What makes heather honey so special?

Thomas Quigley explains what is involved in the production of heather honey, a premium product made from nectar collected from the common purple plant, which has a unique flavour and consistency with a tangy, pungent flavour that makes it a rare.

Heather honey is made from nectar collected from the tiny purple bell-shaped flower of the common heather plant (Calluna vulgaris), so named because of its domination of many areas of heath and boglands, and also known as ling heather.

Other heather species, such as the bell heather (Erica species), flower earlier and are less common which makes them less viable for honey.