bad honey and will not bring customers back for more in my experience. What they want is that good stuff their friend brought back from the Walla Walla farmers market and we send it to Texas, Florida, and Alaska.

Paul Hosticka
Dayton WA  

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