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SALUDA – Sandy Bee Mine Honey Company, a family-owned and operated craft producer of honey and hive products out of Saluda, will soon be offering Honey Tasting and Apiary Tours in Polk County and surrounding areas. 

Honey tasting events offer guests a chance to sample and discuss honey, while allowing a glimpse inside an observation hive of honeybees. Guests can enjoy a charcuterie and cheese board, along with two glasses of beer or wine. Events are held in venues throughout Polk County and surrounding areas. Their next event is set for April 1.

Tours will offer guests an opportunity to suit up in a beekeeper’s outfit and take a guided tour of the apiary with a seasoned beekeeper, explore life inside a honeybee colony and examine honeybees performing their duties.

Sandy Bee Mine was founded in Saluda in 2016, bordering the Green River Game Lands, and has since added bee yards in the surrounding counties. Their honey is always pure and natural, with the raw honey taken straight from the hives before being strained and jarred. 

“We have been inspired to share our love of honey and beekeeping by offering the Honey Tastings and Apiary Tours,” says Nicole Foti, Marketing Manager and daughter of founder Dave Foti. “We love to share our bee-centric world with others. While you’re on the tour, you’re our guest. The goal is for you to have a great time learning about bees and honey by tasting and beekeeping with us.” 

On the tour, those who book a spot will learn to taste honey like an expert, becoming a beekeeper for the day.

“Going into the apiary is a trip,” adds Foti. “It’s a bit of an adrenaline rush to stand among the bees, but it’s also a unique moment to pull out a frame and see it dripping with honey, the bees at work. And don’t worry. It’s safe! Everyone suits up in a beekeeper’s outfit beforehand.”

Sandy Bee Mine offers a variety of honey, including a much-coveted sourwood honey, creamed honey and wildflower honey that reflects the seasonal blooms. Their hive products include beeswax candles, lotion bars, and lip balm made from beeswax, as well as essential oils and butter. Due to popular demand, they have begun offering pollen for its benefits as an allergy-alleviating superfood. 

Their products are found throughout western North Carolina. To book a spot on one of the Honey Tastings and Apiary Tours, visit https://sandybeemine.com/pages/honey-tasting-events.