The Backyard Brewer collects his own honey from 2 hives on the 87 acre property at Kobble Creek, QLD. The property is surrounded on 3 sides by the SEQ Water catchment for Lake Samsonvale/North Pine Dam.

Various species of eucalypts flower nearly all year round, and in the early spring we have Jacaranda’s, followed by Frangipani’s in the late spring. By mid-summer the Frangipani’s are covered in pollen, and the bee’s swarm the trees to collect it - it’s an important resource for the bee nursery.

All these different trees given unique and distinct flavours. Eucalypts are dark and malty, while the Frangipani’s are light and very floral.

We’re planting an Australian native nursery next to the hives, including a couple of varieties of Manuka (Jelly Bush) noted for their healing properties.

We use Flow Hive’s to collect our honey because it is the least intrusive method, and we can control how much honey we collect - always leaving enough honey for the hive to survive.

Some of the honey is bottled and if you’re lucky enough to drive past the farm you might just pick up a jar. Because it is unfiltered - just as nature intended it - the honey may contain small amounts of pollen and wax. We let the honey sit for a few weeks to settle the heavier particles out, but the pollen seems to stay in the honey. Also, we don’t dehydrate our honey any further, so you’ll find it is runnier than commercial honey and much easier to spread.

What do we do with excess honey? Why, we make mead of course. What else would we do with it. This is the perfect time of year for mead making - it’s quite a long process that finishes just before winter - the perfect time to drink it!