Hivelights

It’s a wrap! Well – almost. This is the last week of October and we are still trying to get all of our hives wrapped. We’ve only completed ¼ of our hives so far. The weather has been the problem and in that we’re not alone as a lot of farmers still have crop in the fields. Hopefully we can get the wrapping done by the end of this week.
In order to prevent the tragic losses we had last spring, we’ve increased our applications of Fumigillan B (to combat nosema ceranae) and used the new miticide Apivar (to fight Varroa mites).

In addition each hive is weighed to calculate how much sugar syrup they need to make it through until the next feeding in March. As I mentioned last month, sometimes too much food is as bad as not enough.
To read an article about our plans check http://www.westernwheel.com/news-bees.htm.

We are also gearing up for the Millarville Christmas Market Nov 6, 7
and 8 (http://www.millarville-ab.com/Christmas_market.html , for more detail see Events below). We’re quit excited about our location which is in the Community Hall at and beside the bar. It will be nice and warm and to get everyone into the Christmas spirit we will be providing samples of mulled mead. In addition we’re designing a variety of gift baskets and we’ll also be unveiling 2 new varieties of flavoured honeys – Vanilla and Grand Marnier.

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Mead Matters

We need Art back in the fermenting room as quickly as possible! At the moment we’re out of Bodacious Black Currant and Buckaroo Buckwheat. We will have the Bodacious back on the shelves in a few weeks and the batch of Melissa’s Gold we mentioned in the last newsletter has now been released. The Buckaroo that was started in September has been, well, bucking away in the tank and refuses to be tamed. Art hopes to get it under control by next week. With any luck it will be on the shelves for Christmas. Unfortunately the Ginger Snapped is almost gone and the next release won’t be until the new year.

We made a trip to the Okanagan over Thanksgiving and took some time to tour a few of the valley wineries. With over 80 to choose from it’s very different than the Alberta winery scene! We tried to visit small to medium size wineries – ones whose wines are hard to find in Alberta. Our recommendation for a fruit winery would be Forbidden Fruit Winery http://www.forbiddenfruitwines.com/ which is actually in the Similkameen River Valley south of Keromeos. The wines are organic as is their orchard and unique fruits such as Asian Pears and White (Rainier) Cherries are highlighted. For a grape winery we most enjoyed our visit to Golden Beaver Winery www.goldenbeaverwinery.com near Oliver, BC. They are the only winery in BC to produce Vin de Curé which is a wine created from grapes dried to 60% of their original weight. The result is a spicy dessert- style wine somewhat similar to spiced mead. We read a report that there was finally a Meadery in the valley, in West Kelowna (aka Westbank). However it seems their production was shut down due to licensing issues. Let’s hope they get that straightened out soon – it will be a great addition to the diversity of Okanagan wines.

Product of the Month

Honey Apple Butter Buzz

Our famous Honey Apple Butter Buzz is back! It is made with Spartan and Macintosh apples we selected from Sanderson’s Orchard in the Similkameen River valley. The apples are simmered in Melissa’s Gold mead and honey until well buzzed, then manually put through the food mill to remove skins and seeds and finally reduced slowly over medium heat. A few spices and voila – a great complement to anything sweet or savoury or as a simple dessert with a dollop of whipped cream and pecans. The true meaning of Slow Food! The cost is $7.00 for a  250 ml. jar

Cherie's Picks

1. Why food matters
http://www.calgaryherald.com/life/green-guide/food+matters/2058260/story.html

2. Beekeepers Tell Pesticide Firm to Buzz Off
http://www.commondreams.org/headline/2009/10/04-1

3. Beekeeper takes sting out of youth crime
http://www.thisislondon.co.uk/standard/article-23758405-beekeeper-takes-sting-out-of-youth-crime.do

4. Bee business receiving national attention
http://www.trentonian.ca/ArticleDisplay.aspx?e=2136361

5. Health tip of the day: Benefits of Honey
http://www.tayyar.org/Tayyar/News/PoliticalNews/en-US/128989718631274324.htm

Teasing Trivia

Q. How long have bees been producing honey from flowering plants?
A. About 10-20 million years