Simon Bridges meets with Prince Charles. Photo / Supplied
Simon Bridges meets with Prince Charles. Photo / Supplied
What do you buy a man who has everything? A pot of pohutukawa honey, that's what.
That was the question National Party leader and Tauranga MP Simon Bridges asked when deciding what to gift the Prince of Wales.
And a 125g jar of Honeymeisters native pohutukawa honey sourced from theMount Maunganui Golf Course was the answer.
Prince Charles and Camilla, Duchess of Cornwall, are on a six-day tour of New Zealand. This morning, Bridges met with Prince Charles during a half an hour meeting at the Government House in Auckland.
The pair talked about sustainability and international trade before Bridges handed the Prince of Wales the pot of honey.
"He [Prince Charles] said he was really looking forward to trying it on some toast," Bridges said.
The description on the jar reads: "The "champagne of honey", Pohutukawa has a silky texture and lightness that is finished beautifully by the natural coast saltiness from the Pohutukawa tree. Sourced from the Mount Maunganui Golf Course, we believe this is the best tasting honey in the world".
The cost of the jar was $12.99. Bridges said it wasn't about the cost of the gift, but "more about the taste" and its connection to Tauranga.
When asked if he had tried the honey himself, Bridges said, "Yes, I can attest that it is delicious".
The honey Simon Bridges chose to gift the Prince of Wales. Photo / Supplied
"I think for someone who has everything, you want something that is a bit different. Prince Charles is very passionate about sustainability and organic so I thought this fit very well," Bridges said.
"It was also important for me to give something local from Tauranga."
Bridges also gifted Prince Charles with some manuka honey and hokey pokey flavoured chocolate and a children's book titled Time for Bed Little Kiwi by Bob Darroch.
Prince Charles and Camilla, the Duchess of Cornwall will be in New Zealand from November 17-23 visiting only Auckland, Northland, Christchurch and Kaikōura.
It is the couple's third visit together and their first since 2015.
Bridges admitted he did not ask His Royal Highness why the couple was not visiting the Bay of Plenty this time round but said Prince Charles was well-educated about New Zealand.
"He has been here many times and knows a lot more than you may think about our culture and our politics," he said.
Owner of the Colony honey shop in Mount Maunganui, Kris Jansen, said pohutukawa honey was also given to the Queen about 20 years ago.
Jansen, who has harvested honey for many years, said the pohutukawa trees only flowered for a short amount of time.
"There is just a very short window when you can collect pohutukawa so basically it is a really rare honey," she said.
"We are really lucky in Mount Maunganui, where we have a beekeeper who puts it [the pohutukawa flower] around the Mount golf course just for us. That's how special it is."
