Raw Honey Reviews

Tag: Honey

Round Rock Fresh Raw Local Honey Review
Round Rock Fresh Raw Local Honey has a special place in my heart. Not because of their company, product or even the Honey itself. It holds meaning that reaches back a few years ago, before I started The Honey Review.

Round Rock Honey is one of the first products I received back when I told my Uncle Doug about my excitement for starting thehoneyreview. It’s one of the first Honey products I tested and researched. I’ve had it several times since then, how well has it been favored in my opinion?

“Honey From the Rock”

Read below for my review of Round Rock Fresh Raw Local Honey.

Round Rock Fresh Raw Local Honey Review
- Honey: Its Wildflower, Clover, Common.
- Color: Light, Filtered Golden Tan.
- Aroma: Mild Floral Notes, Subtle Oak and Nuttiness.
- Flavor: Very Sweet, Buttery, Slight Acidity.
- Texture: Very Smooth, High-Tech Filtration, Not Gummy.
If you’re native to the Austin Area, chances are you’ve seen Round Rock Honey before. It’s commonly available at HEB and most Farmers Markets. They source from over 90 various sites across Texas with thousands of Hives statewide. While this is not local Honey by my standards, it is local by State (However Texas is enormous). Round Rock Honey does bottle Honey locally on Site for HEB, and is very active with Farmers Markets. But who knows where that Honey comes from or whose it is?

The Owners Konrad and Elizabeth Bouffard started with just 4 Hives in Austin. Now they run a commercial operation with a physical store and web store.

There are Beekeeping Classes, Tours, Soaps and Skincare products, and most recently Christmas Trees? In fact, their Beekeeping school is one of the largest in Texas. These guys like to educate, and I’m cool with that.

Round Rock Honey sells Beekeeping Supplies and Nucs as well for new or existing Beekeepers.

They’ve been promoting Tours of their Facility in Round Rock since 2014. Availability of Factory Tours has dwindled since the Pandemic in 2020. But you may be able to book one or two every month.

They are $5 per person. Keep in mind this is just a factory tour with no live hives, just a demonstration of beekeeping practices and the manufacturing of Honey. I always appreciate companies that allow customers to check out the factories to give you a glimpse of how it’s made. Hershey has been doing this for decades, and my favorite, Ben & Jerry’s in Vermont.

In a way, I’d compare Round Rock Honey to Kelley’s Local Texas Honey. It’s local of Texas state, but not neighboring local or county local. Making them commercial and bordering a Honey Packer. They’ve expanded into another sister label called Goodbees as well, which is the same product, with a different name. Wine companies do this all the time. It’s so they can expand marketing through a different name, while funneling the profits into the same entity. And I’d say if you’re selling well at HEB, you know how to market. Maybe it has something to do with Taxes, I’m not sure.

The prices are definitely on the expensive side. Almost at $1 per lb. Comparing Round Rock Honey to Kelley’s Local Texas Honey at HEB, you’ll find that Round Rock Honey charges $7 for 8oz or $9.11 for 16 oz. Kelley’s, however, charges $4.68 for 12 oz or $7.91 for 24 oz. I’d say you get what you pay for in this case. To an extent… Even Kirkland Honey at Costco just states its Local Texas Honey and that’s a 3lb jar for $8.99!

Effective Marketing leads to sales, it also educates potential Customers.

Round Rock Honey has very clear and concise wording on their product line. It encourages those that should know important details like the processing treatment. Round Rock Honey states they don’t heavily filter or heat their Honey. They pull frames of uncapped Honey from a big Centrifuge at room temp. Because I’m a beekeeper, I know this is the proper treatment, however many consumers don’t.

If you read about the product on HEB’s website, Round Rock has a lot of updated and direct information. There’s a lot of copy and paste with the same statement being made multiple times even on their own website. I guess that’s something they really want to emphasize though.

Producing wildflower honey is difficult, and yields unpredictable, but in the opinion of Round Rock Honey owners Konrad and Elizabeth Bouffard, it is more important to focus on quality than on quantity! The emphasis on quality at Round Rock Honey extends to the harvest and packaging as well. Honey is “robbed” on a regular basis (season & weather permitting), and promptly bottled. Although all our honey is poured through a stainless-steel sieve to remove bee legs and wings as well as wax caps, it is never heated or filtered. We remove honey from the hives by centrifuge, at room temperature. This is done so that pollen, trace minerals, and complex sugars that occur naturally in our honey are never compromised.
– ROund Rock Honey – HEB Product Page

I appreciate they use their names, proper terminology, and why. This all reflects why they advocate for Tours so often and promote their beekeeping school. This is awesome. Kelley’s, however, their description is adequate, but not as informative.

Kelley Honey Farms products are 100% U.S.A. We are proud to provide our consumers with all-natural raw products, harvested completely in the United States of America. Our Texas bees produce honey from all regions of Texas including Greenville, McKinney, Weatherford, Lubbock, Pleasanton, Edinburg, Liberty and Chicota. Moving 14,000 hives to the best nectar flows across Texas produces Kelley Honey Farms over 1,000,000 pounds of honey per year.
Kelley’s LOcal Texas Honey – HEB Product Page

Kelley’s drives the point of being a USA product and not imported, which is fair, we get a ton of imported Honey. And they state the counties at which they harvest their Honey. It’s more than Round Rocks I’d assume as Kelley’s has 3 different brands under the same name, and a much lower retail price. Round Rock doesn’t even bother to state counties, so that’s nice of Kelley’s.

Now this is just a comparison of two local Texas Honey suppliers, but its a good point to make in how different they are with some similarities. I thought Kelley’s branding was very misleading in my initial review. They didn’t have an active social media, they are missing important details on their labeling, they don’t offer tours or schools, and have several brands that somehow offer the same exact product for questionably low prices.

I like the core of what Round Rock Honey is trying to resemble, but unfortunately, I’d still say they’re a commercial Honey Packer selling the idea of Raw Local Honey to those who don’t really know much about Honey or Bees.

Misleading, but not a terrible product. That being said, as much as I want to love their Honey, I don’t love their prices or that they don’t sell local Honey. It’s overwhelmingly misleading with these Honey producers with commercial factories. In fact, I’ve never bought my own bottle of Round Rock Honey, it’s always been gifts. But free Honey is always sweet.

Tiny 4 oz plastic jar. $5

Round Rock Fresh Raw Local Honey
The Honey Review
Honey
Color
Flavor
Aroma
Texture
Summary
It’s real Honey, It’s Texas based. It’s rather generic, being only wildflower. They have a wide range of products though. Orange Cinnamon Honey, Bourbon Barrel, which I may try in the future. They offer factory tours, hive tours, classes, and even had enough overhead to do groupon offers. They provide educational information on their products.

Round Rock Honey has become a product of commercial Honey Packers and promote their Honey at 6 Texas Farmers Markets. It’s hard to source how local this Honey is, but Texas is enough for people.

I’d buy it over an import Honey from Brazil, but I’d look elsewhere for local Texas Honey.
3.2
March 23, 2022
Kelley’s Honey Farms – Local Raw Texas Honey Review
You could say I’m on a mission to find as many local Texas Honey products around me. Since I’m no stranger to the local HEB, or grocery shopping in general, it’s likely I’m going to come across a bottle of Honey or two. HEB has a Kelley’s Local Raw Texas Honey bear that came with a fantastic price of $3.89 for 12oz.

Is this typical commercial crap? or is it actually a decent local Texas Honey?
Check out my review below.

Kelley’s Local Raw Texas Honey
- Honey: Straight forward Clover or Wildflower, Basic.
- Color : Golden amber brown.
- Aroma : Nothing significant, slight musk.
- Flavor : Very sweet, with little acidity.
- Texture : Extremely smooth, highly processed.
Normally, I wouldn’t recommend going to the local grocery chain to purchase Honey. But if you’re native to Texas, I’m sure you’re familiar with HEB. HEB is a San Antonio based Grocery Chain with a bunch of Locally sourced Texas Honey on the shelves. I’d often suggest avoiding Grocery Stores for Honey and the classic Honey bear Bottles because they are usually suspect and marked up. Effective marketing over the years, customers have come to expect Honey packaged in these.

The biggest takeaway for this Honey is the Color and texture. Which is typically what average customers are looking for. Often looking for that golden amber brown with a silky-smooth thick texture. It’s too refined.
And they only sell one type. No description of Clover, Mesquite or even Wildflower.

I noticed HEB had Kelley’s Honey Farm which also uses the brand Lone Star Honey, and Stroops Wildflower Honey. The price for a 12oz is under $4.00 at HEB. It may be different on Amazon or at local Walmart’s.

Kelley’s Local Texas Honey claims it is unfiltered raw Honey sourced and packed by Kelleys Honey Farm out of Chicota, Texas. It’s 100% U.S Grade A certified with a Kosher and Gluten Free approval. They include their phone number on the bottle and a mailing address, which is always a good sign! They have a great website with minimal yet concise information of their products and company History.

There isn’t a ton of information about their process, and it has a very commercial appeal.

They started marketing their Honey online in 2009, and they don’t have much customer response. This leads me to believe they have become more hands off with their distribution. I’m not really buying what their label claims to be true about their processing, at least not anymore. The fact they claim to “Pack” their Honey is rather revealing, as there is a big difference in Honey Packers to Beekeepers.

I tried reaching out via email, social media and phone with questions and concerns regarding their varietal source, processing and heating methods, and possible hive tours, but heard nothing back.

I’ll update this review if they reply with any information. I am under the impression they mix their honey with other honey suppliers, slap different labels on and sell in mass. I don’t believe this is local, and likely blended.

Having a “State” sourced honey doesn’t really say much if you’re going to say you’re a “Local Texas Honey”. Texas is really diverse in its topography and allergens.

Kelley’s branding is misleading to potential customers.

Sometimes if you inspect the bottle, it may lead you to another company. Bigger honey labels buying up the smaller ones. The design and layout of Kelley’s sure does remind me of Desert Creek Honey, which is one of Texas’s biggest suppliers.

Speaking of, where is the Mesquite? One of Texas’s most popular native trees.

You can find Kelleys Local Texas Honey at Local HEB Stores, Walmart, and Amazon. They gave direct answers to Customers questions on Amazon, but contact with them seems very inconsistent. generally, Grocery store Honey should be avoided. But if local beekeepers aren’t in your area or you just need a sugar substitute, I’d still recommend picking up something like this. Look for other Texas Honey I reviewed like Costco’s Kirklands Texas Honey, or Round Rock Honey.

Kelley’s Local Raw Texas Honey
The Honey Review
Honey
Color
Aroma
Flavor
Texture
Final Thoughts
They have several brands under their name, with varying counties within Texas their Bees source. There is vague information with specifics of what kind of Honey, mainly because their operations are likely too big. This is a great price with likely availability for Texas, but it’s far from something I’d prefer to use regularly. I’d rather buy from Beekeepers, not Honey Packers.
2.8
March 17, 2022
Kirkland Texas Raw Unfiltered Honey Review
I purchased Honey from Costco Wholesale. Kirkland products are usually high quality, and this Honey is widely available for a terrific price. It claims to be sourced locally by the State with neighboring counties. This Kirkland Texas Raw Unfiltered Honey is 100% U.S. Grade A, True Source Certified in a 3lb plastic bottle.

Is this a Costco Keeper? Or is this just another grocery store Honey in a bigger bottle?
Kirkland Texas Raw Unfiltered Honey

If you’re a member of Costco you can benefit from bulk products like Honey, Olive Oil and Nuts for great prices. I picked up this Kirkland Texas Raw Unfiltered Honey for $8.99 in a 3lb jar. I did a little research on where this was actually sourced in Texas and found a couple interesting things.

Kirkland Signature Local Texas Raw Unfiltered Honey is distributed in Texas within the cities of Houston, Dallas, and Ft. Worth. Other States may have something similar, where it’s pulled from the biggest cities and their supplier of choice.

They couldn’t verify who the suppliers or beekeepers actually were, but I’ll take what I could get as to where it was sourced.

Misleading, but this is the world of Honey.

Diving Deeper – So, Who Produces It?

According to this article by the Costco Connection, it states

“Costco has been utilizing Rice’s Honey Under the new local honey program, Rice’s will supply warehouses in Texas, the Pacific Northwest, Colorado, Utah and Southern California.

If you look into Rice’s Honey, you’ll soon discover its actually Local Hive which is based out of Colorado. Now that article from Costco Connection is back in 2019, but it is likely they are still utilizing that contract with Rice’s Honey aka Local Hive.

Costco referred to using 2 vendors and that its a 51% blend with clover honey.
If you think it’s actually unfiltered, it isn’t. Costco cited the USDA’s grading standard for Grade A filtered honey. Which doesn’t tell us what we think it means.

“There is nothing about “U.S. Grade A” that implies it’s produced in the U.S.
(in whole or in part). It just means it met our standards.

The Sticky Issue

Basically what happened was Costco did an audit on one of their suppliers and found not all the honey was from where they said it was when they were last asked. That supplier likely got dropped and lost Costco’s business forever because they chose to lie.

Real honey is not a blended product and is not filtered to the point that most or all of the pollen is removed.

Commercially blended honey products do not build a market for real honey.
Did you know one Third of Honey is blended and adulterated, right next to Olive Oil?

This is Costco’s way to sell “store bought” honey like it’s “beekeeper honey”.
But they aren’t the same thing!

What Did I Think?

The Honey itself is similar to Kelley’s Honey I just reviewed. It’s a standard Clover or Wildflower Honey with no evident varietal source. The details on it’s origin are convoluted with States and no context of season or pollen sources. You’re far too big of a entity to even consider local sourcing. That’s like saying the Chicago Bulls are Wisconsin’s Pro Basketball Team because it’s the team everyone knows in the Midwest.

This Kirkland Raw Unfiltered Honey is not actually Raw, and if it was unfiltered there would be early signs of crystallization with the household temperature hitting below 65 this season.

What It Means

This means it’s been heat treated, and heavily filtered for Costco labeling and FDA standards.

Which means the “local” benefits have been processed out. I really dislike supporting this kind of honey and how its being marketed when everything that makes Honey beneficial is stripped out.

It’s still useful

I think if you’re using this to replace sugar content in recipes, or Teas its fine. Honey, I put into hot Tea is the “generic’ Honey. Where I’m just using it to sweeten something, and not really concerned about adding taste or getting the health benefits, since I’m going to kill it with scalding Hot Water.

I’ll likely use this for more Infused Honey ideas, or baked goods and breads. And with up to 65 servings at 1 tbsp each, that’s at least 60 cups of Tea. And you may think this is a value, and for some it is. But I can head to Walker Honey Farm in Rogers Texas and get an entire Quart filled on tap for $11, which is a verified source with no misleading marketing, and I get to choose from Mesquite, Orange Blossom or more.

Got to love Commercial branding, right?

I appreciate that Costco wanted to reach more markets with its Local Honey Program, but it’s just a marketing gimmick to pair up with Local Hive. The only thing the bottle is missing is the comb embossing on the side. And well, actual local honey.

The information I got from Customer Service, and the article in Costco Connection, this isn’t actually what it’s being sold as.

Making this Kirkland Texas Raw Unfiltered Honey is just another generic grocery store Honey.

Beekeepers associate these companies as Honey Packers and not actually Beekeepers. I wouldn’t buy this again, unless I needed this much in a bind.
If you don’t have a Costco membership, you could purchase this Local Hive Texas Honey on Amazon. It’s basically the same exact thing.

Kirkland Texas Raw Unfiltered Honey
The Honey Review
Honey
Color
Aroma
Flavor
Texture
Quick Summary
I’ve used this for occasional recipes, because it’s 3 lbs for $8. It’s nothing special, and it’s definitely not unfiltered and raw. It may be local by State or worse Regions. Words sell however, and even knowing this isn’t what is being sold as, I’ve still bought it. I don’t recommend it for those looking for Local Honey.

They are rebranding Local Hive blends and its all-hogwash marketing as usual. Stop saying local when its inaccurate, as well as using raw and unfiltered like we slap gluten-free on everything. Avoid this Honey at Costco if you can.
2

It’s In-Stores Only
March 8, 2022