Port Sunlight honey feels buzz of success at Great Taste Awards 2024

Sunlight Bees received a one-star rating for its delicious tasting honey.

The Guild of Fine Food’s Great Taste Awards 2024 are dubbed the Oscars of the food and drink world.

Nearly 3,500 companies entered Great Taste this year, between them offering 13,672 products for review.

Each entry was blind-tasted by the Guild’s expert judging panel of more than 500 food critics, chefs, recipe creators, buyers, retailers and other specialists in the field of food and drink.

Helen and Angela Parkinson launched Sunlight Bees in Port Sunlight in 2022 having been beekeepers for seven years.

Helen and Angela have been beekeeping for seven years

The dynamic duo have a passion for sustainability and pollinators and they want to educate people in the important role honey bees play in society.

Their hives are in Port Sunlight and surrounding areas and they also have hives at Dibbinsdale Nature Reserve and the ACC Arena in Liverpool, both of which have cameras for 24/7 viewing.

Sunlight Bees’ infused honeys and fudge is sold at Wirral Farmers Market in New Ferry, Heswall Farmers Market and Oxton Village Market.

Fine Foods Direct on Pensby Road and Port Sunlight Museum Shop stock their products.

Helen, retired as a nurse at St John’s Hospice to focus on beekeeping, said: “Beekeeping is what we do.

“The byproduct is the honey and wax and we make infused honeys with organic ingredients such as turmeric, lemon and ginger.

“We feel Sunlight Bees is unique as we QR code our products.

“Our honey QR code gives customers information about the Queen of the hive who produced the honey.”

The award-winning honey is sold at farmers market around Wirral

Angie, who retired recently having worked in a Liverpool primary school 24 years, said: “We are local, relevant and unique in our approach to beekeeping as well as our range of products.

“As well as our beekeeping, we have developed bespoke educational sessions and bee experiences for all ages and abilities.

“For the past four years, we have entered into the Cheshire Show, as well as Cheshire Beekeeping’s honey shows and have been awarded many first places for our honey in different categories as well as seconds, thirds and highly recommended.

“We have also been entered in Nigella Lawson’s Top 100 Honey Heroes which is for hobby beekeepers.

“When we heard about the Great Taste Awards, we were delighted and very proud for ourselves and our bees!”

The Great Taste Awards, now in its 31st year, judge products made anywhere in the world with organisers saying it is the largest global accreditation scheme for food and drink.

Entries were analysed across 92 judging days, each receiving detailed feedback, whether or not they obtained an award.

The judges said Sunlight Bees had produced “a very delightful honey” and “a lovely clean looking honey, with a pleasing hit of flora on the nose”.

They added: “On the palate it delivers a lingering creamy sweetness.

“There are flowers there in abundance and they carry on working their magic.

“This honey has a pleasing pale, clear appearance and a runny texture.

“On the palate, it delivers some delicate sweetness with some floral notes.

“The mouth feel is silky and smooth and the flavour, although delicate, has great length.”

Judges said this was a lovely clean looking honey, with a pleasing hit of flora on the nose

Two other Wirral businesses featured in the award for 2024.

Churn and Chill, a family-run gelato shop on Grove Road in Hoylake, had a three-star: exquisite rating bestowed on its honey, rose and lemon zest gelato with two-stars: outstanding given to the salted tahini and honey offering and one-star: simply delicious for its coffee product.

Little Eye Sourdough, a micro bakery based in West Kirby, had their black olive bread and their cheese and cayenne oatcakes take top honours this year.