Honey Blog #9

4 August 2026

Hello Honey Lovers!

I know it’s been a few months since our last blog, but we have been busy as 🐝 🐝🐝 at Naked Nectar Honey! We’re getting all starry-eyed here.

Bees and stars?

Let me fill you in!

Firstly, as reported in March, what with the rapid expansion of the number of hives we have, we decided to build a bigger honey processing room and update various bits of equipment, like a new extractor.

Working strictly according to food hygiene codes, we built a complete new unit with half dedicated to extraction and half dedicated to honey packaging and equipment maintenance. Our diligence was rewarded when we received our Food Hygiene Certificate with a 5-star rating!

Now, bring on that bumper harvest! This year we are hoping for a record honey crop as we have never had so many full honey supers on the hives, some up to 5 or 6 high!

While this was going on we were also continuing to populate our latest apiary site. We are so pleased with this new location. Surrounded by a small lake, abundance of wildflowers, flora and fauna, it’s a 5-star VIP retreat for the bees, and they have been thriving in their new environment. Read our January blog for more about our new site and its visionary landowner.

Very soon we will begin our summer harvest and then start preparing the bees for winter – which in this current heatwave might sound mad, but beekeeping is always one season ahead. The decisions we make in August determine whether a colony merely survives the winter or bursts into spring healthy and productive. Once the honey is harvested, our priority shifts from collecting honey to caring for the bees themselves: ensuring they are healthy, have enough food, and are able to raise the amazing "winter bees" that will carry the colony safely through until next spring. 

Now for the last star, and it’s a big one (though those of you who’ve tasted our honey won’t be
surprised).

 Naked Nectar Honey is officially an award-winning honey!

It was announced only a week ago that we had been awarded a star (meaning our honey is ‘simply delicious’) in the Great Taste Awards run by The Guild of Fine Food. Well, you couldn’t really ask more than that, with the judges, who blind taste each product coming back saying “what a flavourful complex honey. There were many complementary notes to enjoy and a clear, pleasant texture”!

So if you want to see what all the fuss is about, see if you agree with the judges, or are simply running low on your Naked Nectar Honey supply, then head to the website to secure your next jar!

Thank you to all our loyal customers – and keep an eye out as now we have the new Honey Room we will shortly be adding to our offering by making a small batch of soft set
honey for you to also enjoy!

We are also now available from Hockey’s Farm Shop in Fordingbridge, and Millets Farm Centre in Oxfordshire. Want to see us in your local farm shop? Let us know where and we’ll have a word ;)

Your beekeeper,

Huw 

 🐝

Huw  🐝