> AS far as worst goes..... > Some friends of mine brought back some "Black Forest" honey from Germany > from Black Forest pines.......blechhh! I swear it was mixed with > turpentine. This would have been one of the many varieties of honeydew. Rather than being of floral nectary origin, honeydew is a sticky sweet product that is a waste product of a variety of misc. insects, gathered by and modified by bees. There. I managed to say that without using an derogutory slurs or offputting descriptions, almost! Many people *do* like it. I personally only like it in baking, not using it as a table 'honey', even though I like most strong flavoured honeys. In New Zealand, large quantities are produced from the beech (often called birch, though they are not) forests (Nothofagus spp.) of the South Island. As for the best? For the dark honeys I go for rewarewa (Knightsia excelsa), a dark thick reddish honey, with a 'savoury' rather than sweet flavour and aftertaste. And for light honey I go for rata (Metrosideros umbellata), whiter than white, and naturally granulating (fast!) into a smooth surprisingly strong flavoured product. ------------------------------------------ Nick Wallingford President - National Beekeepers Assn of NZ NZ beekeeping: http://www.wave.co.nz/pages/nickw/nzbkpg.htm work [log in to unmask] home [log in to unmask] ------------------------------------------