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Honey varieties

Thyme honey

Bees make this honey from the nectar of wild thyme on dry Mediterranean hillsides.

  • Photo of Thymbra capitata from an iNaturalist observation.Thymbra capitatanectar
  • Photo of Thymus integer from an iNaturalist observation.Thymusnectar

White to light amber

Thyme honey

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The honey

Color

White to light amber · 33 to 84 mm Pfund

Twelve Cretan thyme honeys measured 33 to 84 mm Pfund and averaged 61.4 mm Pfund. [1]

Illustrative screen color. A screen cannot show a laboratory color.

Aroma

An intense aroma of the animal type, with a sweaty note. [2]

Flavor

Strong. Thyme honey from gypsum soils tastes spicy. [2][3]

Crystallization

Medium. A moderate tendency to crystallize in a creaming trial. [4]

Where it comes from

Blossom (nectar)Botanical variety

  • Thyme

    Thymbra capitata, Thymus Genus

    primary source · nectar

    Published honey references and standards name this source. In other regions, the honey can come from more or different species.

Documented in
Greece, Spain, New Zealand

The catalog names these countries. Honey of this type can come from other regions too.

Dag Endresen published the photo of Thymbra capitata on iNaturalist under CC0 1.0: iNaturalist observation 14295103.

Peter Gabler published the photo of Thymus integer on iNaturalist under CC0 1.0: iNaturalist observation 263063894.

Evidence

Supported Profile

At least one peer-reviewed study of this honey from a relevant region supports the color and a taste or smell value.

Peer-reviewed studies of authentic thyme honeys from Crete, Spain, and Greece give the values. The USDA grading manual groups thyme honey with the strong honeys.

Studies

  1. Quantification of Hydrogen Peroxide in Cretan Honey and Correlation with Physicochemical Parameters

    Alygizou, A., Grigorakis, S., Gotsiou, P., Loupassaki, S., Calokerinos, A.

    Journal of Analytical Methods in Chemistry, 2021

    30 authentic Cretan honeys, including 12 thyme and 3 citrus honeys, with Pfund color.

    DOI: 10.1155/2021/5554305 · Open the source

  2. How soil type (gypsum or limestone) influences the properties and composition of thyme honey

    González-Porto, A., Martín Arroyo, T., Bartolomé Esteban, C.

    SpringerPlus, 2016

    70 pollen-checked thyme honeys from La Alcarria, Spain, with Pfund color and an expert tasting panel.

    DOI: 10.1186/s40064-016-3243-9 · Open the source

  3. Extracted Honey Grading Manual

    U.S. Department of Agriculture, Agricultural Marketing Service, 1985

    The USDA manual for honey graders describes the main U.S. floral sources and groups them by flavor.

    Open the source

  4. Physicochemical and Rheological Characteristics of Monofloral Honeys—Kinetics of Creaming–Crystallization

    Polatidou, K., Nouska, C., Tananaki, C., Biliaderis, C., Lazaridou, A.

    Foods, 2025

    Greek monofloral thyme, cotton, and heather honeys followed through a creaming trial.

    DOI: 10.3390/foods14101835 · Open the source

  5. Main European unifloral honeys: descriptive sheets

    Persano Oddo, L., Piro, R.

    Apidologie, 2004

    The International Honey Commission descriptive sheets of the main European unifloral honeys.

    DOI: 10.1051/apido:2004049

References

  • Main European unifloral honeys: descriptive sheets — International Honey Commission
  • Standard for Honey CXS 12-1981 — FAO / WHO Codex Alimentarius
  • Council Directive 2001/110/EC relating to honey — European Union
  • Criteria for identifying monofloral and multifloral manuka honey — New Zealand Ministry for Primary Industries
  • United States Standards for Grades of Extracted Honey — United States Department of Agriculture
  • Honey for nutrition and health: a review — Journal of the American College of Nutrition

We reviewed this record on .

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