Spotted Duck Apiary: Selling Honey with 'Terroir'

摘要

Beekeepers have a problem. It isn't climate change, or colony collapse disorder, or even the pernicious Varroa mite. According to John Emery, the real problem with beekeepers is their humility. "They sell their honey short, they sell their work short," he says, seated in the dining room of his upstate New York home. A pyramid of honey jars adorned with Emery's distinctive brown label glows in the morning light. "Beekeepers undervalue their product," Emery states, plainly exasperated. He holds a jar of honey like an aegis or an amulet, his reverence and admiration for his product - and the small, stinging charges that made it - readily apparent as he makes his pitch. "This is a once-in-a-lifetime honey, crafted by bees. It's a history of the land, essentially, written for your sense of taste. The only time you're going to have this honey is right now."