People often ask me whether they can put together a mixed selection rather than buying a single jar. The answer is yes - and for anyone who wants to give a genuinely good Irish honey gift set, it is probably the most interesting way to do it. A single variety is a lovely thing. Two or three together, with the comb alongside them, tell a whole story about what the Cooley Peninsula produces across a season.
Here is how I think about building a selection, whether that is for yourself or someone else.
What the range looks like
The honey from Mullabane comes in four jarred varieties and a handful of comb forms. Each one is raw, unblended and unheated. Each jar carries a batch number and a harvest date. These are not anonymous jars - they are from one hive yard, one beekeeper, one landscape above Carlingford Lough.
Clear honey is the everyday jar - golden, runny, full of flavour. It pours easily and works for everything from stirring through porridge to spreading on brown bread. If someone has never tried real Irish honey before, this is where I would start them. You can read more about it in the post on Clear Honey from the Cooley Peninsula.
Soft set honey is the same raw honey, worked slowly at low temperature until it reaches a smooth, spreadable texture - thick like good butter, never grainy. People who grew up with shop-bought set honey and found it dull tend to be surprised by this one.
Heather honey is the bold jar. The bell heather on the mountain slopes gives a dark amber, aromatic honey with an almost port-like depth and a long finish. It is the boldest jar in the range, strong and complex. It pours and spoons like any honey and crystallises naturally over time. It shines on a cheese board, drizzled over blue cheese or a sharp cheddar, or stirred through cream. Heat dulls its aromatics, so enjoy it cold or at room temperature and keep it off the hob. If you want to understand what makes it distinctive, the guide to heather honey in Ireland goes into it properly.
Ivy honey is the autumn jar - pale, firm, very mild, with a faint aromatic edge. Ivy sets hard. That is just what ivy honey does, and it has nothing to do with quality. If your jar is solid, let it sit somewhere slightly warm and it will loosen a little. It is a softer gift for people who find heather too assertive.
Comb honey - sections, cut comb or chunk honey - is the most direct thing I produce. There is no processing at all: wax, honey, exactly as the bees made it. It is edible wax and it is extraordinary. If you have never eaten honeycomb, the post on how to eat honeycomb covers it well.
Building an Irish honey gift set
There is no single right combination. What I have found works well depends on who the gift is for.
A first introduction to real honey
Start with the clear jar and the soft set. Two textures, one flavour story. The person can taste them alongside each other and see what unprocessed honey actually is - how the flavour sits in the mouth, how the texture holds. Add a small piece of cut comb and you have something genuinely memorable. If you want to understand why this matters against what is sold in most supermarkets, the comparison in raw honey vs supermarket honey is worth reading before you give the gift, so you can explain it.
For someone who already loves Irish honey
Lead with heather. Add ivy for the contrast - bold beside pale, aromatic beside mild, dark amber beside firm and white. If they appreciate food in a serious way, include the comb. These three together give a real education in what a single peninsula can produce in one year.
A seasonal gift around Christmas
Ivy is the autumn harvest and it suits December giving well - the pale, firm jar looks beautiful and the mild flavour works with winter food. Pair it with soft set and the clear jar, and the three make a considered selection without needing any packaging beyond the labels on the jars themselves. There is more on timing and planning in ordering honey gifts for Christmas.
A simpler gift that still says something
A single jar of heather honey, well chosen, is not a small thing. It is peer-judged and award-winning - two firsts, one second and two thirds at the 2021 County Dublin Beekeepers Association Honey Show - and it comes from a specific place that most people in Ireland have never tasted. You do not need a hamper to make it meaningful.
Sizes and what fits a gift
Jars come in 250g and 500g sizes. For gift selections, most people put together two or three of the 250g jars, which keeps the weight manageable and allows variety. A 500g jar is better value if someone wants a single variety in volume - a jar that will be used rather than displayed.
Comb honey is produced in smaller quantities and availability varies across the year. It tends to go quickly at the markets in Carlingford and surrounding areas, so if you want it as part of a selection, it is worth asking early.
How to order
Peninsula Honey is sold direct for local collection at Mullabane, Carlingford, Co. Louth. There is no national shipping - this is a one-beekeeper operation and the honey goes to people who can collect it in person, or who pick it up at markets in the area.
To put together a gift selection, get in touch with me directly. I can tell you what is currently available from the harvest, which varieties are in stock, and whether comb honey is ready. Ordering ahead makes sense, particularly around Christmas and for summer events in the Carlingford area.
Contact details are on the Peninsula Honey homepage.
A few questions I get asked
Can you put together a set with a gift card or note? Yes, if you let me know when you order. I can include a handwritten note with the selection.
Does honey keep well enough to give as a gift? Raw honey keeps for years if stored correctly. A cool, dry spot away from direct light is all it needs. The post on how to store honey properly covers it in detail. Crystallisation is normal and reversible - it is not spoilage.
Is the comb honey in a box or loose? Cut comb and chunk honey come in their own containers. They travel well and do not need anything extra around them.
Which variety would suit someone who says they do not like honey? Usually the clear jar. Most people who say they do not like honey have only ever had blended supermarket honey, and the flavour of a raw, single-origin honey is genuinely different. The soft set is another option - people who dislike runny honey often get on well with the texture of soft set.
If you are thinking about a selection and not sure where to start, get in touch via the homepage. I am happy to talk through what is available from the current harvest and put something together that suits.