Daniolo Strawberry Tree Organic Honey, Greece

Daniolo is a brand of a Greek company (Capacious Ltd) that operates out of Cyprus and specializes in working with small farmers (and apiarists) to bring to market products from the Greek Mediterranean basin. The company was founded by Constantine Daniolos and has a diverse product line that includes Kalamata olives, olive oil, olive oil soap, oregano, and honey (strawberry tree, wild thyme, vanilla fir and chestnut). All products are certified organic.

The Strawberry Tree showing flowers and fruit

I have their Strawberry Tree honey (although the label on my honey states “Strawberry raw honey organic” I think it is, in fact, Strawberry Tree honey, since the company makes the latter and not the former). I wasn’t familiar with what a Strawberry Tree was and had to look it up. According to wiki, Strawberry Tree is an evergreen shrub or small tree (Arbutus unedo) in the Etricaceae family (also known as the heath or heather family and includes cranberries, blueberries, huckleberries, azalea, rhododendron and common heaths and heathers). It is native to Western Europe, Ireland and the Mediterranean region, and happiest in warm, dry climates. “What on earth is it doing in Ireland?” you may ask. Strangely, it also grows well in the cool, wet summers of western Ireland, and in temperate regions. 

The fruit (berries) of the Strawberry Tree

Of interest, in Ireland it is known as the “Killarney Strawberry tree.” Its presence in Ireland (notably in Killarney and around Lough Gill in County Sligo) is apparently a remnant of its being there during the Atlantic period (circa 8000 BC to circa 3100 BC) when the climate was much warmer than today. Presumably it adapted to the climate as it changed. 

The shrub generally produces white, bell shaped flowers in a cluster that resemble snow bells. The fruit, however, is a red berry with a rough surface, and although edible, is not terribly flavorful in its raw form. The fruit take a year to mature so one often finds ripe fruit and flowers on the same shrub. The fruits are used to make jams and liqueurs (e.g. the Portuguese medronho, a type of brandy), but the plant is mostly cultivated as an ornamental shrub.

The Strawberry Tree has gotten its share of notice in the arts. It has been figured in paintings (e.g. The Garden of Earthly Delights by Hieronymus Bosch), is on the coat of arms of the city of Madrid, and is mentioned by Ovid in Metamorphose.

Madrid Coat of Arms with a bear eating Strawberry Tree fruit

The honey that is produced from the Strawberry Tree is reportedly bitter. In fact, Pliny the elder (AD 23- AD 79) wrote that it should not be planted where bees are kept because of the bitterness it would impart to honey. For some, however, the unusual flavor, sometimes also described as having an aroma hinting of roasted coffee beans, it thought to make for a tasty combination with pungent cheeses or cured meats. 

Daniolo Strawberry (Tree) Raw Honey Organic

The honey is a mellow caramel color with lots of particulate matter (a good sign that it hasn’t been overly filtered). It has a slightly pungent smell, subtly smoky with a faint licorice aroma. It is a fairly thick honey, and quite clear in small quantities. It rolls around on first taste and is not overly flavorful, but then gradually an aromatic flavor emerges. It has a (soft) bitter undertone that lingers, but there is also a hint of menthol and licorice that grows in prominence. It is an altogether unusual and very pleasant honey! I didn’t taste the coffee that some have mentioned and, while I did taste some bitterness, it was very mild. Given the delicate flavor I would not recommend using this honey in baking or with other strong flavors that would drown it out (i.e. in a strong black tea), but it would be very nice on buttered toast, with interesting cheeses, or straight out of the jar.

Attiki Greek (thyme) honey, Athens, Greece

Greece is known for, amongst other things, its honey, especially it thyme honey. It is blessed with a hot, sunny climate and well-drained soil that is ideal for the cultivation of thyme as well as other wild flora.

Thyme is native to the Mediterranean and a member of the mint family- and it is a large family. Over 100 species of thyme are known. It is a versatile, aromatic herb that has been used extensively in cooking. In fact, the general rule for using herbs in cooking is "when in doubt, use thyme."

Common Thyme

Throughout history thyme has also been used for other purposes: ancient Egyptians used it in embalming; ancient Greeks burnt it in their temples; Romans used it to purify their rooms à la Fabreeze; and in the Middle Ages it was placed under pillows to ward off nightmares. In addition it was a symbol of courage, embroidered on scarves and given as favors to the bravest knights, was used to preserve linen from insects, and used as an antiseptic. It seems that if you were stranded on a desert island, thyme might be all you would ever need.

The Bee Culturing Company [Alexandros Pittas, SA, Athens], a family business, produces two types of honey: Attiki and Fino. Attiki is honey from thyme and other wild flora, and Fino is forest honey. They claim that many of the wild flora that are the floral sources in Attiki honey are unique to the Greek countryside and produce a distinctive rich, complex (and heady) flavor. The business basically contracts with local honey producers throughout Greece and packs and distributes the honey internationally (in addition to offering training and other support to beekeepers). They have been doing this since 1928. They have a wonderful website with a few unique features. One is if you input the lot number of your honey it will tell you where it was produced and give you a little information about the apiarist and the area. Very cool: http://www.attiki-pittas.gr/uk/

Thyme hillsides in Crete

 They also have a recipe section with Greek honey recipes. Yum: http://www.attiki-pittas.gr/en/sintages/zaxaroplastiki

The Attiki honey I have is dark amber and slightly crystallized. It has a subtle herbal smell to it with an undertone of sweetness. It is a thick honey, that swirls in a dark, glassy way. My toothpick stands up in it. It is sweet but not overly so, with an herbal, savory taste that is even more evident in the after taste. It is so thick and smooth that it rolls around like a candy melting. I detect a hint of clove and has a subtle medicinal taste near the end, which is more pleasant than it sounds.

Attiki Greek Thyme/flora honey

Overall, it is a good quality honey with a complex, unique texture and flavor. Given the thickness, I can see why it is a favorite to drizzle over yoghurt, but it may also work well in cooking (I think it would complement the flavors of nuts very well), on toast, or hot cereal. To use it in Greek recipes, don't forget to check out the Attiki website.   If your local shops don't carry it, you can find a variety of suppliers online (including amazon), just type in Attiki Greek Honey into a search engine.

Creta Honey, Lassithi, Crete

Last summer we had a magical vacation on the island of Crete. Amazing archeological digs to explore, beautiful hidden valleys and plateaus to discover, and beaches, of every variety, to experience. You could spend two weeks just exploring all the beaches, and it would make for a great vacation. I kid you not. Here is a website describing all the beaches of Crete for your armchair traveling pleasure: http://www.cretanbeaches.com/ Our favorite beach was Falsarna because of the never ending waves, perfect for body surfing, but I digress. Back to honey.

A Cretan treat is Greek yogurt with Greek honey, a combination of the slightly sour fresh, creamy yogurt and the sweet of the honey. Just thinking about it takes me back to the island. Driving around Crete you may notice alot of box bee hives, on hills of thyme mostly, but if you look for them you'll see them everyone. Honey is a local product, with a year round production (no real winter in Crete) and given the climate and terrain, most flower sources for Cretan honey come from aromatic herbs. They are famous for their thyme honey. A site dedicated to local Cretan products claims that "bees are fed from bushes that are only grown in Crete." I wish they would say what kind of bushes these were, but I suspect they are thyme.

The honey I have is from the Lassithi plateau, in the central bit of the eastern part of the island. The Lassithi plateau is an unexpected find and quite different from other areas in Crete. High in the mountains (840 meters above sea level) it can only be accessed from eight passes. Driving up through winding roads, ascending into tall, grey mountains and then coming through a pass to see the flat expanse of farmland is truly a wonderful sight. And did I mention the windmills? It took me a while to figure out that they use wind power to irrigate the land. While olive groves are found all over Crete and there are many orange orchards in the western areas of the island, the Lassithi plateau may be unique for having pear and apple orchards, almond trees and fields of other crops that you might not expect to be grown in Crete. The plateau has been inhabited since Minoan times and one of the main attractions is the Dikti cave, one (of three) legendary birthplaces of Zeus on the island.

Because the flower sources are so different, I suspected that Lassithi honey would be quite different from the other honeys of Crete, and I'm right. It is a mellow yellow-brown color with a very slightly cloudy look to it. It is runny but if you swirl a toothpick in it quickly you get a fine twirl of honey. It is a smooth honey that clings to itself. You have to roll it around a little in your mouth for it to dissolve. It has a mellow, soft, brown molasses flavor followed by a sharper sweet taste. There is a very subtle herb flavor but it is not very pronounced, not at all like thyme honey. Would it be too obvious to say that it would be perfect in yogurt? Because, it would be perfect in honey.