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Tawari
(Ixerba brexioides) is an endemic New Zealand
tree (found nowhere else in the World). "Tawari" is
a Maori name where an "a" is pronounced like the "a"
in "art". The tree grows up to around 15 metres (50
feet) in height and when flowering is a beautiful sight with
perfectly formed flowers in very symetrical bunches contrasting
against a dark green backdrop of similarly arranged leaves.
The flowers were highly prized by the Maori people who used
them for necklaces and adornment during festive occassions.
The honey is a light colour with a beautiful taste reminiscent
of butterscotch.
 FLOWERING
Tawari flowers from October to the end of December but this
varies according to location and altitude - usually the more
South the latitude and the higher the altitude, the later the
flowering.
The nectar is copious and very watery producing a prolific honey
crop under ideal conditions - but often with a high final moisture
content
Tawari is a predominantly bird pollinated flower with the flower
size and structure arranged to deposit pollen from the widely
spread anthers on a bird collecting nectar from the centrally
located nectaries. Consequently the honey is usually under
represented in pollen. Levels as low as 20% Tawari pollen
may indicate a good quality Tawari honey (but under ideal conditions
we have recorded levels as high as 71%) and levels of more than
30% are routinely achievable. Total pollen levels are also correspondingly
low with an average from our database of 57,000 pollen grains
per 10 grams of honey.
Colour
Tawari is a light coloured honey with an average of 23 mm (Pfund
Scale). Other honey floral sources flowering alongside Tawari
include Manuka and Rewarewa - both of which are substantially
darker (84mm and 93mm respectivley) and can have a marked impact
on the colour of Tawari honey.
The
structure of the flower is laid out in 5s. i.e. five petals,
5 anthers, 5 nectaries, even the pollen grains have have a 5
sided shape.
Sugar Profile
Tawari
is a higher fructose honey. We have few sugar analyses for Tawari
at present but from initial data, Glucose is around 30%, Fructose
43% and Sucrose < 1%. This gives the ratios of a very slow
crystallizing honey but in fact Tawari has a more pronounced
tendency to crystallize than indicated by the ratios. Just another
example that the immense variability of honey often produces
results that are not always immediately explainable.
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