Honey: a sweet taste of France to bring home

One product I always try to bring back from our visits to France is honey. If possible, I buy it at village markets, like the large one held each Saturday in Beaune. This popular event draws far more shoppers than there are convenient parking spaces, so if you go, plan to either drive around and around the ring road looking for an open spot, or resign yourself to parking a few blocks away.

A cheese vendor offers samples at the Saturday market in Beaune.

One honey seller here has a great variety of local product, made by bees that collect nectar from different flowering plants and trees. I particularly like the "miel de sapin," with the slightly tangy flavor of pine blossoms. This fall I'll also be on the lookout for rosemary honey, "miel de romarin," which the Romans reputedly considered the best of all. If you're even more crazy about honey, and French honey in particular, here's a website with more information that I'm able to digest.

I trust the honey at markets in the countryside more than in Paris, although it's likely some sold everywhere could be imported, since French beekeepers can't produce enough to satisfy demand, as described in this article.

Here's what the jars look like a little while after we get home:

Oops! The jar on the right was a peach / ginger marmelade, almost as good as honey.

Yes, one of them came from Fauchon in Paris, the gourmet epicerie near the Madeleine church. That's from a trip when we didn't spend much time in the countryside, so rather than go without, I grabbed a three pack there. The price wasn't as high as I expected, and the quality was very good. I'd hope a place with their reputation would make sure the honey in the jar was genuine.

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