Preparing honey for show

[Lesgold]

Hi folks,

A couple of days ago I received a message from the local beekeeping club in relation to displaying honey and related products at the local agricultural show early next year. This is something that I?ve not done before and have never even considered participating in this type of event. I?m sure that there are quite a few members who have and just wondered if there are any hints that you would be prepared to share in relation to presenting honey in this type of format.

Cheers

Les

[Ben Framed]

I would be interested in hearing different responses to your request Les...

[BeeMaster2]

Les,
It sounds like you are referring to a honey show. If you want to win at a honey show, use an extractor, not crush and strain (pollen makes it cloudy) you want to filter the heck out of the honey, heat it to a high temperature and let it settle and remove the honey below the surface and above the bottom to be sure there is nothing in the honey. If it is a 3 jar display, fill all jars to the ring and make sure all jars are to exactly the same height. Bee sure the jars are perfect, no defects. Make sure the lids are perfect and clean. Have a spare cap to replace the first one when you get to the display table. Try to keep the honey from moving in the jar during transport and when turning it in. Keep an eye on the person handling it after turn in until it is in the display case. There have been several cases of people turning the jar sideways to make all but there?s loose points for honey on the lid. Pick your best tasting honey. It adds points. Find out what type of honey the judges prefer. It makes a difference.
Good luck.
Jim Altmiller

[jimineycricket]

All that Jim said and make sure there are no finger prints or smears on the jar.

[The15thMember]

I personally think honey shows are sort of dumb for all the reasons Jim stated.  It's basically a contest on how much you can destroy your honey to make it clear and how clean you can make a jar.  All the things that make honey amazing aren't taken into context except taste, which is only a small part of the score and entirely subjective to the judges personal preferences.  Plus, I think it perpetuates the idea that crystallized honey is bad in the mind of the general public.  No offense to anyone who competes in honey shows, but I'd rather my honey be tested and judged on things that actually make it good honey.   

[Ben Framed]

Aren't there different categories for honey in Honey Shows which cover a wide variety of honey types; raw, filtered, crystallized, variety such as source of, etc; as well as honey which is refined for taste? If so this might be a good place for fellow beekeepers to get together for a common fellowship and camaraderie, getting to know one another as well as sharing ideas? Maybe not dumb at all but fruitful for the beekeeper as well as the general public and last but not least, our friend the Honey Bee?

[The15thMember]

I know some organizations have honey tasting contests, where only the taste of the honey is critiqued.  But at my county fair for example, it's only about jar cleanliness, honey clarity, and taste; that's literally what is on the scorecard.  I would hope there are contests somewhere which judge based on more than this, because other than taste, that's not what honey is really about, in my opinion.  My county fair is very small though, so perhaps larger establishments have better setups.     

[BeeMaster2]

Reagan,
I totally agree, as a matter of fact, I have never entered a honey jar type of contest. I have entered my classroom observation hive and I have entered black jar contest. That is where the only thing that matters is the taste. The jars are literally covered so that you don?t see the honey.
By the way Les, bee sure to enter your honey in the correct color group. They sometimes disqualify you for being in the wrong group. Pretty sure there are honey color charts on the web.
Jim Altmiller

[Ben Framed]

Reagan I have never been to a honey show as such. I have seen the fair stuff and I agree with you there. The judging is based on looks and taste just as jelly, jams, pickles etc. As stated before I would (hope) there are different Categories offered in a real honey show?  If so there should be benefits as described earlier.

Les what is the situation in your case? 

Phillip

[Lesgold]

Hi guys,

Thanks for the information that you have provided. I?m not sure that I even want to enter honey in the show as it?s not my type of thing. It?s more about supporting the club and raising the profile of bees especially now that we have difficult times ahead. Thanks for the information Jim, that was quite informative. There is some unusual thinking and logic as to what judges look at when grading a presentation of honey. I?m with you Reagan, the idea of butchering honey to make it look ?pretty? doesn?t sit well. I?m sure that similar methods are used to present fruit and vegetables as well. The reason that I asked the question was to learn about something that has never been on my radar. A beekeeper that I know enters honey into local shows as he relies on income from his bees and believes that the recognition he achieves relates to sales in the longer term. I remember speaking to him about ten years ago and noticed that he had set aside a frame of honey that would be entered into a show a few months down the track. The frame was very clean and the honey was fully capped with white wax. There were no empty cells and the comb was uniform and flat. It is an image that has remained with me as it really was impressive. I?ve had the odd comb as good but that is a rarity. In that situation it was obvious the judges would be looking for.

[Michael Bush]

I've never entered because it's more about how pretty it is than how good it tastes.  Everything they do to their honey I never do to mine.  A "black jar" contest is more my speed.

[max2]

The beeclub I used go to meetings did chage the criteria to give "decent" honey a chance.

I have never gone through a recommended process to get clear honey in a perfect jar. I take a couple of jars of the shelf and enetr it and often have a couple of first.

I know of beekeepers who go through a lengthy process and strain honey through denim material, stand the jar in the sun for 10 min etc etc.

I don't have the time or inclination to do all this BUT  it is a fact that when we dispay the First prize Ribbon next to a row of jars - this is the honey which will sell the best.

[Ben Framed]

The beeclub I used go to meetings did chage the criteria to give "decent" honey a chance.

Thanks for that report. As I stated earlier, I have never been to a "honey show" as such but I would have thought different categories for honey in Honey Shows would cover a wide variety of honey types; raw, filtered, crystallized, whipped, creamed, variety such as source of, etc; as well as honey 'which is refined for taste'. The wider the criteria, (several categories), the better for everyone and the more fun as well.

Phillip

[yes2matt]

I think it's good fun.

If you use glass jars like the ones we get, there's a residue in the inside of the glass. Windex. 

Do not filter with anything that might drop lint. Once in the jar, shine the brightest light you can find back thru to see any particles or bubbles. Best to do your jar filling weeks in advance, then keep the jars good and warm to let the micro- bubbles work up and out.

Your three jars have to be filled to the top of the fill line and they have to be identical. So fill five or seven and take the best three day of show. Do not let any tiny speckle drops of honey anywhere around the lip or threads of the jar. The lid must spin perfectly freely. 

Obviously the outside of the jar has to be immaculate. The jar company sometimes prints a code hard to see down on the label area. That will come off with "goof-off" or citrus-pumice hand cleaner. After it's clean, only handle your jar by the lid and the very bottom.  If you've handled a lot, replace the lid with a new one day of show.

Enter to win. You got this.

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[Ben Framed]

"yes2matt"
If you use glass jars like the ones we get, there's a residue in the inside of the glass. Windex.

Matt what is the source of these jars, (meaning where are these jars made?)

Phillip

[yes2matt]

"yes2matt"
If you use glass jars like the ones we get, there's a residue in the inside of the glass. Windex.

Matt what is the source of these jars, (meaning where are these jars made?)

Phillip

Miller thru Amazon. Pic attached.

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[Ben Framed]

Nice jar Matt. I wonder what causes the residue?

Phillip