Gerard’Z Honeybees

Livermore, United States

4.9

Closed now

20 reviews

Accepts Credit Cards

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Telephone:
+1 925-605-6119
Website:
www.gerardzhoneybees.com
Address:
Livermore, CA 94550
Nearby public transportation stops & stations:
1.1 miLivermore Station
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Bussiness info

Accepts Credit Cards
Yes
Parking
Private Lot
Bike Parking
Yes

Today

Today 9:00 am – 5:00 pm
Closed now
Local time (Livermore) 02:49 Wednesday, 16 July 2025

Business hours

Monday 9:00 am – 5:00 pm
Tuesday 9:00 am – 5:00 pm
Wednesday 9:00 am – 5:00 pm
Thursday 9:00 am – 5:00 pm
Friday 9:00 am – 5:00 pm
Saturday 9:00 am – 5:00 pm
Sunday 9:00 am – 5:00 pm

Description

Specialties

We specialize in selling quality local and monofloral honey.

Current monofloral varietals include: Sage, Orange Blossom, Star Thistle, Clover, Avocado, Pomegranate, and Buckwheat Honeys.

Current cities of hives producing local honey include: Livermore, Pleasanton, Castro Valley, Sunol, Tracy, Brentwood, Modesto, Oakdale, Turlock, Manteca, Stockton, and Placerville.

History

Established in 2011.

Gerard’Z Honeybees is a family owned and operated business. Gerard was the initial beekeeper, over 100 years ago. Today, 3rd and 4th generation beekeepers carry on Gerard’s passion for honeybees.

We currently have over 75 hives throughout the Bay Area and Central Valley. We cater to the Local Honey markets in these areas, in addition to offering specialty monofloral honey from fields and orchards within CA central valley.

We offer our honey through various outlets; mostly winery tasting rooms, nurseries, farm stands, and restaurants.

We also are active in swarm removals, and have done some limited crop pollination this past spring season (2012). We will grow this area of our business in the coming years.

We have recently begun to offer ‘Intro to Beekeeping Workshops’ coupled with honey and wine tastings. This process of education has helped people understand more about bees, beekeeping, honey, and wine varieties.

We look forward to continual business growth !

Meet the Business Owner

Ed Z.

Business Owner

I began beekeeping at age of nine with my grandfather, Gerard.

Over the next 3 – 4 years, he must have planted the seed of caring for bees inside me. However, this seed laid dormant for nearly 35 years.

Now that seed is in full bloom, as each day is a new adventure in the beekeeping world. I am amazed at the tremendous generosity and support that we have received over this past year, and am encouraged that such support is continually growing as the plight of the honeybee is better understood.

I look forward to meeting you, down the road…

Gerard’Z Honeybees also recommends

Turlock Flea Market

14

reviews

跳蚤市場

Ed Z. says,

«Always get a bargain there …»

Andy’s Orchard

26

reviews

水果及蔬菜

Ed Z. says,

«Always order a gift basket of fruits for special occasions. Andy always produces top rate quality, on time !!»

The Olivina

3

reviews

特色食品

Ed Z. says,

«Superior olive oils !»

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20 reviews of Gerard’Z Honeybees

No registration required
Place rating: 5
Livermore, CA
I took my sister to a beekeeping class at Retzlaff winery in Livermore for her birthday. She is interested in pursuing beekeeping in the near future. We both thoroughly enjoyed learning all about bees, beekeeping and honey. Ed is very knowledgable about beekeeping and his class was both interesting and informative. We were able to taste several different flavors of his honey. I would highly recommend this class to anyone interested in beekeeping or just learning more about bees. The complimentary wine tasting afterwards was a nice added bonus!
Place rating: 5
Orangevale, CA
My Boyfriend and I took the beekeeping class that was offered on Groupon and held at the Old Sugar Mill. Ed was incredibly friendly and very knowledgable. The class was very interesting and he made it fun for all. It is a great beginner course to get some basic know-​how if you are interested in beekeeping or just curious to know more about the wonderful world of bees and how it all works. My favorite part was the honey tasting… mmmm! The blackberry honey was the best. Highly recommend the class and/​or the honey — all great!
Place rating: 5
Tracy, CA
Having had some prior beekeeping knowledge, I didn’t really expect to learn too much, and upon arrival, seeing his setup, I didn’t have much hope for any more than the wine! However, it quickly became apparent that this guy knew his stuff. He gave a lot of basic information for those with no knowledge, but he was also able to teach the rest of us a thing or two! There were several children in the class, and he was awesome with them also. I came there with a few specific questions and he was able to answer them for me, as well as he answered questions for others about how to go about starting your own hive and how one could make money from them. He let us taste test 4 different types of honey, all of which with a distinct taste difference, and he explained them well. We were able to purchase from him the honey we tasted. The honey was on the pricy side, but after tasting it, I still bought 5 jars!
If I had anything negative to say, it would be the wine tasting. Although the gentleman who served us was great, the tasting was one red and one white. I wasn’t impressed with the wine… but since I really went there for the bees, i can’t complain.
Overall, I’d recommend this to anyone who is interested in learning about honey or bees.
Place rating: 4
Livermore, CA
I fought a bee once and won… so I ain’t scared. Turns out, even if you are scared of bees you are totally safe if you take this workshop/​tasting. The bees are kept in an observational glass type thing so there is really no threat.
The class is a basic run down of bee life. Your workers, drones, and queen and what they do all day. It made me think, for a moment, that I could start my own little hive. We then got to taste the honey! All 4 had their own district flavor but the Buckwheat was my favorite. It is like the oatmeal stout of honey!
Our workshop was at Retzlaff in Livermore which is an organic winery. The setting was great but I have to say that they were a little stingy on the pours. We only got two and the volume was equivalent to a splash.
If you are looking for a nice way to spend an afternoon and learn the basics about bees, this is a good option. I would look for this on a LocalGruv or Groupon.
Place rating: 5
Santa Cruz, CA
We did the beekeeping workshop in Felton at Hallcrest Vineyards. Ed was a patient and friendly teacher. The group asked lots of questions and he answered with humor and knowledge. I feel like I can start a colony now, and the tasting was delicious. The vineyard staff was also great with some nice wine and a beautiful location.
Update 6⁄16:
We’ve continued to do research and started attending santa cruz beekeeper guild meetings and learned that beeping is pretty expensive, bees are pretty complicated, and you have to be willing to be in it for the long haul and gain a lot of hard earned wisdom. Don’t go in expecting to have an easy time and think you can get honey within a year. Expect to spend at least a few hundred dollars, take some losses with your colonies, and maybe get some honey in a year or two. Still, if you’re willing, it is an exciting and fun hobby with a lot of learning and fulfillment. Ed was a good place to start, but CAN’T be the only thing you learn from to get going, no offense to him at all! Get some books, watch a lot of videos, join a club, and listen to others experiences.
Place rating: 5
Orinda, CA
A great intro to beekeeping workshop! Very informative. I now have a Much better idea of the cost and effort that goes into beekeeping, and how to proceed if I decide to pursue it. The honey tastes great, too! Definitely recommend, a wonderful experience.
Place rating: 5
Elk Grove, CA
My husband bought tickets to the wine and honey seminar after seeing it on Groupon. We had been interested in beekeeping for a while and this seemed like a good opportunity to check it out. We attended the wine and honey class at the Sugar Mill in Clarksburg. It was a wonderful way to spend a Sunday morning. Our host/​instructor Ed was very informative and there was a lot of discussion among the group. He seemed to have the knack for making everyone feel very comfortable. The honey samples were a nice treat, and it was great being able to compare the differences between the varieties. I really liked the blackberry honey. Very unique flavor. The included wine tasting was a nice way to end the class, but I think we enjoyed the honey portion of the event more. I would definitely recommend this as a relaxing weekend activity and a good way to learn something at the same time.
Place rating: 5
Modesto, CA
Totally enjoyed the introductory beekeeping class. A very nice setting to deliberately choose to host at a winery. Great grounds and ambiance. Ed was personable and made the class fun, interactive, and we were able to ask a lot of questions. Of course he sold honey at the end after sampling four varieties. But who wouldn’t want that option?!
You can tell he enjoys what he does and has been at it for a long time. However, I felt he was encouraging to everyone from the small home in a city that wants one hive and not much work to the farmer’s son that is being sent to learn how to keep a few hundred hives. Everyone was welcome and left with new knowledge.
I would recommend this class for anyone interested in bees in general or the possibility of beekeeping.
Place rating: 5
Modesto, CA
Bought this for a mother’s day gift, and had so much fun learning about beekeeping. Great workshop, instructor was informative, funny and entertaining. Loved it, would recommend it to anyone who wants to learn about bees, taste some delicious honey, and end it with wine. We had a great time!!!
Place rating: 5
Castro Valley, CA
What a fun way to get an education in bees, and beekeeping!
The venue I attended was at the Retzlaff Winery in Livermore. Really nice outdoor area, under the trees. I think there were about 30 of us. Our host was really nice, easy to understand, and he taught me things about bees that I would never have thought of. I really couldn’t keep it all in my head. So, I will look some of this up again just for my future brain reference. Bottom line is that bees rule the world, and we cannot survive without them.. . so give them a lot of respect people! Once you undertand that world of bees, you will get there.
I attend various seminars and events on a regular basis, and this by far exceeded my expectations. Bring your friends and family, kids will like watching the bees in the viewable honeycomb (glass protects everyone).
Retzlaff also has wine tasting when the seminar is over. Which is a nice way to end the afternoon.
Place rating: 5
Walnut Creek, CA
We bought the bee keeping and wine tasting on Living social. My husband wants to start keeping bees. This was a great entry into the bee keeping world. Thanks for a great day.
Place rating: 5
Sarasota, FL
Loved it!
I went with my bf today! It was a wonderful workshop, with lots of interaction and great information. I love that I was able to get my questions answered. I learned so much.
We skipped the wine tasting because we don’t enjoy alcohol.
Suggestion for those attending in the future… bring cash for the honey. Next time, I will get some honey. It was definitely worth it.
Place rating: 5
Danville, CA
This honey is something special along with the people who produce it. Had the pleasure of attending one of the education workshops and thought it was awesome, such a fun way to spend the afternoon! Meant to post this a long time ago but just proves the quality and the review stands!
Place rating: 5
Canyon Country, CA
While visiting my daughter near Monterey she signed us up for this workshop. We went to the one in Livermore and had a great time. We learned so much from this presentation that it got us thinking about doing this in the future.
The honey tasting was really eyeopening, never thought of tasting honey like wine, but there are so many different flavor profiles from different pollen. Definitely more flavors than just the little bear from the local grocer.
The wines we tasted were quite good and we learned a little about them as well. Be sure to bring a warm jacket if you go in October, it was chillier than most of us expected.
Place rating: 4
Pleasanton, CA
The guy teaching us about honeybees knows his stuff and is pleasant to listen to. Glad to do a honey tasting for comparison. Learned lots about starting a honeybee farm and to learn how important these bees are to our food chain.
Place rating: 5
San Jose, CA
This was a very informative class. I wasn’t expecting to go into such detail about beekeeping, but I left there excited for the time when we can have a backyard and can keep bees! The honey tasting was great, and I loved to be able to taste so many different flavors.
The wine tasting part of it was okay. It didn’t really go with the other part of the class, but it was a nice addition.
Place rating: 5
San Francisco, CA
My finace and I went to the workshop in Felton and had an awesome time at the workshop. I’ve been interested in bee keeping for awhile now and was happy that they had a workshop so close to home. It was a great way to be informative and learn the basics about bee keeping. My fiancé didn’t show much interest in going to the class with me, however, as soon as the class was over he became a bee enthusiast!
We also had a paired wine tasting, which was equally as fun. The wine we tasted was delicious and had to buy a bottle before we left.
I loved that the instructor was very informative and was full of information. The only thing I would change is having a few interactive activities that people could participate in. Maybe extracting honey?
Place rating: 5
Sacramento, CA
The beekeeping workshop was very informative and very interesting for those who want to start beekeeping or for those wanting to learn more about how important bees are to our circle of life. Ed was funny and kept the 2 hour workshop interesting while showing us the bee boxes, honey tasting and the organic wine tasting was a nice break from all the information. I’m Totally looking forward to the hands on class that will let us dress up and handle the bees.
Place rating: 5
Milpitas, CA
The beekeeping workshop was absolutely fun and informative. Ed was such a great instructor. He is very knowledgeable about bees and what they do. We can see that he was very enthusiastic and passionate about what he does. His explanations were straight forward, nothing complicated.
I highly recommend going to the workshop if you want to have fun while learning.
My only negative comment is that the phone number that was provided here on Unilocal and on the website is a personal cellphone of Ed. I left a couple of messages to see if we needed to book an appointment or not. I’m assuming he is getting bombarded with phone calls left and right so I understand the reason why he’s not able to return anyone’s call.
My suggestion is to call the location where you will be attending the workshop then they will let Ed know how many people are coming. Also, no need to book an appointment. You can just show up.
All in all, the beekeeping workshop was an awesome experience that’s why I’m still giving it 5 stars.
Place rating: 5
Redwood City, CA
Ed was wonderful! He is so enthusiastic about bees and he was a great educator. The workshop was awesome, it was an intimate group where we were free to ask as many questions as we wanted and it was a great learning experience! I love honey which is why I went but Ed taught us the importance of bees to the ecosystem and to our food supply and why we must help them!
The raw honey was so delicious. I went home with blackberry, orange blossom and black sage. I will be stealing my boyfriend’s avacado honey soon!
We were at hallcrest winery in Felton, which was also fun to see them crushing grapes and the variety of wine was great.