I was surprised on my recent trip to Lebanon to experience the site of the early blossoming Sour Orange trees. This has come about due to the unusually warm weather which the country has experienced in ealy March. Despite the resulting rush to pick these beautiful blossoms in time, I enjoyed going around the orchards with our supplier Joseph Menhem who, when I arrived, was frantically calling up crews of laborours at short notice, lest the harvesting season goes to waste. I hope that you enjoy the picture that I managed to capture, and that they portray some of the beaty of rural life in the early Lebanese spring.
The beauty of the Sour Orange Orchards around the village of Zakroun in North Lebanon.
Local ladies are hired to pick the flowers before they fully blossom and lose their essential oils. This would make them unsuitable for the distillation process which turns them into the beautiful Orange Blossom Water that we supply you with.
Joseph walking me through the orchards as he inspects the picking process.
A local farmer brings his harvest to Joseph’s facility in the village. The farmers are paid for the weight of their pickings.
The end of a long day’s work
Equitable Gourmet 