Q and A's
Here are some of the questions we're often asked.
Can I eat honey if I'm pregnant?
Yes, you can. The Food Standards Authority website explains that when you're pregnant your digestive tract is acidic, which means that anything in honey which could potentially be harmful to your baby is neutralised. Many doctors, health visitors and complementary health practitioners recognise honey as an easily digestible, high-energy, 100% natural food.
TopWhy is honey not suitable for infants under 12 months?
Honey is a completely natural food, harvested from some of the world's most beautiful, remote spots. At Rowse, we are obsessed with product hygiene and take enormous measures to make sure that your favourite honeys are not only delicious, but also safe. The fact is that an infant's digestive tract isn't quite ready to process some of the naturally-occurring constituants in honey, and this inability could potentially cause constipation followed by general weakness which would, of course, stop baby feeding properly. We would, however emphasise that in the UK there have been no (0) cases of infants' digestive problems being caused by honey. Nevertheless, we follow international advice in saying that honeys should not be given to infants under 12 months.
TopWhy do small crystals sometimes form in clear honey?
Around 80% of honey's composition is natural sugars, transformed by the bees from nectar. These natural sugars, which are mainly fructose and glucose, remain liquid at room temperature, but at colder temperatures, the glucose separates from the rest of the sugars and forms small crystals. These are harmless. If you want these crystals to dissolve, simply stand the honey jar in your airing cupboard or a basin of warm water for a little time and - hey presto - they'll disappear!
TopShould I be worried if my clear honey goes cloudy?
No. Any cloudiness in clear honey comes from molecules of air trapped in the thick, golden honey. The flavour is not affected at all. To help these disperse, simply put the jar in your airing cupboard or a basin of warm water for a little time. Is that clear?
TopHow is Set Honey made?
Given time, most honeys will crystallise and set. This is because some of the natural sugars, glucose, separate from the others so forming crystals. At Rowse, we choose those honeys with naturally high dextrose levels to be our set honeys. Examples of these are: English, New Zealand Clover, French Sunflower and Tasmanian Leatherwood. Here's how we make set honey:
- we gently heat the selected honey to melt the natural sugar crystals
- we then filter it to remove any bits of wax or other hive debris
- this liquified honey is then chilled and 'seeded' by blending it with a batch of the same type of honey that was previously crystallised and has been kept stirred. The recipes for doing this, the time taken, temperature, types of honey and methods of stirring are all part of the Rowse expertise that we've been building since we first started in 1954.
- taking great care to control the temperature, we pour the honey into jars, then keep it in a special cold store for about 4 days.
- you now have a delicious smooth set honey that is perfect for spreading.
Why does set honey sometimes go hard?
If you store honey at very low temperatures, it 'frosts'. Frosting is harmless and happens when the natural crystals begin to bond together to form a lattice network - the colder the temperature, the stronger the network, the harder the honey. To soften a frosted honey, it just needs a gentle warming in somewhere like the airing cupboard for a day or so.
TopWhy does set honey sometimes go runny?
Usually, heat is the culprit. Honey exposed to direct sunlight or strong heat softens and melts. To make this honey set again, it needs a spell in the fridge for a few hours, after which it'll be perfectly happy - and perfectly delicious - at room temperature.
TopAre sugar or sweeteners ever added to Rowse honey?
No, never. Nothing has been added - and nothing taken away. Rowse honey is a completely natural product that is naturally sweet. The different textures, flavours, aromas and levels of sweetness in each of the Rowse honey range come entirely from our bees. It's their job to forage for nectar and to transform it into honey. Each nectar source gives a different honey, just as every home should have different honeys for different occasions.
TopIs the comb in your Hungarian honeycomb or Cut Comb in Acacia created by bees, or is it artificially manufactured?
A Honey comb is naturally produced by bees, particularly the youngest bees in the hive. It is part of a food storage system to sustain the hive throughout the winter months when bees do not hibernate. Bees take nectar and mix it with glands in their mouths. They then cluster to raise their body temperature and secrete enzymes from glands under their abdomens - this is then formed into the perfect hexagons of the honeycomb. The nectar/enzyme mix is stored in the honeycomb until the water content is reduced to around 17%, at which point the cell is capped with further wax. This capping is what tells the vigilant beekeeper that the honey is ready to be harvested.
TopWhich Rowse Products are Gluten Free and suitable for Coeliacs?
All of these are - enjoy!
- All Rowse Honeys
- All Rowse Maple Syrups
- Rowse Luxury Chocolate Sauce
- Rowse Luxury Brandy Sauce
- Rowse Luxury Toffee Sauce
- Rowse Luxury Strawberry Sauce
- Rowse Ginger Sauce
- Rowse Luxury Lemon Curd
- Rowse Luxury Passion Fruit & Mango Coulis
- Rowse Luxury Raspberry Coulis
- Rowse Luxury Blackcurrant Coulis
- Rowse Luxury Tropical Fruit Coulis
- Rowse Luxury Morello Cherry and Red Currant Coulis
Which Rowse products are suitable for vegetarians?
All of these are guaranteed vegetarian products:
- All Rowse Honeys
- All Rowse Maple Syrups
- Rowse Luxury Chocolate Sauce
- Rowse Luxury Brandy Sauce
- Rowse Luxury Toffee Sauce
- Rowse Luxury Strawberry Sauce
- Rowse Ginger Sauce
- Rowse Luxury Lemon Curd
- Rowse Luxury Passion Fruit & Mango Coulis
- Rowse Luxury Raspberry Coulis
- Rowse Luxury Blackcurrant Coulis
- Rowse Luxury Tropical Fruit Coulis
- Rowse Luxury Morello Cherry and Red Currant Coulis
Can you please explain what the
"grade" of maple syrup means?
Maple syrup grades measure the percentage of light which passes through a calibrated sample of the syrup - the lighter the colour, the greater the transmission figure. The sap of maple trees is collected in March and April. One litre of maple syrup is really slow to make - first you must boil 40 litres of maple sap! This is obtained by tapping the tree and collecting the liquid that drips slowly out. Boiling evaporates the moisture and develops the lovely woodsy flavour into what we recognise as maple syrup.
Normally, the first flows of sap lead to a lighter maple syrup and the final flows a darker syrup. However, and just to confuse you, please note that there are two grading systems - a Canadian grade and a USA grade. Their designations are different as follows:
| Light Transmission | Canadian Grade | USA Grade |
| 75.1 - 100% | AA No 1 Extra Light | A Light Amber |
| 60.6 - 75% | A No 1 Light | A Medium Amber |
| 44.1 - 60.5% | B No 1 Medium | A Dark Amber |
| 27.1 - 44.0% | C No 2 Amber | B (Commercial) |
| 0 - 27.0% | D No 3 Dark | B (Commercial) |
At Rowse, we're proud to only ever offer the very highest grades of maple syrup to you.
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