Greek pine honey is a dark, resinous honeydew honey that is far less sweet than flower honey. Rather than flower nectar, the bees gather a sweet secretion found on pine trees, and Greece produces the great majority of the world's pine honey. Here is what makes it special.
What is pine honey?
Pine honey is a honeydew honey. Bees collect a sugary substance left on pine trees by tiny insects, and process it into honey just as they would flower nectar. Because the source is different, so is the result: darker, richer and more savoury than a typical blossom honey.
What does it taste like?
Woody, resinous and malty, with much less sweetness than flower honeys and a subtle savoury edge. It is a honey with real backbone, closer to treacle in depth than to a light acacia.
How is it different from flower honey?
- Source: tree honeydew rather than flower nectar.
- Sweetness: noticeably less sweet, more complex.
- Colour: dark amber to brown.
- Crystallisation: slow, so it stays runny longer than most flower honeys.
How to use pine honey
Its robust character suits savoury pairings where a delicate honey would vanish: over feta or a mature hard cheese, in a marinade or glaze, or stirred into thick Greek yoghurt with walnuts. For more, see ways to use honey, and to compare the types, our guide to Greek honey types.
A note on safety: honey should never be given to babies under 12 months, as it can carry spores linked to infant botulism. It is also still a sugar, so enjoy it as a treat rather than a health supplement.
