ΜΕΛΙ ΒΙΓΛΗΣ - BIGLIS HONEY

Far from everyday life, in the rugged White Mountains of Crete, Thodoris Viglis sets up his colorful beehives after spending weeks scouting for the perfect spot. During the next month, the colony will collect the nectar of wild thyme flowers. It will work tirelessly to produce a honey of exceptional quality: with a spicy-pungent flavor, amber-colored Meli Viglis Thyme is both intensely sweet and robust.

After the harvest is complete, Thodoris moves his hives to the vivid pinewoods of Sfakia for a second round. His meticulously self-bred queens oversee the production of a natural blend of thyme and pine honey that will apply for the recognition of PDO of Crete this year: the Meli Viglis Thyme and Pine. It has a perfectly balanced aroma and great nutritional value, untainted by scourges of modernity like traffic or pesticides.

Ironically, it was modernity that forced Thodoris to turn to his calling in the first place. In his twenties, while working to become a licensed beekeeper, he decided to double as a tour guide. It seemed like the best way to transfer his love for Crete's unspoilt landscapes - especially the White Mountains and Samaria, the cherished birthplace of his father.

But then the government debt crisis struck. As the tourist numbers dwindled, Thodoris was forced to fall back on his secondary source of income and his first love: honey. In this respect, Meli Viglis is both a homage to his father and a symbol of resilience in the face of crisis.

Descendants of the proud classical Dorians, the Viglis family has been practicing beekeeping since antiquity. At the tender age of 17, Thodoris followed in the footsteps of his father: he became the sole curator of a small bee colony in the world-renowned Samaria gorge, that is instrumental in preserving the frail local ecosystem. Harboring more than 300 endangered plants and herbs, this National Park only allows activity if it serves the purpose of long-term protection.

Nowadays Thodoris still only reaches his bee garden after a 3 hour hike down the gorge, a trek filled with memories of his youth and his late father.

The end of August harvest results in a world-unique brand of honey deferring to a centuries-old tradition in agreement with nature. The whole process takes up to two weeks and culminates in the on-site slinging of the honey, when Thodoris works for 48 hours non-stop. After the cans are sent downhill by pulley, his trusty mules transport the end result to Agia Roumeli in a final 3 hour hike.

Meli Vigli Samaria owes its unique flavor to Samaria's distinct variety of herbs such as salvia, satureja thymbra, origanum majorana, thyme, and sideritis syriaca which is only found in Crete, and is better known as the Cretan mountain tea. Much like the gorge, its taste relieves the stress of daily life, connecting you to something transcendent and unchanged through the ages.

Το ΜΕΛΙ ΒΙΓΛΗΣ είναι πιστοποιημένο-βραβευμένο με το AUTHENTIC TASTE OF GREECE - GOLD AWARD 2021 | ΒΡΑΒΕΙΟ ΑΥΘΕΝΤΙΚΗΣ ΕΛΛΗΝΙΚΗΣ ΓΕΥΣΗΣ® 2021

ΒΡΑΒΕΙΟ ΑΥΘΕΝΤΙΚΗΣ ΕΛΛΗΝΙΚΗΣ ΓΕΥΣΗΣ® AUTHENTIC TASTE OF GREECE GOLD AWARD 2021 ΓΙΑ TO “ΜΕΛΙ ΒΙΓΛΗΣ” – BIGLIS HONEY IS AWARDED THE “AUTHENTIC TASTE OF GREECE GOLD AWARD 2021” BY GREEK TASTE BEYOND BORDERS® GTBB ORGANIZATION

Ο οργανισμός του Greek Taste Beyond Borders® GTBB πιστοποίησε-βράβευσε τo “ΜΕΛΙ ΒΙΓΛΗΣ” με το σήμα ποιότητας Βραβείο Αυθεντικής Ελληνικής Γεύσης® Authentic Taste of Greece Gold Award 2021για την εξαιρετική ποιότητα ελληνικού μελιού και για την διατήρηση της ελληνικής παράδοσης μέσα από αυθεντικές μεθόδους παραγωγής που σέβονται την φύση και τον άνθρωπο.

Το ΜΕΛΙ ΒΙΓΛΗΣ παράγεται στο Φαράγγι της Σαμαριάς από τον Θεόδωρο Βίγλη που κληρονόμησε τις πολύτιμες γνώσεις από την οικογένεια του με μακραίωνη ιστορία στην κρητική παράδοση και στις αξίες του τόπου.

Η διαδικασία πιστοποίησης-βράβευσης που εκδίδεται με αριθμό πρωτοκόλλου αρχειοθέτησης φακέλου του οργανισμού GTBB βασίστηκε στο GTBB prototype που ενσωματώνει σύγχρονη μέθοδο αξιολόγησης πολλών παραγόντων με την εποπτεία της ειδικής επιτροπής των taste experts του GTBB. Το σήμα του Authentic Taste of Greece Gold Award αποτελεί ένα ισχυρό διαπιστευτήριο ποιότητας με χρήση σαν στάμπα πάνω στα Ελληνικά προϊόντα με σκοπό την ανάδειξη τους στα ράφια της παγκόσμιας αγοράς.

The organization of Greek Taste Beyond Borders® GTBB presented the AUTHENTIC TASTE OF GREECE GOLD AWARD 2021 ΒΡΑΒΕΙΟ ΑΥΘΕΝΤΙΚΗΣ ΕΛΛΗΝΙΚΗΣ ΓΕΥΣΗΣ® to "VIGLIS HONEY" with the quality mark Authentic Taste of Greece Gold Award 2021 for the exceptional quality of Greek honey and for the preservation of the Greek tradition through authentic production methods that respect nature and man.

VIGLIS HONEY is produced in the Samaria Gorge by Theodoros Viglis who inherited the valuable knowledge from his family with a long history in the Cretan tradition and the values ​​of the place.

GTBB organization is dominating in the promotion of Greek taste & gastronomy throughout the world, utilizing modern branding methods and the most effective business networking platform for Greece and its global representation. The prestigious awards mentioned as “top honors” by GTBB have a significant role and are presented exclusively to premium Greek brands for their excellent quality standards and conformity to core values.

The process of the certification was implemented under the GTBB Prototype which adopts a protocol number policy and a modernized evaluation method, associated to high value standards of quality and taste.

GREEK TASTE BEYOND BORDERS® GTBB has announced its annual global conference in Athens, Greece (Summer 2021) under the Auspices of Ministry of Tourism, GNTO & City of Athens where “BIGLIS HONEY” and all certified brands shall gather in this promising global event.