How To Tell Real Orange Blossom Honey From An Imposter
We'll never know what exactly possessed our ancient ancestors to sample the sticky substance found inside of a swarming, wild beehive, but it's safe to say that they were not doing impressions of a certain silly 'ol Bear. Our love affair with honey stretches back nearly 10,000 years, evolving from hunting down wild hives to early domestication efforts of the Ancient Egyptians. Domestic beekeeping really hit its stride in the 19th century, when the methods of capture and honey production we're all familiar with today were developed (via Food52). With these developments, the production of honey was something that just about everyone had the potential to bring to their own backyard.
You can find honey everywhere, from local farmers markets to big name grocery stores. It's an amazing alternative to sugar, boasting some unique health benefits such as having high nutritional value and being filled with antioxidants, per Healthline. While honey may seem like a product with a singular flavor note, there are a number of different varieties that each have their own distinct personalities. One of such variety is Orange Blossom Honey, known for its citrusy aroma and fruity flavor, per Beekeeping 101. However, one needs to be careful when shopping for honey — particularly Orange Blossom. The market is flooded with imposters, and if it's what you want, you need to be sure you're buying the real deal. Here are a few tips to help make sure you know you're getting the right stuff when you're out shopping.
Flavor, texture, and aroma
It's an unfortunate truth that fake honey exists and is prevalent throughout the market, owing to product demand and profitability. According to Simply Honey, the trademarks of fake honey are cheapness, additives such as dyes and flavor enhancers, and extreme dilution. Real honey is thick and sticky. There should only be one ingredient on the ingredients list for honey, and that's honey itself. Applying this logic to Orange Blossom Honey, one can clearly begin to see, simply by looking at the label on the jar, what's true and what isn't. However, there are still a few other things to watch.
According to The Bee Box, Orange Blossom Honey is composed of nectar gathered exclusively from Orange Blossom trees. The resulting honey is one that boasts very high natural sugar content and a citrus taste and smell. The sugar content in the honey will cause the viscous material to crystalize, which is another sign of authenticity. Both the flavor and smell of Orange Blossom honey should never be anything more than mild, according to The Spruce Eats. If the honey smells heavily of oranges or flowers, almost like perfume, and has a very strong, sweet citrusy taste, it's likely full of additives. The sickly sweet taste of a fake honey, as Simply Honey states, is because of the high amounts of refined sugars, particularly corn syrup, found in the product.