Melita Honey Farm, Tasmania

A piece of a fairytale created by a lovely family in a small town of Chudleigh in Tasmania. The honey shop looks amazing: very tidy, cosy, beautifully decorated, offering a huge range of Australian honey, honey nougat, skin care products, beeswax candles, and even a bee-keeping museum! Over the years, I have driven all the way from Hobart to Chudleigh several times for two reasons: to see Tasmania and to visit the Honey Farm. Both are well worth the drive.

Melita Honey Farm contacts:

Online shop: melitahoneyfarm.com.au
Address: 39 Sorell Street, Chudleigh, Tasmania, Australia
Phone: (03) 6363 6160, international +61 3 6363 6160

Tasmanian beeswax candles

Melita also make their own beeswax candles. The combination of the wonderful aroma of beeswax and the warm light of candles makes them a perfect gift. In addition, beeswax candles have other benefits:

• beeswax candles burn up to 10 times longer than paraffin candles;
• beeswax candles are an environmentally-friendly, renewable light source;
• it is said that beeswax candles purify the air by emitting negative ions;
• Melita's beeswax candles come in all sorts of lovely shapes and designs:

Tips

Beeswax candles should not produce smoke if used correctly. If your beeswax candle started emitting smoke or soot, dripping down the sides or burning unevenly, make sure:

• the candle is in a draught-free spot (if the flame of the candle is dancing and flickering, there is a draught in that location);
• the candle and the wick are straight (trim and straighten the wick after extinguishing, while still warm and flexible, or use a non-flammable implement to push the wick straight);
• the wick is not too long (carefully trim the wick to 5–7 mm prior to lighting the candle).

It is better to extinguish candles by pushing the wick into the melted wax pool and then pulling it up straight. This way, there will be no smoke emitted, and the wick will stay straight so it will be easier to light the candle next time. To avoid tunnelling (wax walls) and formation of dripping channels, every time a candle is lit it should be allowed to burn long enough so that the wax pool almost reaches the edges.

Alum Cliffs Gorge

For just 5km of extra drive and 800m walk, you will be rewarded with a spectacular view of Alum Cliffs Gorge. Ask for directions at the Honey Farm Shop, and don't forget to take your comfortable walking shoes for your trip to Tasmania. This time it was quite foggy, which added more beauty and mystery to this enchanting place.

If any information on this page is out of date, please do let me know.