Winning at Honey with Stephanie: Entering Honey Shows

Entering Honey Shows

Stephanie Slater

Three, two, one. Hello everyone. Welcome to Winning at Honey with Stephanie. This Beekeeping Today podcast short focuses on bite-sized moments where we dive into honey shows, judging tips, and the art of exhibiting. My name is Stephanie Slater.

And I'm excited to be here again. I have a confession to make everyone. I haven't prepared my comb honey supers yet, like we talked about last month. Here in Southeast Wisconsin, we are experiencing a very heavy nectar flow for this time of year, so I really need to get to work. I had a visitor in my apiary today.

Emily is a retailer that sells my honey in her store, and I was excited to have her join me in the bee yard. We started out by looking at some developing queen cells in the Queen Castle and then moved on to performing an inspection on a colony. She was lucky enough to see the queen laying eggs and was thrilled to see pollen, larva, and royal jelly. I'm glad that the bees put on a good show for her. Well, now that it is June, that means we're almost six months away from the big three.

The three big honey shows in January. the North American Honey and Beeswax Championship, the American Honey Show, and the Midwest Honey Bee Expo Honey Show. As the chairperson for the Midwest Honey Bee Expo Honey Show, my goal is to have the rules complete this month. And I know you guys will hold me to it and not let me procrastinate. At the end of this month, I'll be heading to Tennessee for the Honey Judge Academy, and I'm really looking forward to it.

I always value opportunities to continue building my skills as a Honey Judge and competitor. But one of my favorite parts is reconnecting with my honey judge friends from across the country. Last month, a major announcement was made that signals a new chapter for honey judging in the United States. The organization formerly known as the American Honey Show Training Council, and you've heard me talk a lot about them, they're transitioning to a new name The American Honey Judges Association, or HJA. Along with the new name comes a new logo, new branding, and an updated organizational structure.

One of the biggest changes is the introduction of a paid membership model. HJA membership will only cost $50 a year. and will help support program operations, training materials, website maintenance, and overall growth. Participants in the intro training class Will receive their first year of membership included through the end of that calendar year. Current members won't lose access right away Everyone already on the roster will remain active through the end of this year, with full access to emails, updates, and participation opportunities.

Starting in 2027, only paid HJA members will remain on the active roster, and paid membership will also be required to staff the 2027 North American Honey and Beeswax Championship. Another major development is governance. The HJA will be overseen by a new seven-member board of directors, and that includes three executive directors and four elected positions. Eligible certified judges will be able to run for these elected seats with more election details expected soon. HJA has also launched a new website.

and it's designed to streamline registrations, membership payments, and communication while improving the user experience. Go check it out at honeyshowusa. com. It looks great. So in short, this announcement marks a significant transition, moving from a training council model to a more formal membership association aimed at supporting long-term growth, organization, and sustainability.

in the honey judging community. But before I leave for Tennessee, I'll be involved in the Wisconsin Honey Producers Association summer meeting. And I wanted to take a few minutes to share an activity we've been doing that may spark ideas for other beekeeping organizations looking for a fun and engaging member activity. At our summer meeting later this month, we'll host again our Black Jar Honey Tasting Contest. I was inspired by another state a few years ago, and I'd like to share with you how we do it.

First, I wanted to create an activity that focused on the flavors of honey. Traditional honey shows, which are incredibly valuable. Evaluate things like cleanliness, clarity, uniformity, moisture, container quality, and presentation And at our Wisconsin State Fair Honey Competition, which is held during the Wisconsin Honey Producers Association Fall Convention, It remains an important and respected event. So I did not want to compete with or replace that experience. Instead, this idea was to complement it with something different.

I also wanted to create something that would appeal to beekeepers who may not naturally gravitate towards competition. I know not everyone enjoys highly technical judging or formal contests. But many people are excited to share their honey and hear what others think about it in a lower pressure, more social setting. Another goal was to encourage interaction and networking among beekeepers. When people taste honey side by side, conversations naturally happen.

What floral source do you think this is? Why is this one so different? Did the weather impact flavor this year It becomes less about winning and more about learning from one another. And perhaps most importantly, I wanted to showcase just how incredibly diverse honey can be, even within the same state. At our contest, attendees are often surprised to discover how dramatically honey flavor varies depending on geography and timing of nectar flows.

Two jars from Beekeepers just a county apart can taste completely different. You know that in a black jar contest, every entry is tasted anonymously. I remember how Jeff Ott equated it to being the masked singer of honey contests. The honey containers are covered so voters can't see the color or clarity, and it's judged based entirely on taste. At our event, attendees themselves vote on their favorite honey, which makes it interactive, approachable, and easy to organize for associations of all sizes It's more like a popularity contest instead of a judge choosing a winner.

If your local, state, or national organization is looking for a fresh idea for a field day, conference, or summer gathering, A Black Jar honey tasting contest may be worth considering. It's educational, conversation-driven, easy to scale, and a great reminder of how special our honey is. If you're curious about how we set the event up during our meeting, I'll give you a brief overview. Each exhibitor submits one pound of honey in any container. We transfer the honey into inverted, upside-down, squeeze bottles for easy tasting and less mess.

Then we cover those bottles with a black sleeve. We set the jars out with random numbers and a supply of tasting spoons. Every attendee at the meeting is given one wooden nickel at registration that they can use to vote for their favorite honey Cups or paper bags can be set out to collect the votes. So during the breaks and lunch, attendees can sample the honeys and network with each other. Don't forget to set out some crackers.

I made that mistake the first year and had to run to the convenience store. Pro tip alert! Make sure you set out several receptacles to collect those used tasting spoons. Shortly before the end of the meeting, we collect and count the votes and announce the winner during the closing comments. They are given a prize and now they have bragging rights for the whole rest of the year.

So as you can see, there is little cost and administrative burden for such a fun activity. If you give it a try, I hope you'll send some pictures. Well, since I'm already thinking about show rules, the topic I wanted to touch on this month is something that sounds simple. but can make or break your success in a honey show. Reading the rules and reading them carefully Whether you're a brand new to be uh to exhibiting or you've entered honey shows for years, it's important to remember that every honey show is different.

The rules, categories, scoring systems, and expectations can vary significantly from one event to another One of the biggest mistakes exhibitors make is assuming that because they've entered one honey show, they already know the requirements for the next one. But that isn't always the case. One show may require four one pound jars for extracted honey. Another may require three. And some may include categories that are completely unique.

It's also important to remember that rules can change from year to year. Just because you entered successfully last year doesn't mean the same requirements apply this year. Details get updated, categories evolve, deadlines shift, and judging criteria may be clarified or revised. So my advice to you, before you prepare a single entry, sit down and read the rules from beginning to end. And then read them again Pay close attention to deadlines, entry requirements, and any details about preparation or presentation.

A beautiful entry can lose points or even be disqualified over something entirely preventable I will often print rules for honey shows and highlight the really important details for the categories I plan to enter, and then I hang them on the refrigerator so that I have frequent reminders. Honey shows are meant to be educational and rewarding experiences, and taking a little extra time to understand the rules sets you up for success from the start. A few years ago, I made a mistake that prevented me from entering a candle that I had been working on. In my head, I got the rules of two shows mixed up. My county fair will accept a single candle as an entry, but the next county over requires two.

I only prepared one candle and realized the morning of the honey show that I wouldn't be able to enter it. Although I was bummed, it was a learning experience. I continue to practice reading rules several times throughout leading up to the show so that I don't make that mistake again. Pro tip alert! Don't assume.

Always read the rules for that show that year. Last year's rules can be a good indicator of what to expect at this year's honey show. and can be useful as you plan to prepare your entries, but always confirm with the current year's rules when they become available. The important details that I look for very early on are typically in the general area of the rules, usually at the beginning. What are some of the important details that I look for?

The date, time, location of the show. I might need to plan when I'm going to leave home or whether I need to fly or drive. Maybe even help me decide what hotel to stay in. Who is the show open to? Do you need to be a member of an organization or a paid conference attendee to enter?

Does the exhibitor need to be present or can they submit their entry in another way? Check-in and pick up times. These might be some of the very few times in my life that I am not late. I'd hate to put in all the work to prepare an entry and not be able to exhibit because I didn't arrive during the check-in time. I may have come in hot a few times, but I haven't been late yet.

So from there I pay close attention to the category specific rules For example, how many units constitutes an entry or the number of items in an exhibit How many jars, candles, servings, etc. are needed per entry for each category Are there any size requirements or restrictions? Photography and gift box categories commonly have size requirements and restrictions. These wax will often have weight requirements. Presentation requirements.

Does the exhibit need to be submitted on or in something specific? Beeswax and culinary categories will often have presentation requirements such as in a candle holder or in a specific cake box. Is a description required? Many of the HJA honey shows, the categories require what we used to call an index card, but it really can be any size Exhibitors may be required to describe an entry, how it was produced, etc. ProTip Alert, use this as an opportunity to tell a great story Don't just focus on the technical details.

If you made a quilt, you may want to share how many hours you spent piecing it and who that special purse on the quilt was made for In photography, consider providing context to the image. Honey shows are such a fun way to learn, grow, and connect with other beekeepers. But success often starts with simply understanding the rules. And that brings me to this month's Honey Show Spotlight. The North Carolina Bee Jubilee Honey Show.

It's held June 27th and 28th and is hosted by the Granville County Beekeepers Association. Looking through the rules, I noticed there are over 40 categories ranging from honey, beeswax, beverages, and culinary, photography, and value-added products. There is something for everyone And it's really cool that they are accepting donations for an auction to support a hurricane relief fund. I hope they have a great turnout. If you're in the area, go check it out.

If your state or region has a honey show you'd like me to talk about, feel free to send me the information. If you have any honey shoulder related questions, send those my way also. So until next month, blue skies and blue ribbons, I'll catch you next time.