Beekeepers Guild sweetens Lodi’s Honey Harvest Festival

Each year, the Big Valley Beekeepers Guild has held a honey tasting contest in a room where attendees sit down at a table, sample entries and vote for their favorite.

But this year, the organization has expanded the event to include vendors, beekeepers, and even wine.

The guild’s Honey Harvest Festival and Honey Tasting Contest will be held on Saturday, Nov. 16 from 2-5 p.m. at Jessie’s Grove Winery, 1973 W. Turner Road.

“We keep trying to change it up a bit,” guild founding director Cherie Sintes-Glover said. “The idea (for the contest) was that a lot of people go to different places to taste honey, and when they think of honey, they usually think there’s just one flavor or taste, unless you have the opportunity to taste multiple honeys in one spot.”

The guild has partnered with Jessie’s Grove over the years on an educational apiary, where members teach future beekeepers the basics of raising the insects and making honey.

Glover said the guild wanted to educate more people about where the honey they taste comes from, and the idea to host a harvest festival was born.

“We wanted to have something where you get the chance to talk to beekeepers,” Glover said. “Everyone goes to the store and buys a jar, but they don’t actually get to see the person that makes the honey.”

The harvest fest and contest will be held in the winery’s east barn, and attendees will check in at the guild’s table to pick up a tray for their honey samples and rating cards.

Instead of sitting at tables like they’ve done in the past, guests will be able to traverse from station to station to sample wares, while at the same time visiting vendors who have made a variety of products from honey or beeswax -- such as baked goods, candles and lotion -- or talk with the 10 beekeepers on-hand.

The contest will be on a first-come, first-served basis, so only the first 30 people at the gate will be permitted.

But other attendees will still be able to sample the honeys, which are donated by guild members, Glover said.

The beekeepers will also have honey for tastings and purchase, although they won’t be included in the contest.

The winery’s tasting room will be open during the event, so guests can also taste and purchase wines to complement any honey they might purchase.

If you have been to the contest in the past, Glover said, it is important to remember that the honey you may have tasted or purchased from a guild member may not be the same this year, which means there’s always something new or different.

“What people don’t realize is that even if bees are kept in the same location year after year, the honey may be different each year,” she said. “Whatever they are foraging on can affect the taste of the honey.”

The event is free to the public, but Glover recommends those interested in participating in the contest should arrive before the doors open at 2 p.m. to ensure a spot.

To learn more about the guild, visit www.bigvalleybeekeepersguild.org or www.facebook.com/bigvalleybeekeepersguild.