Description and Distinctive Features of the Product:

Color: Transparent, shiny, depending on the effects of the dry or rainy season or the frost on the natural vegetation, it changes from a light amber tone to a dark amber tone, and depending on the color of the flower from which the bee takes nectar, it can be generally yellowish or sometimes khaki.

Taste: It has a pleasant taste originating from the aroma of the honey plants growing in the region, and leaves a slight burning sensation in the throat. Smell: It has a nectar smell originating from the aroma of the honey plants growing in the region.

Consistency: It has a fluid consistency. The strained honey crystallizes in a homogeneous structure in the form of cream after approximately two months at room temperature, and earlier under storage conditions falling below room temperature.

Bee race: One of the most important factors that reveals the characteristic feature of Ardahan flower honey is that the bee race is the "Caucasian bee (Apis mellifera caucasica)". The Caucasian bee race is the honey bee with the longest tongue (6.7 - 7.2 mm). With this feature, it makes the best use of the nectar sources of deep-tubed flowers (mainly Boraginaceae and Fabaceae families) that dominate Ardahan in general and makes very good use of the clover flower, a widespread deep-tubed plant in Ardahan. It can work in low temperatures and unfavorable climate conditions. It has a tendency to make irregular-bridge combs. Since it does not leave an air gap between the honey and the glaze while glazing the comb cells, the comb honey has a dark and moist appearance.

Characteristics of the Caucasian bee race: It was determined by the "Communiqué on the Registration of Native Animal Breeds and Lines" numbered 2004/39 of the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry. In accordance with the circulars of the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry, in order to protect the racial characteristics of the Caucasian bee, Ardahan province has been closed to the entrance of bees from other provinces except Artvin province as an "isolated region". The Caucasian Bee Production, Education and Gene Center Directorate and the Ardahan Provincial Directorate of Agriculture and Forestry work together in the implementation of the circular.

Production Method: Beekeeping activities in Ardahan province are carried out in the form of fixed beekeeping, increasing the number of colonies by taking natural swarms, replacing old and unproductive queen bees of the colonies and mainly honey production. Beekeepers carry out their beekeeping activities; preferably using langstroth type standard hives made of Scots pine wood that they obtain from the Ardahan Caucasian Bee Production, Education and Gene Center Directorate available in the province. “Ardahan Flower Honey” producers carry out their activities in the villages or regions where they reside, in accordance with the circulars of the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry, in fixed locations indicated by the Ardahan Governorship.

The harvest of Ardahan flower honey starts in mid-July when the honeycomb cells are glazed and the honey harvest is completed in August. The harvest starts from the combs where all or at least 2/3 of the honey in the comb is glazed, which is an indicator of the maturation of the honey. The humidity (water ratio) of Ardahan flower honey should be below 20%. Since the water ratio is high in honey that is not yet ripe and is filtered early, the honey crystallizes earlier and also undergoes fermentation. In early July, when the honey flow begins, sterile combs should be placed in the developing colonies, the honey boxes (superstructures) where the honey will be produced and the honey boxes. The honey in the brood is not harvested and is left to the bees considering the winter conditions. The honey harvest starts in the evening. The combs taken from the hives are placed in a clean empty hive, covered with a clean white cloth and carried to the filtering rooms or tents. White combs and fully glazed regular combs are filtered in a filtering machine (centrifuge) and filled into chrome steel tanks and left to rest in a hygienic environment. The purpose of resting is to settle the pollen grains and eliminate air bubbles. After resting, the honey takes on a clear, clean and shiny appearance and is filled into glass jars or lacquered tins.