By Roxanne Reid
When you visit the historic town of Swellendam, about a two-hour drive from Cape Town, your first stop should be the Tourist Info centre, where friendly staff will send you off with a mindful of ideas. Just a few paces down the road, make JW Beekeeping, Honey & Equipment your next stop, to taste the honey and see live bees.
When you visit the historic town of Swellendam, about a two-hour drive from Cape Town, your first stop should be the Tourist Info centre, where friendly staff will send you off with a mindful of ideas. Just a few paces down the road, make JW Beekeeping, Honey & Equipment your next stop, to taste the honey and see live bees.
JW is Jaco Wolfaardt, a one-time hobbyist beekeeper. When he decided to go big and launch a beekeeping business in 2009, he couldn’t find the equipment he needed, so he saw a gap in the market. Now he imports smokers and extractors, protective clothing and tools from as far afield as New Zealand and Argentina and sells them to other local beekeepers.
The bee-keeper's suit and bright yellow exterior hint at the wares inside the honey shop
But for the average visitor to Swellendam like you or me there are three main drawcards.
First, you can watch the ‘celebrity’ live bees through glass at the back of the shop to see how they make honey in the comb. Pretty cool for kids to see too.
Second, you can taste 10-12 honeys – from blue gum and strandveld to orange blossom and fynbos – before you decide on a favourite to buy. The wide choice is one plus point; others are that it’s cheaper than anything you can buy in the supermarket and much nicer-tasting too. And if you really want to save money, there’s bluegum honey – the most popular variant – on tap; just bring your own container and save on the packaging cost.
First, you can watch the ‘celebrity’ live bees through glass at the back of the shop to see how they make honey in the comb. Pretty cool for kids to see too.
Second, you can taste 10-12 honeys – from blue gum and strandveld to orange blossom and fynbos – before you decide on a favourite to buy. The wide choice is one plus point; others are that it’s cheaper than anything you can buy in the supermarket and much nicer-tasting too. And if you really want to save money, there’s bluegum honey – the most popular variant – on tap; just bring your own container and save on the packaging cost.
You'll find jars of edible honey and body lotions made with honey as an ingredient
It’s amazing how different the honeys taste, and how different they look too. Colours range from pale straw to lemon, greenish, pinkish or even dark brown. This is influenced by what flowers the bees have been buzzing around on. In general, the lighter the honey, the milder the flavour.
Taste many different honeys or choose a body product from the honeycomb-shaped shelves
The third drawcard is the range of body care products with honey as an ingredient. Since the times of the ancient Egyptian, Mayan and Aztec civilisations, honey has been used for its healing, purifying, antibacterial and anti-inflammatory properties.
For more info, phone 028-5142402, email jwbye@telkomsa.net or look at the website http://www.jwbees.com/.
You might also like:
10 things to do when you visit Swellendam
Where to eat out in Swellendam
Take a township tour in Swellendam
Copyright © Roxanne Reid - No words or photographs on this site may be used without permission from roxannereid.co.za
For more info, phone 028-5142402, email jwbye@telkomsa.net or look at the website http://www.jwbees.com/.
You might also like:
10 things to do when you visit Swellendam
Where to eat out in Swellendam
Take a township tour in Swellendam
Copyright © Roxanne Reid - No words or photographs on this site may be used without permission from roxannereid.co.za
