I was so intrigued when I learned about a Colorado man whose interesting and meandering path in life combines the Denver Broncos, Nigeria, agriculture, honey and whiskey. See how all of those things are combined in this sponsored In Good Taste Denver Podcast conversation with Omar Lababidi, of Goldswarm Honey. And find out how you can partake of the honey and the whiskey! Click on the player below to listen.
When I asked Omar what his company, Goldswarm Honey, is all about, he was quite poetic in his answer. He said that, beyond bringing a beautiful brand and sustainable product to the American market, increasing customer choice, the honey is also folding into his Colorado story. And his Nigeria story.
“And so, its very essence is beauty; beauty as a product, beauty as a story, beauty as something to contribute to nature and from nature, to society,” he explains.
Omar tells us about the beginnings of his passion for honey, as a youth, camping with his family in Nigeria. He was given toast with honey for breakfast only it wasn’t like any honey he’d ever had. Omar had a visceral reaction to what he was tasting and knew right then and there that the honey would be part of his future.
“And so, I said to myself, this is such an incredible, beautiful product that, sitting here in Africa…hopefully one day I’ll be the one to get this beautiful story out to the United States and to the world, because most of the stories you hear that come out of Africa…Nigeria…are usually very negative.”
Omar tells us about working with the farmers who harvest the honey in the forest, how it remains sustainable, and what the processes are to bring the honey to the consumer.
Then, we learn about Goldswarm’s partnership with Breckenridge Distillery which combines Omar’s history with the Denver Broncos and his honey. Breckenridge Distillery is the official bourbon & vodka producer of The Denver Broncos. They were aware of Goldswarm Honey and reached out to Omar to see if they could create a honey whiskey in honor of The Denver Broncos. Because of Omar’s family and personal history with the team (you’ll find out in the podcast), he was thrilled. The Limited Edition Breckenridge Honey Flavored Whiskey was created. The description reads: “This limited-edition release honors the 2015 World Championship with Broncos Honey Whiskey, infused with Goldswarm honey harvested from the Montane Forest Region of West Africa, for a smooth, golden finish as bold as Broncos Country.”
This episode of the In Good Taste Denver Podcast is sponsored by Goldswarm Honey. Our entire series is available on iTunes, Spotify, Overcast, Pocket Casts, Amazon Music, iHeartRadio and wherever you like to listen.
-Courtney Drake-McDonough, Publisher & Managing Editor of InGoodTasteDenver.com
Please note, this article and podcast are also on our sister site, RealFoodTraveler.com and the Real Food Traveler Podcast.
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