Where: Douglas, West Wimmera Shire, Jardwadjali Country.
Who: Third-generation beekeeper Warren Stanley and his wife, Tanya.
Tanya, the Stanleys have been making honey for some time, is that right?
It’s the bees that make the honey. My husband Warren’s family have been keeping bees for generations, and they know the country like the back of their hands. Warren knows where the trees are flowering and when. He follows the seasons carefully and has almost a sixth sense about how the native bush will respond to rain, wind, drought, and seasonal changes. He takes the hives to various parts of the bush where we have leases and lets the bees do their foraging.
What honeys are the bees making?
There is a lot of river red gum country around here, and our red gum honey is rich, golden, and full-bodied, with a fresh fruit flavour. From the stringybark, we get a stronger, darker honey that is great for cooking. Around here is a species locals call blue gum – but it’s not the Tasmanian blue gum, which is light and buttery. Our local blue gum honey has a delicious, robust flavour with refreshing eucalyptus notes. It’s dense with a smooth texture – tasty on toast and crumpets or drizzled over porridge. Our yellow box honey has a pleasant, fresh aroma and a sweet citrus flavour with buttery beeswax undertones. From the Grampians, we also produce manuka honey with a methylglyoxal (MGO) of 100 – this is the compound with antiseptic qualities.
How do you extract the honey from the hives?
It is very simple. We bring the hives back from the bush to our honey sheds here in Douglas. We remove the wax cap, gently spin the honey out of the frames, strain it, and put it into jars. It’s very straightforward.
Who’s a fan?
Chef James Campbell (formerly of MoVida) at The Bunyip Hotel in Cavendish uses our red gum honey in a few of his dishes. He loves it.
Where can we find your honeys?
You can buy online at our website – check out my range of balms while you’re there. We have a great local following in stores like Calico and Candles in Harrow; Grampians Estate in Great Western; Red Tail Gallery in Edenhope; Say Want in Casterton; and IGA X-press in Goroke.