Shopping for real raw honey brands can be a strenuous task. I didn’t realize how confusing honey could be until I started raising my own honeybees and harvesting raw honey. I’ve applied the knowledge I’ve gained to decipher the raw honey brands and provide the best options for you.
What are the best real raw honey brands? The top 3 real raw honey brands are:
These brands provide honey that has not been altered. The product isn’t heated or filtered to disturb any of the natural, healthy qualities that honey offers.
Which brand of raw honey you purchase can be a tough decision based around many personal preferences such as flavor, health benefits, and medicinal purposes. It’s also vital to understand how to discern raw honey from other honey being sold. I’ll walk you through which brands of raw honey I prefer and how to discern raw honey from the rest.
Last update on 2023-03-25 / Affiliate links / Images from Amazon Product Advertising API
Reviews of the Best Real Raw Honey Brands
1. Bee Patagon Ulmo Raw Honey
When purchasing honey, most people want a product that tastes good, has been left in its raw state, and still contains all the healthy aspects you desire.
If these are the qualities you’re looking for, Ulmo Raw Honey fits the bill. We should begin by exploring all the things that haven’t been done to this honey. Ulmo Honey hasn’t been pasteurized, filtered, or processed. It’s high in nutrients for these reasons because none of the natural vitamins in honey have been destroyed during the bottling process.
One of the most noticeable differences in Ulmo Honey is the texture. It’s a soft honey which makes it easy for spreading. Honey is frequently characterized by its thick, sticky consistency which makes it difficult for spreading on bread. However, this texture of honey is like a creamy butter. It makes it easier to use and more palatable for some people.
Ulmo Honey has a unique flavor as well. It’s made from Patagonian flowers, which may give this honey a floral tone. The honey is extracted from hives left in nature. Meaning, the bees are left to make honey from the flowers surrounding their normal settings.
Perhaps the most important aspect of this honey is that it has been deemed medical grade. Not all honey has the same antibacterial fighting power as others. This honey has been proven to contain a multitude of antibacterial components. Its concentration is high enough that it has been labeled for its ability to fight infection and help with wound care.
It always makes shoppers feel more at ease when there’s a money-back guarantee offered. Ulmo Honey offers this guarantee to its buyers. If you’re money-conscious, this should help ease your mind as you try to find the best real raw honey brand for you.
Pros:
- Considered a medical-grade honey
- Money-back guarantee if you’re not satisfied with your purchase
- Hasn’t been altered by pasteurization or filtration
Cons:
- Higher priced in comparison to other brands
- The texture is different than traditional honey
- The added floral tone from the Patagonian flowers may not be preferred by all consumers
2. Honey Pacifica Sage Raw Honey
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Honey Pacifica is a sage toned honey that many people thought was a thing of the past. This honey is produced in California. Though black sage flowers are drought-tolerant, many beekeepers have gotten away from trying to produce sage flavored honey because of the recent conditions in California.
When producing this style of honey, you not only must keep the bees thriving, but you also must keep sage flowers alive around the hives. It shouldn’t go unnoticed; this company puts in the work to raise healthy bees and plants to provide this specific type of honey.
Though Honey Pacifica has a unique flavor, it’s also known for having a longer shelf life. Honey can be stored for years without becoming crystallized if it’s stored in an airtight container and left closed. Yet, if you don’t seal the honey immediately after each use, the honey will begin to absorb water. This will cause crystallization to take place.
As mentioned previously, Honey Pacifica is made from black sage flowers. This style of honey is less sweet than others.
The honey is left in its natural state. It’s not filtered, pasteurized, or processed. They even cold pack it when putting it into jars to keep all the nutrients intact. This is important because raw honey can be difficult to package due to its thick texture.
By cold packing the honey, it expresses the quality the company is trying to provide without saying a word.
However, the product is packaged in a plastic bottle. If you’re health-conscious and try to stay away from plastic, this should be considered with your purchase. Many people assume when they buy raw honey that it will come in a glass jar. This isn’t the case with this product.
Pros:
- No filtration, pasteurization, or other forms of processing
- Longer shelf life compared to other brands of honey
- Affordable option for raw honey
Cons:
- Sage flavored which may not be enjoyable to every honey-lover
- Packaged in a plastic jar
- Less sweet than other varieties of honey
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3. Wild Garden Pure Raw Gourmet Honeycomb
Many people have had honey, but few have eaten it straight from the comb. This not only gives you the delicious flavor you love, but you get to enjoy a unique experience.
Wild Garden Honeycomb is honey in its raw form. It hasn’t been pasteurized or altered. The comb is cut from the hive, packaged, and shipped to your door. This is beneficial because you not only get to enjoy the benefits of raw honey but also the benefits of bee’s wax as well.
Though this is a cool experience to have, the packaging is a problem with this product. Shipping honeycomb in a plastic carton leaves room for leaky packages and can create storage difficulties.
If you choose this method of raw honey, it would be a good idea to place the honeycomb in a glass jar to store for later use.
This is meant to be a gourmet experience. This equates to a larger price tag for a smaller package. Keep in mind, if you want to utilize this honey to put in your tea or to eat a spoon full, it’ll take more work than honey which has been extracted from the comb.
Like most things in life, the cool experience is great to have, but you must try it to decide if it’s what works for you in the long-term. The same rule applies to your search for the best real honey brands.
Pros:
- Can experience the benefits of bee’s wax
- Honey is in its raw form and unpasteurized
- Can have a unique experience, enjoying honey straight from the comb
Cons:
- Faulty packaging
- Difficulty storing the product long-term
- Can’t return the product if dissatisfied
- More expensive than other raw honey options
How to Recognize 100% Pure Raw Honey – Buyer’s Guide
When shopping for honey, it’s important to discern between raw honey and altered honey. Unfortunately, consumers purchase altered honey regularly thinking it’s raw because they don’t understand the difference.
Honey should be an enjoyable condiment and can be added to your health regiment to experience greater health. Yet, it’s vital to seek the following characteristics in honey to make sure you’re buying a quality product.
Check the Label
Honey is made of natural sugars such as fructose and glucose. If the label lists any other ingredients such as starch, preservatives, added sugars, or flour, you know the honey isn’t raw.
Always check the label to make sure it uses the term ‘raw.’ If you see added ingredients, or if the label doesn’t read ‘raw’ this is an easy way to discern what quality of product you’re purchasing.
Sweetness Factor
Honey is naturally sweeter than most white sugars. Unless you have a sensitive palate, this may be harder to discern. However, the honey should be sweeter than what you’re accustomed to in most cases.
When I first tasted raw honey, it almost made my lips pucker because I wasn’t accustomed to such a sweet flavor. If the taste of honey doesn’t shock your taste buds, you should question the authenticity of the product.
Minimal Water Content
Raw honey should be 20% or less in water content. The less water, the thicker the product. You can discern the texture of the honey by pouring it out of the jar.
If the honey is in a squeeze container, squeeze some of the honey from the container onto a plate. As it pours, it should make one steady line of honey because of how thick it is.
As it lands on the plate, it should make a small mound that quickly condenses onto the plate. If your honey is stored in a mason jar, put some on a spoon and follow the same procedure.
If the honey pours in a drizzle form, the water content is too high.
Minimally Processed
Many people choose to consume raw honey for the health benefits. Honey is high in antioxidants and vitamins. When heated too much, it kills the healthy properties within the honey. Make sure the honey hasn’t been pasteurized.
You should also avoid honey which has been highly filtered. Pollen and other natural products you find in honey when it comes straight from the hive are desirable for your health.
Crystallization
Honey should be stored in an airtight container. Otherwise, it will pull water out of the air, which can cause the honey to spoil. It can also cause it to crystallize. If you purchase honey, and it crystallizes in the next 90 days, there is a chance the water content was too high, or it had added ingredients.
In my own experience, there have been times when I pulled honey from our hives and it crystallized. It wasn’t processed and had no added ingredients.
Checking for crystallization isn’t a foolproof method to determine the quality of the honey. If you trust who you purchased the honey from, there’s no danger in eating crystallized honey. You can melt the honey into its original form by heating the container in hot water.
However, you should keep this in mind if you find yourself wondering about the quality of the product you’re purchasing. Some honey will crystallize faster if it has added sugars or other added ingredients.
Clarity
Humans tend to lean towards products that look prettier and cleaner. You must avoid this habit when shopping for raw honey.
When you hold honey up to the light, you should see particles of comb and pollen in the container. This lets you know the product hasn’t been heavily filtered or processed.
Color
You shouldn’t look to the color of honey to decide whether it’s raw or processed. It’s true; you usually find golden-colored honey on most grocery store shelves. However, this isn’t a sign that all lightly colored honey has been pasteurized, filtered, or contains added ingredients.
Honey can come in a variety of colors based upon what the bees used to make it. For instance, sourwood honey is darker than most floral toned kinds of honey.
My Choice for the Best Real Raw Honey Brands
There’s no way to top shopping for raw honey from your local beekeeper. This allows you to know the product and the person behind it.
However, this isn’t a viable option for everyone. In the case where you can’t shop straight from the hive, Ulmo Honey is the way to go. Though all the products on this list are raw and unrefined, they didn’t all share the same certifications and shopping protection that Ulmo Honey provides.
Ulmo Honey tops the list because it is medical grade honey. You can’t overlook this certification and should feel confident knowing you’re consuming a product filled with enough bacteria fighters to earn this recognition.
The company also stands behind their product by offering a full refund if you’re not satisfied. This eliminates the risk of wasting money while shopping for your favorite raw honey.
You can’t overlook the texture of Ulmo Honey, either. The honey spreads like butter, which makes it easier to use. Put all these elements together, and you have the best real raw honey brand.
Top Rated Raw Honey Brands
Last update on 2023-02-27 / Affiliate links / Images from Amazon Product Advertising API
