Big Island Bees
In 1971, our family started keeping bees in Hawaii. While maintaining our artisanal standards, the apiaries have grown from just a few hives in the early ‘70s, to 3,800 hives and 190,000,000 bees today. Our mission is simple: Provide the finest single-floral, artisanal honey anywhere!
Beekeeping is a calling, a life’s work that a beekeeper seems magnetically drawn to, much like a bee’s attraction to nectar. The beekeeper develops a mutual reverence, familiarity and intimacy with his bees. After all, he shares a common goal with the bees: to achieve harmonious prosperity in the bee colony. The beekeeper works almost meditatively amongst the bees because he knows that they will mirror his good mood and hard work.
The beekeeper must understand the behavior of the bee, to commune with the hive and keep them comfortable. To do this, she must be attuned to the bees and their environment. She must anticipate when and where adequate flowers will bloom, whether sufficient water is available, and whether the bees are warm.
Our beekeepers have it somewhat easy…After all, Hawaii has a pristine environment, year-round flower blooms, frequent rainfall and consistent warmth. The bees and the beekeepers are in paradise.
Garnett Puett… Garnett is a 4th generation commercial beekeeper. He loves seeing the bees thrive and is especially excited at the start of a honey flow watching empty boxes fill with honey. His family passed to him immense old-world knowledge of bees and how to care for them.
Whendi Puett Grad… Whendi, the Queen Bee (and Garnett’s wife!), manages the operations and sales.
Yummy Honey Receipe
Baked Honeyed Squash
1 pound butternut squash
1 oz. salted butter
1 Tablespoon organic Lehua honey (slightly warmed)
½ teaspoon chopped fresh rosemary or ¼ tsp. dried
Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.
Cut the squash in rounds and then cut each round in half to make semi circles. Remove seeds. Place the squash in a bowl with the warmed honey and toss to coat.
Arrange the squash in overlapping rows in a shallow baking dish. Drizzle the squash with the leftover honey. Dot the squash with butter and then sprinkle with rosemary. Bake in the oven for 30 minutes until golden brown and caramelized.
