Welcome to the Kiva's Blog



We will be featuring blog posts from many departments. Comments are encouraged but moderated.

Monday, January 30, 2012

Something Sweet

  Here at the Kiva, we take great pride in the product choices that we offer our customers.  One product that we are particularly proud of is Beebe Lane Honey.  
 Owners Joe and Jen started keeping bees about five years ago.  What started out as a simple hobby with only two bee boxes, grew into a hopeless obsession.  Joe also wanted his children to experience being part of a family business.  So they gave their business a name, and with the help of Jen’s father, an artist, created a label.  Today they keep nearly fifty boxes with potential to expand.
  So what makes Beebe Lane Honey so good?  There are no secret ingredients.  In fact, it’s really about what you won’t find in the honey that makes the difference.  Compared to commercial beehives which are heavily managed with pesticides and antibiotics, Beebe Lane bees are “au naturel”.  Certified through the Naturally Grown program, which is based on National Organic standards of practices and land stewardship, Beebe Lane receives twice yearly inspections.  You can learn more about the Certified Naturally Grown program here.  Another way that Joe encourages sustainable beehives, is to let the bees do what they are good at - finding and making their own food.  Conventionally managed hives are frequently fed a sugary syrup to encourage hive expansion and supplement their diet.  This can negatively impact the natural rhythm of the colony.    
How does it all work?  The bees season begins in late winter as the days get longer and the weather warms.  After hibernating all winter, they begin to emerge as their preferred plants start to bloom.  Spring is a critical time for the bees as they build up their populations and forage.  The first batch of honey, the bees get to keep for themselves to replenish their stores.  After that, Joe begins bottling the different varieties of the season.  The three varieties offered currently are Poison Oak Honey, Blackberry Honey, and Pennyroyal Honey.  This year, you can also look forward to Vine Maple and Blackcap Raspberry flavors.
The Bottling Room.  The saying “slow as molasses” can be applied to honey too.  If it’s too cold, it just won’t run.  So, the bottling room has got to be hot.  Even on a hot summer day, imagine it about twenty degrees hotter, and you have the perfect conditions for extracting and bottling honey.  First the “supers” or boxes of honey get sorted into stacks by variety.  Then Joe uses a knife to cut the outer layer of wax off the comb.  This wax is saved for later use.  The honey now exposed, the box is placed into a hand-crank extractor.  As the extractor spins, (imagine a big, stainless steel salad spinner), the honey is spun out of the comb and collects on the bottom.  Finally, the honey is strained to remove any bits of wax and voila, ready to bottle, label, and ship!  What about all that wax that was saved?  It gets made into moisturizing lip balm and hand salve. 
UNCAPPING
LEFTOVER WAX
THE BOTTLING LINE
THE EXTRACTOR


FINISHED PRODUCT
Lessons from the Bees.  Bees are incredibly complex creatures.  Humans have had an ongoing relationship with them for ages.  What can we learn from them?  For Joe, beekeeping has helped him to become an active observer.  It has reconnected him to the natural world, to the seasons, the weather, the plant cycles.  The realization that has come from this: our connection to the natural world is critical and we hang in a fragile balance.  
        Fun Bee Facts.
  • A healthy hive can be home to 50,000 bees
  • It takes twelve bees to make one teaspoon of honey
  • Bees are the only insects that produce human food
  • Forager bees travel up to 500 miles in a lifetime
  • Queen bees lay up to 2,000 eggs per day

Wednesday, January 18, 2012

Fun with Fermentation 2012


What comes to mind when you think of fermented foods?  Perhaps it is that dusty old jar of sauerkraut you keep pushing around the pantry shelf.  After attending the Fun with Fermentation Festival last Saturday, I can tell you that the fermented foods of today are fresh, abundant and exciting.  With over a dozen local food and beverage producers in attendance, there was certainly some sauerkraut to be seen, (and tasted), and a whole lot more.
Held at the historic WOW Hall, the festival is hosted by Willamette Valley Sustainable Foods Alliance (WVSFA) and is a benefit for Food for Lane County and WVSFA.  What a great way to have fun and do good!
           After donating our cans of food and getting our hands stamped for admission, our first tasty tidbit was some of Cousin Jacks Steak and Ale Pasty.
  We got to chat with owner, Kim, who reminded us that the ale in their delicious pasty, courtesy of Ninkasi Brewing, is one of the oldest known fermented beverages! 
Our next stop was at the Pickled Planet table where we tried one of their seasonal specialty blends, Blueberry Love Bomb.    
 Fermented blueberries?  Yes.  This will take your next salad to new heights.
Moving on, we sipped some Love Potion #9 from Herbal Junction Elixirs, an intoxicating fermented herbal beverage with saw palmetto. 
Love bombs, love potions, love is in the air... ah yes, Valentines Day is not far off! 
One of the best things about events like this one, is discovering new things.  This happened when we came across the 8...9...Tempeh booth, formerly Magi Fungi.  This gluten free and soy free tempeh was amazing!  With garbanzo, black bean and quinoa varieties, it was versatile and delicious.  Unfortunately they don’t have retail packaging yet, but they do take direct orders. 
           There were so many more good things, including Holy Cow tempeh sandwiches, Cafe Mam coffee, Brew Dr. Kombucha, Premrose Edibles Chocolates - (one of our favorites here at the Kiva), and Grateful Harvest Farms who make my personal favorite, Garlic Kraut.  The cabbage is crunchy, not soggy, and the garlic flavor is robust!  We also spent some time with the ladies of Mountain Rose Herbs and their loose tea leaves.
 Ever wondered what the difference between black tea, green tea, oolong tea, or any of the other varieties is?  It’s about the fermentation! 
On our way out to pick up some Take Root Magazines, (winter issue now available at the Kiva), we ran into Molly of Mckenzie Mist Water.  While the water isn’t fermented, it is a necessity, and it’s also the best stuff out there.
 She was excited to tell us about her artesian well that provides so many of us with pure, unadulterated drinking water. 
We made our way downstairs to find fermented beverages of the adult variety in abundance.  Ninkasi had brought their record player for the enjoyment of all.  Oakshire was there with four beers on tap and also Hop Valley.  We got a sneak peek at Falling Sky Brewery, opening soon!  We didn’t partake, except with our eyes, since we were working of course.  It was great to see all the craft brewers of our fine city together in one place! 
           We came to the end of our fermented field trip, happy to have seen friendly faces and tasted so many vibrant flavors that come from so near us!