Honey had long been mankind’s main source of sweetness, especially for drinks as it can counter the astringency of herbs. The most well-known honey drink is mead, a potent alcoholic drink made from fermented honey. It is most likely mankind’s first alcoholic beverage, as it can occur naturally. Honey is hygroscopic; that is it’s a super-saturated sugar solution that will draw moisture from the air until it is stable. Naturally occurring yeast can’t reproduce until there is enough water, food and heat, when there is a suitable habitat the yeast will reproduce, giving off alcohol. Honey in the wild, unless it’s stored in airtight wax honeycomb cells, will absorb moisture and then ferment creating a strong drink for cavemen and Vikings. It is believed that we get the word honeymoon from the practice of drinking mead for the first month (lunar cycle) of a marriage or the more romantic reference to the sweet first phase of wedded bliss.
These long late summer afternoons can be hot and humid. What better way to cool off than with a refreshing long drink made from local honey? While very sweet, honey is highly acidic, which can complement berries and citrus. Back in November I shared my recipe for Espresso Martini, a refreshing aperitif with a kick.
My wife is Scottish, so I took it as a challenge to develop a recipe for Drambuie, one of our favourite after dinner drinks which combines the taste of whisky with honey. Fortunately, I had everything to hand –fresh rosemary (a hardy annual that my bees love), fennel seeds (also a good plant for my bees), manuka honey and whisky. The trick is to infuse the honey with the aromatic herbs and the other key ingredient, water. This can then be added to the whisky at your leisure.
Drambuie
Better than Drambuie – tastes the same, but home-made!
200ml whiskey; preferably peaty, like Teachers or an Islay single malt
2 x 10cm sprigs rosemary; fresh?
1t fennel seeds, fresh or dried?
100g honey; preferably strong flavour like manuka, bush? or honeydew
100ml water?
These amounts can be adjusted to taste and the relative strength of each ingredient. Also note that the flavours develop over time and change quite a bit.
Put honey, water, rosemary and fennel in a double boiler – put into a bowl over a saucepan which has a couple of inches of water in. Simmer on a gentle heat for 15 mins.
This step is done to infuse the flavours and to kill any wild yeasts in the honey which could go on to ferment.?
Strain through a fine sieve or two layers of kitchen paper. Add liquid to the whisky. Taste and adjust as necessary. Drink immediately or keep it.
Honey Lemonade
250g honey
250ml hot water
4 lemons, juice only
2L Soda water
Combine honey and hot water until dissolved; add lemon juice. This can then be stored in the refrigerator until needed, for up to a week. Put into a large jug with plenty of ice; add soda water to taste.
Tips: It is just as refreshing with tap water. Garnish with lemon slices and mint
Iced Honey Tea
4 x tea bags; black or green
1L x water; boiling
½ x lemon; juice only
150g honey; more or less to taste
Steep the tea bags in hot water for five minutes; remove tea bags and then stir in honey and lemon juice. Allow to cool, serve in tall glasses with lots of ice and maybe a sprig of mint or rosemary. Some people add vodka.
Honey Marguerita
2 parts tequila
1 part Cointreau
2 parts honey syrup; (4 parts honey to 1 part boiling water; mix then allow to cool)
3 parts lemon juice
Shake well with ice and pour into a glass with salt encrusted rim.
Ken Brown . President Auckland Beekeepers Club
Apiculture tutor with Land Based Training Ltd.
