Santa Paula Beekeepers Assoc
Santa Paula Beekeepers Assoc
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Varietal Honey Guide

100 Honeys and their Characteristics

THE WORLD OF BEESVARIETAL HONEY GUIDEBACKYARD BEES OF NORTH AMERICABEE KNOWLEDGE
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Updated October 2024
Posted September 2022

Santa Paula Beekeepers Association Varietal Honey Guide USA
Varietal Honey Guide
100 Monofloral Honeys and their Characteristics

  • Alfalfa
    White to Light Amber - pleasant minty flavor may reflect spicy seasonal blooming
  • Almond
    Dark Amber - strong, nutty, and bitter
  • Alsike
    White - mild clover herbal
  • Apple Blossom
    Amber with Greenish Hue - rich bold with soft bitter notes. Hint of apple in the aroma
  • Arbutus - Strawberry Tree
    Medium Amber with Greenish Tinge - aromatic and bitter notes
  • Aster
    White to Light Amber - distinctive sweet smelling hints of thyme spicy tones
  • Avocado
    Dark Amber - mellow spicy aroma with a rich flavor and hints of molasses
  • Bamboo - Japanese Knotweed
    Dark Amber - robust flavor with hints of caramel and maple notes
  • Basswood
    White to Light Amber - persistent flavor, similar to fruits medicinal finish
  • Beechwood
    Dark Amber - aromatic honey brew
  • Bergamont - Horsemint
    Light Amber - minty spicy flavor with hint of oregano
  • Black Mangrove
    Light to Medium Amber - thin body that is mild and sweet with slight butterscotch taste
  • Black Sage
    Amber - rich flavor with hints of herbs
  • Blackberry
    White to Extra Light Amber - delicate sweet and fruity with notes of blackberry
  • Blue Curl
    Extra Light Amber - mild minty and fruity in flavor
  • Blueberry
    Light Amber to Amber - fruity flavor with aroma of green leaves and a hint of lemon
  • Borage
    Medium to Dark Amber - Delicate and slightly cucumber flavor
  • Buckeye - Horse Chestnut
    Dark Amber - caramel and finishes in a nutty flavor
  • Buckwheat
    Very Dark Amber - malty strong distinct flavor with molasses taste
  • Canola Rapeseed
    White to Light Amber - delicate medium sweetness with a peppery aftertaste
  • Carrot
    Medium to Dark Amber - strong with hints of chocolate and caramel grassy aftertaste
  • Catclaw Uvalde
    Dark Amber - rich aroma spicy and buttery flavor with a hint of iron
  • Catmint
    Dark Amber - piquant flavored and mild
  • Cherry Blossom
    Amber - mild and tangy
  • Chestnut
    Dark Amber - aggressively woody pungent and aromatic
  • Chinese Tallow
    Dark Amber - tangy taste
  • Christmas Berry
    Light to Medium Amber - exotic spicy with brown sugar flavor hints of marzipan and chocolate
  • Clover
    White to Extra Light Amber - mild floral aroma with notes of green grass tangy aftertaste
  • Coffee Blossom
    Light to Dark Amber - delicate with notes of toffee or brown sugar and fragrant jasmine tones
  • Coriander
    Light to Medium Amber - spicy citrus with and ginger with a hint of lime
  • Cotton
    White to Light Amber - solid floral notes with a tang
  • Cranberry
    Medium Amber with Reddish Tint - fruit taste with pungent hints of tart berries tangy
  • Curlytop Gumweed
    Dark Amber - sweet caramel taste
  • Dandelion Tarassaco
    Amber - pungent aroma with good flavor hints of pepper
  • Eucalyptus - Blue Gum
    Light to Medium Amber - cool menthol flavor with malty after taste
  • False Acacia - Black Locust
    White to Pale Amber - mild sweet floral flavor with hint of vanilla
  • Fir
    Dark Amber - honeydew strong resinous flavor with balsam after taste
  • Fireweed - Rosebay Willow
    Light Amber - buttery and fruity but not strong
  • Gallberry - Inkberry
    Light Amber - tart floral flavor with hints of citrus slightly burned aftertaste
  • Goldenrod
    Light to Medium Amber - sweet floral ske and straw flavor spicy aftertaste pungent aroma
  • Guajillo Huajillo
    Light Amber - perfumed smooth honey with hints of lavender or apricot
  • Hawthorn
    Pale to Dark Amber - almondy and fruity with a slight bitter taste
  • Holly
    Amber - orange aroma with delicate mild taste hints of acidity
  • Huckleberry
    Dark Amber - full bodied
  • Kiawe - Hawaiian White
    White - overly sweet with notes of menthol a vanilla bean
  • Kudzu
    Blush to Purple Color - strong flavor with fruity notes of apple and grape
  • Lavender
    Light Amber - sweet with camphor taste and sweet tobacco notes
  • Lehua
    White to Golden Amber - delicate floral taste with butterscotch notes
  • Lemon Blossom
    Light Amber - fresh taste with tart citrus notes
  • Ling Heather
    Dark Amber with Reddish Tint - slightly bitter with hints of woody florals
  • Macadamia
    Medium to Dark Amber - sweet aroma with musky floral flavor and hints of butterscotch and nuts
  • Mango
    Dark Amber - fruitiness flavor
  • Manzanita
    Dark Amber - floral notes woody rich and earthy with slightly peppery flavor
  • Maple
    Amber with Green Tinge - hints of lemon and mint with a lasting buttery finish
  • Marjoram
    Medium to Dark Amber - minty flavor
  • Meadowfoam
    Medium Amber - notes of vanilla and marshmallows
  • Misquite
    Dark Amber - smokey and citrusy flavor with delicate aroma
  • Milk Thistle
    Medium Amber - mild and slightly bitter with an astringent aftertaste
  • Milkweed
    Water White - mild quincalla flavor with slight spicy tang
  • Mint
    Amber - sharp aroma with surprising tang
  • Mulberry - Noni
    Light Amber - light floral with caramel tones
  • Nodding Thistle - Musk Thistle
    Light Amber - delicate floral
  • Oak
    Dark Amber - honeydew molasses with caramel notes slightly sharp
  • Onion
    Light Amber - strong onion smell that fades but onion flavor remains
  • Orange Blossom
    Light to Medium Amber - mild floral citrus aroma with distinctive taste hints of rose
  • Palmetto - Saw Palmetto
    White to Light Amber - woody herbal taste with peppery aftertaste
  • Pennyroyal
    Amber - pungent aroma comparable to camphor
  • Phacelia
    Amber with Green Tinge - mild nice soft lemony scent and taste
  • Pomegranate
    Dark Amber - notes of grenadine a hint of root beer and a dried fruit
  • Ponderosa Pine
    Dark Amber - honeydew strong aroma and flavor hints of vanilla
  • Prickly Pear
    Medium to Dark Amber - fragrant floral and tangy taste hints of strawberries
  • Pumpkin
    Medium Amber - hints of pumpkin flavor with spicy notes
  • Purple Loosestrife
    Dark Amber with Greenish Tinge - strong unappealing flavor with slight tobacco hint
  • Queen Anne's Lace - Wild Carrot
    Light Amber - fragrant rich butterscotch hints
  • Radish
    Amber - sweet flavor leaving a dryness in the mouth
  • Raspberry
    Extra Light Amber - floral flavor with a slight raspberry taste
  • Rhododendron
    Light to Medium Amber - sharp floral and earthy flavor with a lingering finish of wild berries
  • Rosemary
    Pale Amber - fragrant with floral notes and mint finish
  • Safflower
    Medium Amber - rich cinnamon floral
  • Sage
    White to Light Amber - pungent herbal flavor with a floral aftertaste
  • Saguaro Cactus
    Amber to Dark Amber - delicate with spice and vanilla notes
  • Sainfoin - Lupinella
    Light Amber - intense sweetness and light floral notes
  • Silkweed
    Dark Amber - strong scent and flavor spicy notes
  • Snowberry - Buckbush
    White to Light Amber - delicate sweet butterscotch notes
  • Sorghum
    Dark Amber - taste reminiscent of molasses
  • Sourwood - Sorrel Tree
    Medium Amber - sweet buttery with anise and gingerbread notes
  • Spanish Needle Tickseed
    Light Amber - pronounced woody flavor
  • Star Thistle
    White to Extra Light Amber - floral aroma with candy like taste and notes of anise
  • Sunflower
    Amber - nutty flavor of ripe apricots with citrus notes
  • Sweet Clover
    Light Amber - mild and very aromatic vanilla scent sweet and peppery
  • Tamarisk - Salt Cedar
    Dark Amber - malty savory woody flavors
  • Thyme - Hymettus
    Medium to Dark Amber - strong and distinctive suggestions of thyme acidic notes of lemon
  • Toyon
    Medium Amber - smoky and nutty complex flavor
  • Tulip Poplar - Tulip Tree
    Medium Amber - quince like flavor with smoky hints
  • Tupelo - Sour Gum
    White to Light Amber - very sweet and mild with floral taste and cinnamon hints
  • Vetch
    Light Amber - fruity flavor with a hint of mint
  • White Sage
    Light Amber - floral and herbal aftertaste
  • Wintersavory
    Amber with Green Tinge - medium dense aroma with floral notes
  • Wild Rose
    Light Pale - sweet very floral
  • Yaupon
    White to Light Amber - floral aroma with miled flavor pleasant aftertaste