We welcome the Istari to Middle Earth, but should they need honey for their tea, bread or mead may we suggest…

‘MR. BUMBLES BRAMBLEBERRY HONEY’

This ‘elixir of bottled sunshine’ is as close to Valinor as one can get. Although it's not printed on the label, it is as old as the bees and long produced by Hobbits before they settled in the Shire after migrating from the Anduin River valley across the Misty Mountains.

With a new age upon us, it's only fitting to share a bit of history about it's founder (as we have come to know it) since many records were lost in that migration. It is widely accepted the first beekeeper was Beedle Beedit who settled in the East Farthing area of Yale and Stock near The Marish, Buckland and the Brandywine River.

It was his practice to keep bees at the end of the lane near the river, no doubt due to the intermingling of Stoor and Harfoot, where fishing was as much pastime as occupation. But his true ‘beezness’ was honey, cultivating hives near hills and forests until the best sources was found. With close access to Bree on the East Road, he established a profitable trade route with men, who used the exceptional honey to make their mead.

You often see his relatives rolling honey laden carts through the towns of men, elf and dwarf delivering 'Mr. Bumbles Brambleberry Honey' so named for the founders nephew, on his sister's side.

Many East Farthing families such as the Goodenoughs and Boffins benefited greatly from sizable dowry's and estate holdings passed down through the maternal line through marriage with the Beedit progeny, In particular, the descendants who trace their ancestors beyond Buffo and Ivy Boffin.

Others take pride in the stirring tales chronicled in the ‘Hobbit’s Journal’, penned by their ancestor Mr. Beedle. Now tattered and worn to the point of disintegration, it describes his service in an alliance of elves, men and dwarfs in the Siege of Barad-dûr in War of the Last Alliance of earlier times. His granddaughter Isildura, was named after a great fallen hero of that saga.

“Pure fiction!” some hobbits claim, "Pandering to menfolk for profit" others insist. This often coming from those without a tincture of adventure in their blood. Many are content to live comfortably with their ancestral holdings, and eschew such adventure. Nothing wrong in that, but it’s also comforting to know, should the Shire ever be in danger again, the blood in Mr. Beedle’s descendants is thick enough to be stirred once again.

If that time should come we will all need our strength. Our advice is to be well prepared by stocking the larder and root cellar with…

MR. BUMBLES BRAMBLEBERRY HONEY

'The Best There Be From Bywater to Bree'

Sold at the Green Dragon and other fine dining establishments.

(From promotional material found near Bree)