Organoleptic properties

Visual appearance

Very dark amber colour, almost black, minimum 90 mm Pfund.

Aroma

Floral and strongly malted, very intense and lingering.

Flavour

Sweet with salty notes from the honeydew content.

Texture

Crystallises very slowly or not at all.

Pollen spectrum

13.3% Mediterranean buckthorn (Rhamnus alaternus) as the principal melliferous plant, 6.5% Mediterranean thistle ( Galactites tomentosa), 4.4% citrus trees (Citrus spp.), 4.2% common myrtle (Myrtus communis) and 2% legumes (Fabaceae) as principal additional melliferous plants.

Geographical origin

The Monnàber Vell estate is located in the municipality of Campanet, in the north-east of Mallorca in the foothills of the Serra de Tramuntana mountains, which have been declared a World Heritage Site by UNESCO and it covers an area of 160 hectares. The first thing that catches the visitor’s eye are the houses dating from the 13th century and their centuries-old olive trees, which with the passage of time, have become works of art of nature.

Botanical origin

Monnàber Vell stands out for its diversity of plant life, in terms of both the natural vegetation of the mountains and the dryland farming typical of the Serra de Tramuntana mountains and also for the traditional farming activity that has shaped its plant landscape over the centuries. The predominant vegetation that is of interest to bees are clover (Trifolium/Lotus spp.), Mediterranean thistles (Galactites tomentosa), asphodel (Asphodelus spp.), spiny broom (Calicotome spinosa), and Mediterranean buckthorn (Rhamnus alaternus), which have blossoms that can cover large areas of the estate. There are also large areas of almond (Prunus dulcis) and carob (Ceratonia siliqua) trees. The name Monnàber comes from the Arabic and means mountain of flowers.