In recent years, a growing trend has emerged in coffee culture – adding a spoonful of honey to your morning cup of joe. What was once an obscure practice has gone mainstream, with coffee shops increasingly offering honey as a natural sweetener option and many coffee lovers singing its praises. But what’s behind this peculiar pairing of honey and coffee?
The Appeal of All-Natural Sweeteners
One of the biggest driving forces behind the rising popularity of honey in coffee is the overall consumer shift towards more natural, less processed ingredients and sweeteners. Highly refined white sugar and artificial sweeteners have come under fire over concerns about their impacts on health and biological effects like spiking insulin levels.
As a delicious, all-natural, minimally-processed alternative sweetener, honey provides an attractive option for health-conscious coffee drinkers looking to cut back on refined sugars. Unlike white sugar with its “empty” calories, honey contains a plethora of natural vitamins, minerals, antioxidants, and beneficial compounds like:
Vitamins & Minerals
- B-vitamins (niacin, riboflavin, pantothenic acid)
- Vitamin C
- Calcium
- Iron
- Zinc
- Potassium
- Phosphorus
- Magnesium
- Antioxidants
- Flavonoids
- Phenolic acids
Honey’s natural sweetness and richness come from its dense concentration of natural fruit sugars like fructose and glucose. However, these aren’t the highly refined isolated sugars added to most processed foods. The natural sugar is bundled together with many other micronutrients like enzymes, acids, and antioxidants that may have added health benefits.
More Potential Benefits of Adding Honey to Coffee
Beyond just using honey as a cleaner sweetener over refined sugar, mixing it into coffee may offer some other intriguing benefits:
Longer Burn Time
By nature, honey has a higher viscosity and density compared to granulated sugar. This allows the natural sugars in honey to dissolve and release into coffee more gradually compared to white sugar’s rapid dissolution and energy spike.
Many coffee drinkers claim this “slower burn” effect of honey provides a more even, consistent level of sweetness and energy throughout the cup instead of a sugar rush followed by a crash. The steadier energy may make honey a preferable option for getting through that mid-morning work slump.
Additional Flavors
Another major appeal of sweetening coffee with honey is the extra flavor dimensions it can provide beyond just sweetness. Depending on the varietals and floral sources, different types of honey can impart delicate fruity, floral, herbal, woody, or even slightly smoky notes.
Some examples of popular honey varieties for coffee include:
- Orange Blossom Honey – Provides bright citrus notes
- Buckwheat Honey – Adds rich, molasses-like flavors
- Sourwood Honey – Contributes a caramel/toffee dimension
- Wildflower Honey – For delicate floral and herbaceous undertones
Rather than just losing sweetness on coffee’s robust, bitter, and roast flavors, using varietal honey can open up layers of complementary tasting notes like you would adding dry spices or citrus zest. The unique terroir and nectars gathered by local honeybee colonies give each regional honey varietal its distinctive flavor profile to explore.
Honey’s silky, viscous texture also adds a luxurious mouthfeel and subtle stickiness that can enhance coffee’s body and make it seem richer. This almost makes honey feel like more than just a sweetener, but a natural flavor additive in itself.
Potential Medical Benefits
Beyond the general health benefits of using less refined sugars, some medical theories propose that honey coffee may provide other specific therapeutic benefits for certain conditions:
Chronic Diarrhea/Gastritis/Ulcers
Raw honey has natural antibiotic, antioxidant, and demulcent (soothing) properties that may help reduce inflammation and combat H.pylori bacteria associated with ulcers and gastritis. Coffee can irritate these conditions, so the idea is honey calms the irritation and aids healing.
Throat Irritation/Coughs
Similar to how raw honey is used medicinally for sore throats in home remedies, proponents claim adding honey to coffee and sipping slowly can provide a soothing, almost cough-drop-like effect to coat and lubricate an irritated throat.
Glycemic Support
While honey does contain fructose and glucose, it has a lower glycemic load than refined white sugar. Some theorize the combination of coffee’s antioxidants and honey’s balance of natural fruit sugars, enzymes, and nutrients may provide improved insulin support. However, clinical evidence is limited.
It’s important to note that medicinal claims around honey and coffee are largely anecdotal and not conclusively proven in rigorous clinical studies. Those with significant health conditions should always consult their doctor before making dietary changes.
The Drawbacks of Sweetening Coffee With Honey
As appealing as honey may seem compared to white sugar or artificial sweeteners, there are some potential drawbacks to consider:
Cost
Honey is significantly more expensive than refined sugar or even unrefined sugars like turbinado. Using enough to properly sweeten coffee could get quite costly over time, especially for varietals like manuka or sourwood honey. Cost is a prohibitive factor for many.
Crystallization
If stored improperly at cool temperatures or added to iced coffee, honey can crystallize and form crunchy chunks in your coffee cup. This grittiness tends to ruin the velvety smooth mouthfeel you expect from coffee that’s been properly sweetened.
Hard to Measure
Unlike granulated sugar which can be neatly measured and dosed into coffee using spoons or portioned packets, honey’s viscous, sticky consistency makes it messy and difficult to work with precisely. Too much or too little can easily throw off your desired level of sweetness.
Issues With Darker Roasts
Coffee-tasting experts observe that honey sweetness seems to get overwhelmed and lost in some bolder, darker coffee roasts where bitterness and char flavors dominate. The subtle floral and fruity notes in more delicate honey varietals get drowned out. Some prefer using turbinado or raw sugars with dark roasts for this reason.
Potential Fermentation
In hot coffee, the fructose found in both refined white sugar and natural honey is susceptible to fermentation and spoilage if left too long. Coffee drinkers trying to stretch out that morning cup may want to avoid any sweeteners to prevent their drink from turning sour or developing off-flavors.
Conclusion
Coffee and honey share deep roots as two ancient natural foods intrinsic to human culture and cuisine, and combining the two feels like a harmonious celebration of nature’s bounties. So don’t be afraid to add some sweetness from the hive to your morning!
At Smiley Honey, we offer you a wide range of delicious honey options. So why wait? Treat yourself to the golden goodness of Smiley Honey today and experience the joy of pure, delicious honey-like never before.
