Glossary
A premium honey product consisting of a piece of cut comb honey suspended in liquid extracted honey within a single jar. Chunk honey gives consumers the best of both worlds: the textured, aromatic experience of eating honeycomb and the pourable convenience of liquid honey.
Chunk honey is the most visually striking honey product available. A jar filled with golden liquid honey containing a visible piece of white beeswax comb creates an immediate wow factor that makes it one of the best-selling items at farmers markets and specialty food shops.
Beyond aesthetics, chunk honey provides a unique sensory experience. The liquid honey pours normally for everyday use, while the comb piece provides the satisfying chew and intensified flavor of fresh honeycomb. Many honey enthusiasts consider chunk honey the ideal gift because it showcases the raw, unprocessed nature of real honey.
Producing quality chunk honey requires careful attention to detail. The comb piece must be fully capped, perfectly clean, and cut to fit the jar with room for liquid honey to flow around it. The liquid honey must be raw and unfiltered to maintain quality consistency with the comb.
Temperature management is important: the liquid honey should be warm enough to flow freely when filling the jar but not hot enough to melt or soften the comb. A fill temperature of 95-100 degrees Fahrenheit is ideal. Once sealed, the jar should be stored at room temperature away from direct sunlight.
Scoop or pour the liquid honey normally. When you want comb, cut a piece from the chunk with a knife or spoon. The comb can be eaten whole (beeswax is safe to consume), spread on toast, placed on a cheese board, or chewed and the wax discarded after extracting the honey.
Quality chunk honey, both the comb and the liquid, should be raw and unprocessed. The comb is inherently raw (it comes directly from the hive), and the liquid honey should be raw to match. If the label does not specify raw, the liquid portion may be pasteurized.
Chunk honey requires more labor-intensive production. The comb must be carefully cut and placed by hand, and the liquid honey must be filled at controlled temperatures. Comb honey production also yields less honey per frame than extraction because the comb is consumed rather than recycled.
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