Maquis, Miel du Pays D'Oc, Monséret, France

View from the ruins of Peyrepertuse to the ruins of Queribus

We were recently in Aude, in the Languedoc-Roussillon region in the south of France. It is near the Mediterranean coast and the border of Spain. It is an absolutely beautiful area of France and I highly recommend a visit. Between visiting world renown, local vineyards, sampling wines and local cuisine (cassoulet, a rich, slow-cooked casserole containing meat (usually pork, sausages, goose or duck), pork skin and white beans, is a specialty, especially in the Carcassonne area), visiting abbeys and castles (this is the area of the "Cathar" castles; pictured is Peyrepertuse, one of my favorites), and hiking through some breathtaking scenery, there is a lot to see and do. 

Monséret, France (in red, lower right area)

On one side trip we visited a miellerie in Monséret, La Miellerie de Clauses.  Monséret is a small wine-producing village in the wine district of Corbiers and the miellerie is found on the outskirts of the village in an area of wild scrubland. During the summer season the miellerie offers educational tours of their facility and pony ride tours through fields where their honey is collected.  They do everything from tending hives, to extracting honey, to distributing it. We, unfortunately, were there before the season began so we didn't get an up close view of their production and had to be content with sampling the varieties of honey a their store's honey tasting bar (rosemary, forest, thyme, acacia and others) and perusing other honey products that they make and sell (honey cake, and mead among others).  One of the honeys that they produce is maquis honey, a honey I've never had before. I also didn't know exactly what "maquis" was.

La Miellerie de Clauses

Maquis isn't a flower source but a biome (geographically contiguous area with similar climatic conditions, also referred to as an "ecosystem") in the Mediterranean region. It generally is made up of densely growing shrubs including holm oak, sage, juniper, buckthorn, spurge olive and myrtle (among others) and is found throughout the Mediterranean Basin. The name comes from the plural of the Italian "macchia" which means "thicket." Maquis, given its height and density, provides ideal cover for bandits and guerrillas, and its name has been used to refer to a few guerrilla movements, notably the Maquis in World War II, a band of the French Resistance, and the Spanish Maquis, a guerrilla group that fought against the Franco regime in the aftermath of the Spanish Civil War. Interestingly, it has also been used as the name of the fictitious anti-Cardassian resistance movement in an episode of Star Trek: Deep Space Nine.  Members of the Maquis were known as "maquisards" and the Italian for "becoming a fugitive" is "darsi alla macchia."

Maquis near Monséret, France

Maquis is similar to the English heath, but with taller (and different) shrubs and it tends to be found in arid, rocky areas supportive of drought-resistant plants. Maquis is also similar to "garrigue." Both are translated as "scrubland" in French. However, maquis is more dense than garrigue and grows in more acidic soil, whereas garrigue is associated with low bushes growing widely spaced from each other on base rich soils (i.e. limestone). Both maquis and garrigue are found in the Mediterranean basin and the two terms are often used interchangeably.

Maquis honey, Meillerie de Clauses, Monséret, France

My maquis honey is an opaque, mellow, orange-brown color. It is nearly all crystals a, so possible a quick crystallizer. It has a heady, summer flower aroma, faintly floral but with herbal and vaguely menthol overtones. I can almost feel the heat of a Mediterranean sun beating down and hear the sound of cicadas and bees. It isn't overly sweet and the medium sized crystals dissolve quickly, so it doesn't have an overly grainy texture. It has a robust herbal, grassy, earthy taste that is slightly bitter, reminiscent of thyme or forest honey, with a very subtle, fleeting, floral and menthol after taste. Very tasty. It may be too strong for a delicate herbal tea, unless you want to add additional flavor, but probably a good choice for a dense honey cake or mixed into thick, plain yoghurt. Right out of the jar it is pretty good too!

Miel d'Acacia (Acacia (Black Locust) honey) Brive-la-Gaillarde, France

According to Wiki, prior to 2005 Acacia was a genus of shubs and trees that contains about 1,300 species. Most (>950) are native to Australia and the rest spread around warm-temperate regions including Europe, Africa, southern Asia and North and South America. In 2005 the genus was divided into five separate genera. The genus Acacia was retained for most Australian species and a few in tropical Asia, Madagascar and the Pacific Islands. Most species outside of Australia (and a few Australian species) were reclassified as genera Vachiella and Senegalia, and a few dozen species from the Americas were classified under the genera Acaciella and Mariosousa. To get a better appreciation of the diversity and geographic location of this genus of shrubs/trees I direct you to the French Acacia wiki-site. Of note, the names 'acacia' comes from the Greek for thorn, 'akis.' Also of interest, most Australian acacias are not thorny, while most non-Australian ones are. This makes me wonder how acacia got its name when most of the genera are Australian and not thorny. The answer is that Carl Linnaeus, a Swedish botanist, is credited with first describing the acacias and his description is based on a thorny African species. Imagine if he had been working in Australia, the acacias would be called something completely different.

Acacia blooms

 Changing the taxonomy was apparently a very controversial move.Those who don't agree with the changes continue to use the old taxonomy. All this to say that it is a little bit confusing to know what Genus species to attribute to the source of the acacia honey I have that originates in France.

To complicate matters, there is a tree commonly called 'False Acacia' (Robinia pseudoacacia) or 'Black Locust' that is widely found in Europe and North America, as well as in other regions (it is native to North America but has been successfully cultivated in other countries). This is the tree that I had always known as 'acacia.' In fact some online research state that Robinia pseudoacacia is the source of acacia honey in France. Could it be that Acacia honey is in fact not Acacia honey, but Black Locust honey? I think this is the case (!)

Black Locust (False Acacia) blooms

It seems that Black Locust is a major honey plant. It has a very short (about a week) blooming period (usually at the end of May and beginning of June). Blooms, which are extremely fragrant, are very sensitive to weather conditions, though, and this results in inconsistent honey productions year to year.

Apart from an excellent source for honey production, Black Locust wood is hard, resistant to rot and durable, making it suitable for furniture, flooring, etc. It is also planted for fire wood as it grows quickly in a variety of soils. The bark and leaves of the Black Locust are toxic but the seeds, young pods and flowers are edible; whatever poisons they contain are sensitive to heat. I can personally attest to this. My aunt makes acacia doughnuts by coating the flowers in pancake batter, quickly deep-frying them in oil and serving them with powdered sugar. The flowers have a very sweet, floral fragrance and the doughnuts taste as good as they smell. Acacia doughnuts are a real treat and a sign that summer has almost arrived.

Acacia doughnuts (beignets d'acacia)

My acacia honey comes from Brive-la-Gaillarde in France and was produced and distributed by Armondo and Dominque Filipe who are apiarists near Ussac, just north of  Brive-le-Gaillarde. Brive-la-Gaillarde is located in the south west of France in the Limousin region in the Corrèze department. The Filipes have produce honey and other products under the "Miel du pays de Brive" et "Limousin Gourmand" brands for over 15 years, and also make and sell hives.They have a wonderful website describing their operation and products (including acacia, bourdaine (black alder), tilleul (linden), montagne (mountain) and Châtaigner (chestnut) honeys, royal jelly and pollen). They also welcoming visitors, in case you are ever in this lovely region of France.

Brive-la-Gaillarde, France (in red)

 Their story is interesting. In 1995, out of curiosity, they bought 2 hives. Fast forward 15 years and they now have >400 and a thriving honey business. Also of note, the Filipe's label for their honey depicts St. Martin's church in Brive-la-Gaillarde (see honey photo below).

If the truth be told, I've had this honey for a while. I got in on a trip to Limousin years ago (the label says that it is best to consume it by 2004!) Acacia honey is usually a very clear, very light yellow color, but my honey has mellowed and is now a robust reddish-orange, although still very clear. It has a medium consistency and a very clean, uncomplicated, delicately floral, moderately sweet taste from beginning to end. Given how long I've had this honey I can confirm that acacia honey is not a fast crystallizer. In fact, even after all these years, this honey is clear and crystal free. 

Acacia (Black Locust) honey From Brive-la-Gaillarde, France

Acacia honey is ideal drizzled on plain yoghurt, in teas (the flavor is delicate and won't change the taste too much), in hot cereal or in baking. It is also very tasty on its own. The fact that is is a very slow crystallizer also makes it a good choice to spread on toast or for people who don't use honey much but when they do don't want to warm it up to get rid of crystals.

 

Miel de Fenouil (Fennel Honey), Les Ruchers de Normandie, Gisay-La-Coudre, France

I was traveling with my family this summer and visited Normandy, France. In Étretat I found a shop selling regional products with lots (and lots) of different kinds of honey. One caught my eye. Fennel honey. I'd never seen it before. And it had a sticker proclaiming that it was a silver medalist at the 2013 Ministry of Agriculture and Food's General Agricultural Competition. That was all I needed to make a beeline to the cash with it in my hot, little hands. Actually, it had me at Fennel. The 2013 prize was just icing.

Flowering fennel

So what is fennel? It is an aromatic, perennial herb indigenous to the Mediterranean region but now widely grown all over the world that has culinary and medicinal uses. However, some consider it an invasive weed since it propagates well by seed and can be found in open spaces like pastures and along the road. I think the plant is quite elegant with its feathery leaves and umbrella like flowers.

Fennel

If you are a licorice fan, you are probably already acquainted with it since it has a licorice flavor (like anise and star anise). I am a licorice fan. Not surprising it is a major ingredient of absinthe, a highly alcoholic beverage distilled from herbs. It is one of the herbs what gives absinthe its licorice taste (but not its psychoactive properties).


In addition, you can cook the bulb part of the fennel (great with salt, butter or cream) or eat it raw (great in salads). The leaves and seeds of the fennel plant are also used in cooking. If you've ever cooked Indian food, you may have noticed that fennel seeds were called for. Or, if you've ever eaten at an Indian or Chinese restaurant at the end of the meal roasted fennel seeds (sometimes sugar coated) might have been served as an after meal digestive or breath freshener.

Fennel is also purported to have a number of medicinal properties. It has been used to treat flatulence, airway inflammation, and colic, and it is thought to improve eyesight (some animal studies suggest it may be useful in treating glaucoma), and reduce hypertension. Of interest, Pline wrote about how fennel improved eyesight in the first century. Furthermore, powdered fennel has been used in kennels and stables as an anti-flea preparation.
 

In addition, the Greeks considered fennel a symbol of victory after their victory over the Persians at Marathon. The plain of Marathon was a field of fennel.

And, bees make honey from it in Gisay-La-Coudre in Normandy. One website suggests that fennel honey happened by accident. A apiarist from Marseille, Gerard Jourdan, regularly put his beehives on the plateau of Valensole to collect lavender honey. However one year the Ricard Society requested that local growers grow fennel on the plateau for the production of pastis. Bees on the plateau split their time between the fennel and lavender, and the resulting lavender/fennel honey was a slightly green honey with an unusual flavor. Given its mixed origins, it couldn't easily be sold in France. Therefore, the next year, Mr. Jourdan positioned his hives in the middle of the fennel fields to get a pure honey from just fennel. This began fennel honey production.

Florant and Melanie Maugeais of Les Ruchers de Normandie

Gisay-La-Coudre is a small community (population 244) in Haute-Normandie where apiarists Florent and Melanie Maugeais have 200 beehives. They are a young couple with agricultural roots, advanced studies in agricultural business and beekeeping, and pride in producing quality, organic honey.

The red dot in the NW corner of France, showing Gisay-La-Coudre

At Les Ruchers de Normandie, the Maugeais' label, they produce a number of different kinds of honey: acadia, linden, wildflower, and fennel, to name a few. 

The fennel honey that I have won the 2013 Silver Medal from the Ministry of Agriculture and Food's General Agricultural Competition.  This competition, which was created in 1870 and happens every year, is a big deal. Honey is judged in the Regional Products and Wine division. Producers are anonymous to judges and judges, who are regarded as experts in their fields, come from all over France to participate. Products, like honey, are obtained in the marketplace by anonymous buyers and then sent to the competition. It is the oldest competition of its kind in France and has many safeguards in place to minimize bias. Winners can label their products as medalists and have the glow that comes from knowing that their products are worthy.

The fennel honey is a deep amber color and slightly opaque. I thought it would be very thick because of the way it swirled in the jar but in fact it is a very thin honey and difficult to capture on a toothpick. It has no crystals or texture, just clear, thin honey. It has an extraordinary herbal, medicinal flavor with an undertone of molasses and a spicy aftertaste. I've heard it described as also having an almond, nutty flavor, but I think the herbal/spicy may overpower this.The aftertaste reminds me a bit of radish honey. It doesn't have any licorice taste at all. Quite lovely! Too strong for a delicate tea, too good to put in baking, but probably great on buttered toast or on crepes. Why it did not win Gold I'll never know. It is very unique.

You can buy this honey and other Les Ruchers de Normandie products on the Les Produits Normandie website. Well worth the bother!