Antonio - Chestnut Honey 970g (Raw, Organic)

Antonio's Raw Organic Chestnut Honey is a deep and malty-tasting tree honey.

It has a beautiful, rich and nutty flavour, which many people adore.

This honey comes from bees feeding on sweet chestnut trees.

It is quite different from the blossom varieties which are light and subtle - this is dark and more potent. 

More on the flavour: Antonio's raw organic chestnut honey is a beautiful, deep-flavoured variety. It has slight caramel notes as well as a deep sweetness and a touch of bitterness too. The nutty flavour of the chestnut carries through as well as a taste a little similar to maple syrup but slightly more rich and malty. Chestnut can lend a bitter taste to honey but not always, it is known to be one of the most varied types of honey in taste, differing greatly from one area to another and from one season to the next.

Colour of this batch : Mid to dark brown, a slight red in the light.  

Where does the honey come from?  This variety of chestnut honey comes from the mountains around Burgos in northern-central Spain.

Who produces the honey?  The bees of Antonio Simone, a 4^th generation beekeeper who takes pride in producing honey in a traditional way without adding or taking away anything.

Antonio's hives are mainly based in the mountains north of Madrid. His beekeeping practices and the land he has his hives on have been certified as organic by the Committee of Organic Agriculture in Madrid

What about the plant the honey comes from? The sweet chestnut tree, also known as Castano in Spanish, is a large deciduous tree which produces edible nuts. The bees feed on the tree's sap and blossoms.

Common Uses: Chestnut honey is particularly good to use in different recipes, such as: cakes, cookies, desert toppings, ice creams, warm honey teas, salads and meat glazes.  Also, it is delicious poured over cheeses. This is because of the rich, nutty and malty flavour it lends.

More Chestnut Honey Facts: Chestnut honey is often higher in fructose than other types, this serves as good source of energy. Hence, a spoon of chestnut honey helps to relieve fatigue immediately.

Please note that this current batch of Chestnut does appear to be crystalising very quickly.  If you have found that your honey has started to crystalise and you would prefer it liquid you can do this:-

Put it on a radiator and drape a tea towel over the jars.

Then leave it overnight. If it's not liquid by morning then leave it a little longer.

You might think that the heat from this process will damage the honey - the important thing is that you don't heat the honey beyond 40 degrees (which is how hot the hive can get in the summer when the bees are at work evaporating moisture to thicken the honey).

If the radiators are very hot then put something like a book under the jars and then drape a tea towel over the jars.

The book will protect the honey from direct heat above 40 degrees from the radiator and the tea towel will ensure that hot air can circulate around the honey helping to liquefy it.