Almost two decades ago Marina Marchese fell in love with bees during a tour of a neighbor's honeybee hives. She built her own bee hive, ordered bees, and was soon harvesting honey.
She eventually quit her job in the arts, and even spent time in Italy training to become a ‘honey sensory expert’ – which is basically like being a honey sommelier. Today, her small business Red Bee Honey sells artisanal honey and honey-related products to shops and restaurants all over the country. She’s also author of “Honeybee: Lessons from an Accidental Beekeeper” and “The Honey Connoisseur.”
We chatted with her before she gave two presentations at J.N. "Ding" Darling National Wildlife Refuge on Sanibel Island.
You can hear the rest of the conversation that didn't make it into the final edit here.