If you ever asked yourself what was there before sugar, then you should know that it was honey! Honey is the predecessor of sugar. Even today, many people prefer to use honey as a sweetener instead of sugar. There are many types of honey, coming in different textures, colors and has many varieties. This depends on the source of nectar and pollen collection, composition, processing methods, therapeutic applications, etc.
If you love honey, then you should definitely know these 10 types of honey:
1. Manuka Honey
Bees that feed on New Zealand Manuka bush produce the Manuka Honey. This honey has antibacterial activity and this is due to the high concentration of methylglyoxal (MGO) and dihydroxyacetone. Manuka honey contains a lot of B1, B2, B3, B5, and B6 vitamins, and amino acids lysine, proline, arginine, and tyrosine.
This kind of honey has amazing powers when it comes to healing wounds too. It promotes the formation of new blood cells and the growth of fibroblast and epithelial cells.
2. Eucalyptus Honey
Eucalyptus honey has a herbal flavor and a menthol aftertaste. It originates from California and Australia. This type of honey has anti-inflammatory and antioxidant properties. People use eucalyptus honey for dealing with headaches and colds.
3. Buckwheat Honey
Buckwheat honey is harvested fresh from the white blossoms of the buckwheat grain. It is the darkest and strongest type of honey. Because of its distinct and strong flavor, people do not often use it when consuming teas or in cooking. Buckwheat honey is produced in eastern Canada, Pennsylvania, New York, Minnesota, Wisconsin, and Ohio.
4. Anzer Honey
It is poly-floral honey harvested on the Anzer Plateau in Turkey. Anzer means “Fertile zone, a place full of the meadow”. It protects the liver and helps to treat tonsil infection. Two pounds of the famous Turkish honey Anzer sells for more than $300.
The good quality of this type of honey was even proved by bears when a Turkish beekeeper started using the bears that were stealing his honey and turned them into honey testers.
5. White Honey
White honey has a very sweet taste and it is white. Bees make it from the nectar of cotton flowers.
6. Dandelion Honey
Dandelion honey has a slightly sour taste and it is one of the stronger types of honey. It is produced in the South Island of New Zealand. Dandelion honey is great for consuming it with tea and for eating. It has a yellow color.
In China, India, and Tibet, people consider dandelion a medicinal herb. Dandelion has great healing properties. Also, dandelion is the first food that bees consume in spring – read more here.
7. Sage Honey
Sage honey is mostly produced in California. It is one of the thicker and more light-colored types of honey. Its main feature is that it granulates really slowly. Because of this, it is used with other types of honey in order to make their process of granulation slower. It has expectorant, antioxidant, antibacterial and digestive properties. Sage honey helps people control diabetes as well.
8. Jarrah Honey
A true liquid gold, besides New Zealand’s Manuka honey, is the Jarrah honey which is found in Australia. Jarrah honey is harvested from the jarrah tree. Compared to Manuka honey, Jarrah honey is rarer and more costly to produce. This is because it comes from a species of tree that is endemic only to the most unspoiled parts of Western Australia.
Jarrah honey has many benefits, clinical as well as cosmetics. It can be used as a treatment for really bad infections (like MRSA), it helps with burns and scrapes if it is used as an ointment, it keeps illness away by only taking a couple of spoonfuls every day.
9. Alfalfa Honey
This type of honey is extensively produced in the US and Canada. Alfalfa honey has a floral scent and light color. People use it when baking food. Alfalfa honey comes from the blue or purple blossoms. It can help with many problems, such as diabetes, anemia and it can improve digestion.
10. Clover Honey
Clover honey certainly is one of the most available and most popular honey types in the world. It originates from New Zealand and Canada. Clover honey has a floral scent, sweet taste, and a light yellow color. It is the best ingredient to sauces, salads and baking.