Meet C. Marina Marchese

We recently connected with C. Marina Marchese and have shared our conversation below.

C. Marina , we’re thrilled to have you on our platform and we think there is so much folks can learn from you and your story. Something that matters deeply to us is living a life and leading a career filled with purpose and so let’s start by chatting about how you found your purpose.

As creative humans we are have a strong tendency to have varied interests and the dilemma is that we tend to be good at more than one thing. This is true for myself so I’ve learned to I give myself permission to explore my many interest and my curiosity accidentally led me to bees and honey. My background is the arts, I graduated from The School of Visual Arts in NYC and had the great fortune to work in design and illustration for various gift, apparel and stationery products. When the business atmosphere began changing, 2 start-ups based in China shut down leaving with wondering what my next step would be.

When that door closed another opened, I unexpectedly met a neighbor who kept honeybees I took him up on his invitation to visit his apiary. I was instantly fascinated by the activities and smitten with the taste of fresh honey, still warm from the hive. Curious by nature, I dove right into becoming an accidental beekeeper and never turned back. As I learned more about honeybees their key role in pollinating our food and the diverse varietals of honey, my passion grew. The world of varietal honey is an untapped niche. When I stumbled upon a program in Italy to study to become a honey sensory expert, I took the chance and enrolled in the program in Italy. After completing all 3 levels, I applied to join the Italian National Register of Experts in the Sensory Analysis of Honey. This was a huge accomplishment as this type of education and program was unknown outside of Italy. I felt compelled to bring this education to the United States and established the American Honey Tasting Society to partner with my instructors and teach courses in the US. Back in June I completed my training to become an official docent for the Italian Register. Slowly, more beekeepers and culinary professionals are taking note and interested in this kind of knowledge which has been lacking. My purpose is always evolving with each new challenge I take and goal I accomplish, it motivates me to do and give more of myself.

Great, so let’s take a few minutes and cover your story. What should folks know about you and what you do?

One sunny day in April, I was invited to visit a neighbor’s apiary where my first taste of fresh honey from the beehive would change the course of my life. It was not long before I quit my job, built a beehive and got my first colony of Italian honeybees to become a full – time beekeeper. Serendipitously, there was a beekeeping club within a few miles from my home, I attended some meetings and met other beekeepers then began collecting different types of honey. I become curious about the wide range of characteristics and began to question which flowers my bees were gathering nectar from and what type of honey was it. Was it possible to taste honey to determine the type of flowers my bees were visiting, like tasting wine? I was somewhat shocked to realize there were no resources for beekeepers to learn which botanical sources their bees were making honey from. On a trip to Tuscany to study wine tasting I stumbled upon a honey festival in Montalcino (coincidentally called La Citta del Miele) where I learned about the Italian honey sensory education courses. After posting photos on social media of this honey festival, I was contacted by a teacher in Italy who invited me to take his course. I returned to Italy three more times to complete her formal training and become the first US citizen to be accepted as a member of the Italian National Register of Experts in the Sensory Analysis of Honey. In 2013, with the guidance of the Italian Register she founded the American Honey Tasting Society to bring their honey educational program to the US.

Today I am focused on education specifically all aspects of honey – botanical sources, flavor profiles, regions of production and building a story about each jar of honey I encounter. It is a very complex subject that most people are not aware how rare and fragile honey is in the natural world.

If you had to pick three qualities that are most important to develop, which three would you say matter most?

Perseverance, curiosity and creative problem solving are important skills that have impacted my life’s journey. I never gave up especially to those who say you cannot. Some called me stubborn but I was just following my instincts and doing what inspired me. Stay curious and be open to exploring new projects or ways of executing things. A little creativity is important to growth and innovation. Tapping into your creativity can fuel growth while improving your skills.
Be true to yourself !

Alright, so before we go we want to ask you to take a moment to reflect and share what you think you would do if you somehow knew you only had a decade of life left?

Being an entrepreneur and pioneer, no doubt has it’s challenges. It has been difficult for me to open peoples minds to the diverse world of honey when all they know is the commercial products sold in stores. Most find it surprising that honey comes in a wide range of colors and flavor profiles determined by the botanical source bees gather nectar from. Honey is more diverse than wine and other foods produced in nature. Most surprising to me is the culinary industry has not considered honey truly as an artisan food with the same diversity as wine or olive oil. Honey is produced in nature and the same environmental variables affect the final flavor profile making each honey harvest as unique. Honey deserves a seat at the culinary table.

Exploring the wide range of honeys produced around the globe through my formal training as a honey sensory expert I am always learning and love to share my knowledge and expertise with others. The best way to do this is simply by presenting guided tastings of various different honeys for attendees to taste side by side. I get to do this quite frequently and it is gratifying to see peoples face light up with this new found tasting experience. I’ve had the great privilege to write 4 books about honeybees and honey. My fourth The World Atlas of Honey will be available on October 15th. My work elevating honey to the culinary treasure it deserves has been a monumental task!

Contact Info:

• Website: https://honeysommelier.com
• Instagram: honeysommelier.
• Linkedin: honeysommelier.
• Twitter: honeysommelier.
• Youtube: americanhoneytastingsociety
• Other: redbee.com
  americanhoneytastingsociety.com

Image Credits

Photos © C. Marina Marchese/ American Honey Tasting Society