Honey

I rediscovered the complexity of honey two autumns ago. A friend had introduced me to a beekeeper in  Kanuma, the next city over from Utsunomiya. The beekeepers have been in the honey business since 1920, now in their fourth generation.  They take their bees around Tochigi prefecture to pollinate various crops: strawberries, sunflowers, buckwheat, chestnut and horse chestnut from roughly March to October.

This was the first time I had been exposed to so many varieties of single flower honey. In the states, the standard ones that I've seen in stores are the ubiquitous clover and mesquite. Color-wise, honey at the supermarket is fairly uniform. Typically gold. In contrast, the color palette of the honey at the Kuroda family's store is broader. It ranges from the fairly standard golden of acacia, the more reddish of sunflower, the almost black of buckwheat and versions of reddish gold in between. Flavor differs with color as well. I was told that the acacia is the best seller. I, personally, find it a bit cloying, but I'm sure it's good to cook with. I love the buckwheat, which to me has a complex brown-sugar back taste. The chestnut honeys are a little acidic which I like as well. The shop lets you sample the honeys before you buy so I never have to buy anything blind.

Going to the shop is a nice get-away for me. The Kurodas know my name, give me tea, sit and talk, and, in general, make me feel at home. It is a multi-generational business. The grandmother, about ninety,is still mobile and sharp as a tack. She talks to customers, many of whom are regulars. The mom  is in charge of the front and takes care of the honey sales. Yoko, the daughter, is in charge of the gelato shop next door and Kazuhiro, her brother, takes care of the bees during the day and the gelato shop in the evenings. They just started the gelato shop this spring and use honey as a sweetener. In the future gelato or pancakes and honey will probably become part of my routine when I go there. The nice  thing about that is that since I bike there from Kanuma station, (I throw my bike on the train in Utsunomiya), I don't have to feel guilty about having an indulgence at the store.

I appreciate being able to buy locally. I like supporting a family business run by really nice folks keeping money in the local economy as well as the pollination of crops by bees, a vital component of our food system and the natural world. May the Kurodas prosper for many more generations.

From left to right: sunflower, mandarin orange, chestnut, buckwheat