Best Brands 2014-15 by Guild of Fine Food

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Salute the countryâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s top shopkeepers Meet the heroes of our Best Brands survey Join the winning side with our awards round-up

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By Royal Appointment for over a centur y Even at the tur n of the last centur y Royal orders

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were being sent to Tiptree from ever y cor ner

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of the globe as the reputation of Wilkin &

a n d w e r e f r e q u e n t c u s t o m e r s. To d a y t h i n g s a r e

Sons spread around the world. Queen Sophie of

little changed as the House of Windsor still

Greece, The Queen of Spain and Her Majesty the

enjoys the taste of Tiptree at breakfast, over 100

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TIPTREE

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WELCOME It’s four years since we launched Best Brands, Fine Food Digest’s annual roundup of the ‘best of the best’ in speciality food & drink – and for the first time, someone has challenged me about the whole concept. I was doing my regular call-round of influential buyers and pundits, asking them to suggest a few up-and-coming new producers to feature in the Emerging Brands section (pages 49-53). Most were up for it straight away, but one was a tad more hesitant, and raised two valid objections. Do we really want those surprising new niche specialities that we cherish to turn into commercial monsters available in every higher-end food store in the country? And anyway, being blunt, why would any retailer who has found something unique want to share it with the rest of the world? It did make me think. I recall when we launched Best Brands in 2011, we briefly questioned our use of the ‘B’ word : did it smack of a pull-out supplement in The Grocer (the supermarket bible) rather than a mag dedicated to exceptional foods sold through delis, farm shops and food halls? But we concluded it was possible to build a brand in our market without turning into Coca-Cola or Cadbury – witness Tracklements and The Fine Cheese Co, who’ve topped their categories once again in 2014. And for every little lifestyle business that is comfortable staying small there are other entrepreneurs who want – and are entitled – to make a really good living and gain some financial security from all their hard work. And there’s something else, which is that every deli, farm shop, deli-café or food hall needs a decent balance of niche delicacies and volume sellers that will actually pay the bills. The heart of Best Brands, after all, is the annual Best Brands Survey in which FFD retailers tell us which products are putting the most cash into their tills week after week. I think this argument must have swung it with our sceptical buyer, anyway, because, in the end, he contributed a suitable intriguing list of emerging brands to this year’s edition. Ironically, Coca-Cola appears in this year’s Best Brands Survey too – among the best performing soft drinks brands cited by independent retailers. And last year’s number one in that category, Fentimans – a large business by our standards, but still family-owned – has been ousted from the top by Sanpellegrino, the premium Italian fizzy juice drinks brand. I wasn‘t surprised by this result. I’ve noticed Sanpellegrino popping up everywhere this year, including my local farm shop, and our art director has been guzzling the stuff by the gallon (from Waitrose). But I can’t say I‘m delighted that the best-performing soft drinks brand in speciality stores this year is owned by Nestlé – a multinational that hardly needs publicity from us. Perhaps it proves my own point, though. Ninety-nine per cent of FFD readers are business people and understand the need to make money. If, alongside those chunky, premium sourdough sandwiches with Brie de Meaux, Bayonne ham and Tracklements onion marmalade you need to sell a 65p can of Sanpellegrino to keep your lunch offer affordable, then go for it. It fills a different gap to a bottle of Luscombe hot ginger beer at upwards of £1.60 for 32cl. The speciality market needs both.

Mick Whitworth Editor EDITORIAL editorial@gff.co.uk Editor: Mick Whitworth Deputy editor: Michael Lane Art director: Mark Windsor Contributors: Arabella Mileham, Lynda Searby, Patrick McGuigan Photography: Richard Faulks, Isabelle Plasschaert Cover illustration: Garen Ewing

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GENERAL ENQUIRIES Tel: 01747 825200 Fax: 01747 824065 info@gff.co.uk www.gff.co.uk Guild of Fine Food, Guild House, 23b Kingsmead Business Park, Shaftesbury Rd, Gillingham, SP8 5FB UK

How it works: At the heart of this special edition of FFD is our annual Best Brands Survey. Every brand featured in this section is here because independent retailers put it here. For the fourth year running, we asked buyers in delis, farm shops and food halls around the country to name their top-selling lines in around a dozen categories. We conducted the survey of our retail readership by post and telephone. The top scorers in each category are revealed here. Where brands achieved very similar scores we have given them a joint position.

Great Taste Shop of the Year 20 Salute the country’s top shopkeepers Meet the heroes of our Best Brands survey Join the winning side with our awards round-up

Published by Great Taste Publications Ltd and the Guild of Fine Food Ltd

INSIDE Best Brands Survey 2014-15

Le Gruyère AOP Cheese Counter of the Year 28 National & Regional Award Winners 38 Emerging Brands 49

Fine Food Digest is published 11 times a year and is available on subscription for £45pa inclusive of post and packing. Printed by: Blackmore, Shaftesbury, UK

Deli of the Month ‘must-stocks’ 55

© Great Taste Publications Ltd and The Guild of Fine Food Ltd 2014. Reproduction of whole or part of this magazine without the publisher’s prior permission is prohibited. The opinions expressed in articles and advertisements are not necessarily those of the editor or publisher. The publisher cannot accept responsibility for unsolicited manuscripts, photographs or illustrations

FFD’s Pick of the Year 59

BEST BRANDS 2014-15

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Three New drinks from Luscombe, these are sure to become classics... The rest of the family have taken

Great Taste Awards since 2003

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BEST BRANDS 2014-15

路 FINE FOOD DIGEST

B E S T B R A N D S S U RV E Y 2 0 1 4 - 1 5

DELIVERING THE GOODS

So here they are: the big category winners and their close rivals in our annual poll of top performing speciality food brands, as chosen by Fine Food Digest readers in delis, farm shops and food halls nationwide. Interviews by ARABELLA MILEHAM.

OILS & VINEGARS

Seggiano

Italian speciality brand Seggiano, owned by London-based Peregrine Trading, returned to the top spot again this year after a brief absence in 2013. The appeal to independents of its best-selling olive oils and balsamic vinegars lies in Seggiano’s reputation for quality products that look great but manage to be reasonably priced, says co-founder David Harrison, who set up the business with partner Peri Eagleton 20 years ago. “Our starting point was the ethics of food – ingredients, provenance, quality and being honest about margins – and I think

rises of 60%. “It has been a real struggle, but I’m very happy with my harvest and the quality of the oil I’m offering,” he says. “We’ve done better than a lot of producers because we were well prepared and very careful.” As a result, the brand released its new harvest olive oil – “a bit like a Beaujolais nouveau” – in time for Christmas, which he says is rare as even at its most intense, Seggiano olive oil has a sweet and delicate flavour suitable for the UK palate, unlike other more “aggressive” oils. The company is also relaunching a consumer website and embracing social media ahead of its 21st birthday.

1st Seggiano 2nd Aspall Cyder Vinegar 3rd Yorkshire Rapeseed Oil 4th Farrington’s 5th Deli-cious

www.seggiano.com www.aspall.co.uk www.yorkshirerapeseedoil.co.uk www.farrington-oils.co.uk www.deliciousontap.co.uk

David Harrison with partner and Seggiano co-founder Peri Eagleton

Isabelle Plasschaert

MEET THE WINNER

that’s something that people who buy Seggiano appreciate,” he says. It is also rare to find something “beautifully packaged where the product is as good as the packing”, he adds. Seggiano not only produces its own olives and oils in Italy, but also tracks down other specialities to be packed under the brand, and one of its strenghs comes from its broad range of Italian products, Harrison continues. “It’s very difficult for a small shop to buy from lots of different distributors. But as we produce and distribute ourselves, and cut out the middle man, it is very good value for money. And because no other Italian brand has the depth of range we have – there are over 200 items under the Seggiano name – it can be part of a wider order, which also helps keep the margins down.” This is important, Harrison argues, because independents can’t afford to be unrealistic. “How many independentshop customers are there out there who don’t also buy from supermarkets? You have to be competitive – and often small delis are. They are trying to offer a better quality product at a competitive price.” Harrison remains upbeat about the coming year despite 2014’s poor Italian olive harvest, which he claims was one of the worst in living memory, hitting quality and quantity and causing price

B E S T B R A N D S S U RV E Y 2 0 1 4 - 1 5 S W E E T & S AV O U RY B I S C U I T S

respond to what we think the end customer wants and what they’re looking for. And once we get an idea set, we move on it very fast.” The Fine Cheese Co Business is buoyant and Dyas attributes this to the breadth of The Innovation and an obsession with Fine Cheese Co’s range – currently cheese are the things that propel 23 different crackers and biscuits – The Fine Cheese Co, according to which means retailers can find “the co-owner Ann-Marie Dyas. “We’re right combination for their shop and always doing new things – that’s what customer”. keeps brands alive – but we try to Dyas’s “You need to think experience as an about what the customer artisan cheese retailer also wants, rather than informs how the ‘What can I make in this company supplies its customers. “We bakery’” Ann-Marie Dyas understand what

MEET THE WINNER

it’s like to be a retailer – that you don’t have a big stock room, that you want frequent delivery. So we’re conscious not to put our delivery limit too high, and try to adapt to the things confronting retailers.” Being transprent about supporting independents is very important, she argues, as it builds loyalty and means an important two-way relationship can develop with its customers. “When we say we’re 100% available to the independent sector, we mean it,” she says. The company’s best-seller by far is the Toast for Cheese range, and this year saw the addition of a new quince, pecan & poppy seed variant, which Dyas says adds value and will complete the range. “We were missing a Toast for ewes’ milk cheese and wanted to have one using quince, which is a great partner for cheese. Having launched it in the summer, it is doing incredibly well, and we now have a full set of Toasts.” Other NPD in 2014 has included a gluten-free water cracker to cater for the growing free-from trend, and a new variety pack that has done “particularly well” in the strong London singles and couples market, proving innovation doesn’t always have to be revolutionary. “But you need to be aware of where the market needs are moving,” Dyas notes. “You need to think about what

1st The Fine Cheese Co 2nd Border Biscuits 3rd Peter’s Yard Joint 4th Artisan Biscuits; Moores Biscuits Joint 5th Botham’s of Whitby; Stag Bakeries

you are doing and what the customer wants, rather than thinking ‘What can I make in this bakery?’.” Next year may see a move towards the start of the day, Dyas hints. “Supermarkets have rather had breakfast covered, but I think we should take the fight to them. You can expect to see something from us in that area – but you can be 100% sure it will be different to everyone else.” www.finecheese.co.uk www.borderbiscuits.co.uk www.petersyard.com www.artisanbiscuits.co.uk www.moores-biscuits.co.uk www.botham.co.uk

DISTRIBUTORS MEET THE WINNER Hider Foods

2014 was a busy year for Hider Foods, which topped the distributor spot for the third year in a row. The Hull-based business has added an extra 25,000 sq ft of warehousing but joint managing director Duncan Hider insists the aim is not just about space, but also speeding up and streamlining its operations. “It is still the first phase, but we can already cope better in the busy times of the year,” he says, adding that the next step will be to look at

1st Hider Foods Joint 2nd Cotswold Fayre / Rowcliffe 3rd Carron Lodge 4th The Cress Company 5th Holleys Fine Foods 6

ordering patterns. “We have big plans going forward on how customers can place orders in an easier way and learn about new products,” he explains. Beyond that, the company is looking to launch chilled distribution by the end of 2015. Building strong relationships with

“There's a lot of good competition out there –it keeps us all on our toes” Duncan Hider suppliers and customers through good communication is key, Hider argues, and the company has invested in its staff “more than ever before” as a result. It has brought in new buyers and BEST BRANDS 2014-15

senior management this year, invested in training and moved the purchasing, marketing, brand management and sales teams closer together to improve internal communications. Although the dynamics of the wholesale and distribution market are changing, with more and more producers doing their own distribution and competitors moving north, Hider remains unfazed. “There is a lot of good competition out there – it keeps us all on our toes and actively trying to look at what works for the customer,” he says. The coming year will also see the company turn 50, but Hider clearly has his eye on the future and has aspirations to boost turnover to · FINE FOOD DIGEST

£30m within the next two years. “We’ve got to be looking ahead and seeing what customers will need to have, and what our suppliers will want too,” he says. www.hiderfoods.co.uk www.cotswold-fayre.co.uk www.rowcliffe.co.uk www.carronlodge.com www.thecressco.co.uk www.holleysfinefoods.com

mRS DARLINGTON’s - OVER 30 YEARS OF HISTORY IN ONE JAR In 1980 a surplus of eggs from the family farm led Marion Darlington to produce batches of her homemade Lemon Curd following her mothers’ recipe. She sold the Lemon Curd with her eggs on a delivery round in nearby towns, paying the local brownies to collect jars for her! Such was demand, a year later, Marion’s husband Tom converted one of the farm buildings into a large kitchen and the range increased to include Marion’s Orange and Lime Curds plus her Sweet Apple Chutney and Orange Marmalade recipes. Marion was able to expand her range to include jams when Mrs Wright, a fruit farmer from Lancashire, enquired to see if Mrs Darlington would buy her surplus fruit. Fast forward to 1987 when Marion’s daughter Sarah joined her in the business, as a temporary stop gap that’s lasted 27 years and counting!

With the range expanding to include more of Marion’s chutneys, sauces and marmalades, demand became too high for the converted farm kitchen and in 1997 the big decision was made to relocate to Lancaster Fields, Crewe. Since 2002 it’s been a blur. Sarah’s sister Wendy left her corporate job and together the family team has seen Mrs Darlington’s products make their way into high quality food outlets across the UK, Europe and beyond. Today there are over 80 products in the Darlington range with lots of award winners amongst them. The Darlington family have come a long way but remain a family business, committed to the aim Marion Darlington began with; to craft delicious products with a truly homemade taste.

TO FIND A DISTRIBUTOR NEAR YOU PLEASE GET IN TOUCH - enquiries@mrsdarlingtons.com 01270 250710 f l Darlington & Daughters, Lancaster Fields, Crewe CW1 6FF Visiit our website: www.mrsdarlingtons.com You can also find us on Facebook & Twitter. 7 BEST BRANDS 2014-15 · F I N E F O O D D I G E S T

A TASTY BRITISH CELEBRATION FROM TYRRELLS! 3 All year round availability 3 12 x 150g sharing pack size 3 24 x 40g packs to follow soon! 3 Red White and Blue potatoes – Highland Burgundy, Lady Rosetta / Lady Claire and Salad Blue 3 Grown in Herefordshire by Tyrrells 3 A delicious celebration of our British provenance, using naturally occurring red, white and blue potatoes!

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BEST BRANDS 2014-15

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B E S T B R A N D S S U RV E Y 2 0 1 4 - 1 5 C H O C O L AT E & C O N F E C T I O N E RY MEET THE WINNER Prestat

Focusing on innovation and concentrating on building a strong, eye-catching brand seems to be working for London chocolatier Prestat. In its first appearance in the Best Brands survey it has swept to the top of the list. “We work with brilliant distributors and I think we’re good at communicating the story of our brand both to retailers and to the public,” says co-owner Nick Crean. The firm has also invested heavily in “witty and regal packaging that has outstanding retail presence”, he adds. Crean says Prestat takes the sourcing of its cocoa “very seriously” and claims it is one of the few big premium brands to make its own chocolates as opposed to having them ‘white labelled’ – that is, made on their behalf by another manufacturer. “That puts us in a

strong position to have complete control over recipe creation.” The “artisan” chocolate sector, he adds, is likely to be shaken up in 2015 when Brooklyn-based bean-to-bar advocate Mast Brothers arrives in Shoreditch, crafting products on-site from the raw bean. Prestat has introduced a number of new product in 2014, including orange & cardamom chai thins and Black Forest gateau truffles, but Crean is particularly pleased with the new velvet truffle, which took two stars in this year’s Great Taste, as it is already attracting a younger consumer. Next year Prestat will roll out a range of chocolate bars using named chilli varieties, and it is working on a Yzu & sake truffle, a “wonderful combination” heavily influenced by the popularity of the Japanese drink in New York’s bar scene. It is also looking at brand extensions. “It is highly likely that we will bring out chocolate sauces next year,” Crean says. It is logical next move, he adds, for a brand that is as much about gifting as it is about chocolate to move into sauces and biscuits. “It give us access to two markets: those who want to snack on chocolates in front of Downton Abbey, and people who want a gift to take to a dinner or weekend party.”

1st Prestat 2nd Monty Bojangles 3rd House of Sarunds 4th Montezuma’s 5th Green & Black’s 6th RJ’s Licorice

Nick Crean (left) says it’s a logical move for a firm that’s as much about gifting as it is about chocolate to move into sauces and biscuits Turnover is now around £7m, up from £100,000 12 years ago, but Crean has plans to grow the business “significantly”, both at home and internationally. Although it has dipped its toe in the broader market, supplying its “everyday” bars to Tesco and its best-selling jewel boxes to Waitrose, Crean says 90% of what is does should only be in the independent and gourmet stores sector. www.prestat.co.uk www.montybojangles.com www.sarunds.co.uk www.montezumas.co.uk www.greenandblacks.co.uk www.rjslicorice.co.nz

BEST BRANDS 2014-15

· FINE FOOD DIGEST

B E S T B R A N D S S U RV E Y 2 0 1 4 - 1 5 JAMS & PRESERVES of more mainstream Tiptree lines also found in supermarkets. The two best sellers of 2014 were Little Scarlet strawberry jam – a “signature product” for the speciality sector – and lemon curd, which doubled in sales. Goodfellow credits the latter to the Great British Bake-Off effect, as people are

Scott Goodfellow (left) credits the Great British BakeOff for doubling sales of lemon curd in 2014

MEET THE WINNER Tiptree

Wilkin & Sons jam and presrve brand, Tiptree, held on to the top spot for a second year running, boosted by 2014’s bumper strawberry harvest. Communicating the company’s 129-year history as a fruit grower helps it stand out, sales director

Scott Goodfellow says, as shoppers in the fine food sector are primarily looking for authenticity, provenance and high quality. “The new products we have coming out will add sales because they’re on-trend,” he says, “but the most important thing we do – and ask our independents to do – is to tell the story of our farm, and our quality, authenticity and heritage.

1st Tiptree 2nd Mrs Darlington’s 3rd Bracken Hill 4th Hawkshead Relish Joint 5th Rosebud Preserves; Dart Valley

That’s what consumers look for.” It is not an easy market, he concedes, but people are still splashing out on small items in independents to give themselves a weekend treat, and Tiptree has seen steady sales on the back of this. Fine food shoppers are “more canny” with how they spend their money, he says, and both the more specialist and gifting products do particularly well. These are “complemented” by the range of more artisanstyle products under the Thursday Cottage brand which are also sold in larger delis and farm shops, and stand out from the narrower range

www.tiptree.com www.mrsdarlingtons.com www.brackenhillfinefoods.co.uk www.hawksheadrelish.com www.rosebudpreserves.co.uk www.dartvalleyfoods.co.uk

BRITISH CHEESE MEET THE WINNER Snowdonia Cheese Company

As a result, the company has seen growth of around 30% in the last year, with sales now worth around £6m. While distribution among independents has grown, NewtonJones says the biggest lift is coming from existing stockists. “Consumer numbers are growing and people are buying more in existing outlets,” he explains. Having two formats – a 3kg wheel for the deli counter as well as individual 200g packs – also works well for both retailers and consumers, he notes. However, NewtonJones says Snowdonia’s success does not just lie with one or two lines. Following the launch of the Red Leicester-style Red Storm in April 2014, there are now 10 varieties in the range, and the company plans to roll out another new recipe in 2015. The consumer base for flavoured BEST BRANDS 2014-15

cheese is increasing, Newton-Jones says, and some independents are stocking eight different lines rather than concentrating on one or two. Although it supplies Waitrose and Booths, Newton-Jones says Snowdonia Cheese Co is investing in its core independent market. “It’s important we are loyal to our customer base, as they’re investing in the brand too.” www.snowdoniacheese.co.uk www.colstonbassettdairy.co.uk www.montgomerycheese.co.uk www.barbers.co.uk www.shepherdspurse.co.uk www.sharpham.com

1st Snowdonia Black Bomber Cheddar 2nd Colston Bassett Stilton 3rd Montgomery’s Cheddar 4th Barbers Cheddar Joint 5th Shepherds Purse; Sharpham · FINE FOOD DIGEST

CONTINENTAL CHEESE Delis, farm shops and food halls think “brand“ and producer much less with their Continental selection – often not even specifying ‘Brie de Meaux’ over plain ‘brie’ in the Best Brands survey, for example – but this year’s results show these are the key international cheeses in many counters:

1st Brie de Meaux 2nd Delice de Bourgoyne 3rd Manchego 4th Parmigiano Reggiano Joe Gough/Dreamstime

According to the Snowdonia Cheese Co, fine food shoppers are increasingly looking for something a little different on the deli counter. Its bestselling Little Black Bomber, which swept to the top of the list in this year’s survey, has hit a chord with consumers, claims commercial director Richard NewtonJones, because of the contemporary nature of the brand, its presentation and its catchy name, as much as its texture and taste. Although there are strong brands of traditional cheddar in the market, he argues the sector has been guilty of lacking innovation. “But that’s important in today’s world – and it’s what we are doing,” he says.

increasingly using curds for baking rather than on toast. Tiptree has added three new curds – lime, passion fruit and blackcurrant – to its line-up this year, and will build on the baking theme with two new caramel spreads in 2015 – salted caramel and banoffee – as well as launching Victoria sponge cake mixes inspired by its expanding tearoom business. Looking ahead, it is investing in a new factory, due to be operational in three or four years’ time, but Goodfellow insists it will not abandon its traditional “hands-on” approach to fruit preparation and small-batch production.

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Another award-winning year for Peter’s Yard

A big thank you to our customers for helping Peter’s Yard achieve yet another record breaking year of growth.

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BEST BRANDS 2014-15

· FINE FOOD DIGEST

B E S T B R A N D S S U RV E Y 2 0 1 4 - 1 5 TEA MEET THE WINNER Teapigs

Isabelle Plasschaert

Teapigs has topped the tea category in all four Best Brands surveys and founders Louise Allen and Nick Kilby insist the focus of the brand has not wavered from the independents, despite its presence on supermarket shelves. “We’ve always been focused on the speciality sector – we’ve built our business on it and focused on it and done particularly well in that area,” Kilby maintains. Allen agrees. “They are so much more accepting of new ideas,” she

says. “When we come up with some crazy idea and suggest they should do it, they’re willing and able to give it a go, which is great for us.” Distribution has grown, with “several hundred” new stockists coming on board, Kilby says and although the company already maintains a fairly steady conversation through monthly e-shots, discussions over product development and on social media, he is determined to step up the game. Advertising is planned, but the focus this year, it says, is on boosting its ‘tea school’ programme to equip retailers to help their customers,

and Teapigs has high keep the category hopes for its new fresh and interesting matcha ready-to-drink. and add value to The convenient format retailers’ sales. will open up the drink “It’s about using to wider audience, it tea in a more creative says, as consumers way,” says Allen, don’t have to risk “and trying to get “investing” £25 in a the message across large tin. that using whole leaf Other ‘ready-toquality tea like Teapigs drinks’ and range means you can do extensions may be more with it, as it has on the horizon – more flavour.” potentially for chai “We’re pushing “The idea of tea lattes. If so, Teapigs hard to get people to look at tea differently. with milk and says independents will be key in getting it to There are different styles two sugars that consumers. and ways of drinking it that you wouldn’t have your granny “We are grateful for continued support thought possible before. would have the of the independents The idea of tea with milk drunk is long and so glad they are and two sugars that your granny drunk is gone” Nick Kilby accepting of our crazy ideas and continue to long gone,” Kilby adds. stock our products,” Although the says Allen. “It is hugely important classics remain the best sellers, it to us.” insists the growth is in matcha and herbal infusions. September saw the www.teapigs.co.uk launch of five new infusions (apple www.clipper-teas.com & cinnamon, fennel & liquorice, www.taylorsofharrogate.co.uk rhubarb & ginger, chocolate & www.djmiles.co.uk peppermint and sweet ginger), www.twinings.co.uk

1st Teapigs 2nd Clipper 3rd Taylors of Harrogate 4th Miles 5th Twinings BEST BRANDS 2014-15

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B E S T B R A N D S S U RV E Y 2 0 1 4 - 1 5 PICKLES & CHUTNEYS

MEET THE WINNER

Tracklements Consistency is a key component to the success of Tracklements, marketing director Becky Vale insists – and one that has seen the condiment maker retain the top spot for the fourth consecutive year. But that doesn’t mean it’s standing still. “We’re a 44-yearold brand,” says Vale, “but it’s important we keep the category fresh and keep the interest in the brand going.” 2014 was all about mustard – which includes some of Tracklements’ best-selling lines – and the three limited editions

launched this year sold so well that it’s considering adding them to its core range. More development work is planned for next year but the Wiltshire firm maintains a “one in, one out” policy to ensure the range of more than 50 lines doesn’t become too unmanageable. “You can constantly think of

new products but you have to be realistic,” Vale says. “But we’re a one-stop shop for condiments, which is why the range is so big.” There has been a lot of activity and competition in the sector, and although things have slowed down slightly this year, Tracklements is still hitting growth targets, Vale says, adding: “It’s a good, buoyant place to be.” The company invests heavily in the brand to create consumer pull-

“Retailers don’t have to work too hard to sell our products” Becky Vale through, she says “so retailers don’t have to work too hard to sell our products”. The speciality retailer is crucial, and Vale says Tracklements

works hard itself to find out what works for them. Having its own sales force is key to this process of communication, she says and makes the brand flexible and quick to react. “We pay attention to what they say and try to do activities that really work,” she says, pointing out this year’s giant jar of mustard and the roll-out of limited editions which add interest to the fixture. “Although we try to support shops with lots of point of sale, like the countertop box promotions we run, we also try to talk to the consumer, and having that direct relationship makes it easier for retailers.” www.tracklements.co.uk www.cottagedelight.co.uk www.brackenhillfinefoods.co.uk www.ousevalleyfoods.com www.rosebudpreserves.co.uk www.dartvalleyfoods.co.uk www.mrsdarlingtons.com

1st Tracklements 2nd Cottage Delight 3rd Bracken Hill Fine Foods 4th Ouse Valley Foods Joint 5th Rosebud Preserves; Dart Valley; Mrs Darlington’s

COFFEE MEET THE WINNER

Grumpy Mule Yorkshire coffee roaster Grumpy Mule topped the list of independent retailer’s bestselling coffees for the second year running, but the rare and unusual coffee specialist is not resting on its laurels. Having been bought by Irish firm Bewley’s in April 2013, it is enthusiastic about having the support and expertise of a 170-year old coffee business behind it and recognises it as the key opportunity to drive the brand forward. “It has given us the leverage and the capital to push Grumpy Mule to the place we want it to be,” brand activation manager Julie Wild says. “It’s been very positive and has allowed us to expand, not least by tapping into the Irish market.” She admits the takeover has not done as much in elevating the brand as it would have liked in 2014 – Grumpy Mule’s biggest activity

BEST BRANDS 2014-15

was to launch a limited edition King of the Mountain blend to celebrate the Yorkshire leg of the Tour de France, which was available to independents along the route. But next year will see an overhaul of branding across its retail and foodservice range. “The market is saturated and we need to separate ourselves from the rest of the pack and be different, because the brand is unique,” Wild argues. “Our coffee buyers pick the most seasonal coffees so our customers get the freshest and tastiest coffees that are available and we are doing things that other brands aren’t, such as micro-lot coffee [highly specific, limited edition, small batch, singleorigin products]. But we need to explain that better to consumers.” It is determined to get the message about quality and its commitment to direct sourcing across in a different and unpretentious way. “The name and logo alone occupies a space in the market that is fun and premium, which no other brand is,” Wild says, before adding that a more contemporary tone of voice will speak to consumers in a “fun and engaging way, that shows it isn’t the same old stuff other brands do.” www.grumpymule.co.uk www.taylorsofharrogate.co.uk www.unionroasted.com www.djmiles.co.uk www.illy.com · FINE FOOD DIGEST

1st Grumpy Mule 2nd Taylors of Harrogate 3rd Union Hand-Roasted 4th Miles 5th Illy

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04/12/2014 18:24

B E S T B R A N D S S U RV E Y 2 0 1 4 - 1 5 SNACKS

SOFT DRINKS MEET THE WINNER Sanpellegrino

It’s all change at the top this year, as Nestlé-owned Sanpellegrino – which has taken second place in the previous two years – goes to the top of the class. The reason, according to brand manager Emma Lewis, is both a rise in consumer interest and greater availability for the carbonated drinks range. Despite its ownership by a

“People are looking for indulgent treats”

MEET THE WINNER Pipers Crisp Co

“The Best Brands survey is an important measure to us,” says Pipers Crisps founder Alex Albone. “Unless you make a very good product, you don’t succeed in the speciality sector. “Delis, farm shops and independents – you can’t hide anything from those guys because of the nature of their businesses and their customer profile.” Albone is adamant that, sticking with his long-held policy, the brand won’t make its way onto any supermarket shelves. “Consumer loyalty is based on people buying it from the right environment – from a farm shop or delicatessen or a great pub, or at an event such as Wimbledon – and people then recognise the product and look for it.” His overall aim, he says, is to produce Britain’s tastiest pack of crisps, and he’s resistant to bringing out seasonal new flavours for the sake of some good PR. “We’re always looking at NPD but we will only bring a new one out when we think it’s every bit as good as the ones we’re already selling.” But he notes, with resignation, that while people plump for the spicier flavours at in-store tasting and events such as the Burleigh Horse Trials or Carfest, cheese & onion and salt & vinegar remain the best sellers. “It is the same industrywide – and it is quite a challenge!” Pipers celebrated its 10th anniversary this year by investing in production at its North Lincoln

factory and opening a second distribution centre, in Oxford. It already operates a centre in Epping, as well as distributing from the Elsham Wold factory. But the new Oxford centre forms part of its ongoing mission to develop its business further in the South of England. “Not everyone wants to buy direct from us, but it works well for us to supply both directly with our own vans or a carrier, and indirectly with a wholesale partner,” Albone says. Turnover hit £5m in 2014 and sales have grown more than 20% year-on-year, but Albone is determined to maintain momentum by increasing distribution within the fine food market as well as growing its food-to-go and pub business. www.piperscrisps.com www.tyrrellscrisps.co.uk www.burtschips.com www.olivesetal.co.uk www.fairfieldsfarmcrisps.co.uk

and lemon & mint (limone e menta). “There are always opportunities to build momentum when you bring out new flavours,” she says. And, despite the wider category coming under pressure from the anti-sugar lobby, she adds: “People are looking for indulgent treats at the moment.” www.sanpellegrinofruitbeverages. com www.fentimans.com www.belvoirfruitfarms.co.uk www.luscombe.co.uk www.coca-cola.co.uk

Emma Lewis multinational, it retains a reputation as a luxury premium product and is still made in the Italian Alps. The company has invested heavily in its field sales team, helping distribution broaden across the board, but Lewis says there has been a definite chain effect in the independent sector. “People see them, buy them, like them and then demand more, so more retailers start to stock them,” she explains, adding: “It’s great to have the visibility to showcase the brand where it should be”. Although its core range of carbonates – aranciata and limonata – remain the brand’s best-selling flavours in the UK, Sanpellegrino is keen to draw on its international portfolio and Lewis has high hopes for two new flavours that appeared here in autumn 2014: orange & pomegranate (melograno e arancia),

1st Sanpellegrino 2nd Fentimans 3rd Belvoir 4th Luscombe 5th Coca-Cola

1st Pipers Crisp Co 2nd Tyrrells 3rd Burts Potato Chips 4th Olives Et Al 5th Fairfields Farm Crisps

BEST BRANDS 2014-15

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Specialists in Speciality Quality Yorkshire Preserves

Bracken Hill Fine Foods Bracken Hill Yorkshire Preserves aims to provide the finest quality Yorkshire Preserves with an emphasis on Great Taste and providing a reliable and friendly service we strive to be the best supplier of traditional preserves in the North of England and we value ALL our customers. We have won numerous awards for their wonderful taste and pride ourselves on their quality.Own label available for specialty shops and delis we offer our products in their own branded packaging. Contact us for details.

Trade enquiries welcome we offer competitive terms across the UK. Call: 01904 608811

www.brackenhillfinefoods.co.uk

FFW-Jan-2015-1_Layout 1 03/12/2014 20:31 Page 1

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Award Winning Chutneys and Pickles With 10 Gold Great Taste Awards in this category it’s no wonder our chutneys and pickles are firm favourites with our customers.

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First place in the Fine Food Digest’s Best Brands in the coffee category, and winner of five Great Taste Awards: Organic Ethiopia Yirgacheffe Rwanda Musasa Landscape Espresso Widescreen Espresso Milestone Espresso

Have you ordered yours yet? Tel: 01538 382020 sales@cottagedelight.co.uk www.cottagedelight.co.uk A family company passionate about good food.

BEST BRANDS 2014-15

Our award winning range of specialty coffees are sourced directly from farmers that we know, and are then proudly roasted in Yorkshire. Interested in retailing or serving Grumpy Mule coffee? Please contact:

The Roastery, Bent Ley Industrial Estate, Holmfirth, HD9 4EP.

Tel: 01484 855500 email: coffee@grumpymule.co.uk

www.grumpymule.co.uk · FINE FOOD DIGEST

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GREAT TASTE SHOP OF THE YEAR Richard Faulks

Yorkshire born and bred Born of adversity, Harrogate’s Fodder farm shop has been a money-maker almost since day one and now it has taken the title of Great Taste Shop of the Year. Fine Food Digest speaks to this year’s champion and the rest of the top 10.

BEST BRANDS 2014-15

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Shop of the Year

WINNER

Fodder Harrogate, N.Yorkshire By LYNDA SEARBY ooking at this bright, cheerful retail space it’s easy to forget that Fodder was born out of one of farming’s darkest hours – the 2001 foot-and-mouth epidemic that saw the mass slaughter of animals and left swathes of the Yorkshire countryside eerily deserted. “We started Fodder because when food-and-mouth struck, we wanted to help farmers in the north of England,” says Heather Parry, managing director of the Harrogate store. While there is an element of supporting local farmers with any farm shop, Fodder is unique in its operating model. The Yorkshire Agricultural Society – of which Parry is deputy chief executive – runs Fodder as part of its commitment to supporting agriculture and farmers in

“Recognising that people come in for a complete meal solution, not for a bunch of ingredients, has made it easier for them to spend more” the north of England. “It’s a way of making money to fund the Society,” says Parry. “All of Fodder’s profits are gift-aided back to the charity.” Luckily for the Society and its beneficiaries, Fodder has been in the black every year since it opened in 2009. Parry says the business has been running at a profit since its fourth month of trading. Sales from the food hall and café combined are growing by around 12% year on year and the venture is forecast to turn over £2.5m by the end of 2014. Fodder’s performance is particularly impressive when you consider its location – shoppers have to resist the lure of a Sainsbury’s supermarket before they reach the farm shop, which is situated at the end of the entrance road to the Great Yorkshire Showground. In the early days this proved to be a challenge. “People used to go to Sainsbury’s, then come to us for a cup of coffee after,” recalls Parry. She thinks this was partly because they perceived Fodder as expensive. “Everywhere you go you see supermarket ads telling you how cheap they are,” she says. “Our building is so beautiful – because we wanted shopping here to be an enjoyable experience – that people automatically assume they are paying a premium, which they aren’t. “Our eggs are 99p for six, and BEST BRANDS 2014-15 ·

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+ 21

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“a total mouth explosion” - Jimmy Docherty, Jimmy’s Farm

GREAT TASTE SHOP OF THE YEAR Richard Faulks

we’ve many products that are cheaper than in the supermarkets because we don’t deal with any middlemen.” Parry has done much to emphasise Fodder’s points of difference from the supermarkets and to convince shoppers that they aren’t paying Harrods prices. “We’ve done a lot on signage around messages like ‘eat Yorkshire’ and ‘do you know where your meat comes from?’,” she says. “A lot of it is talking to customers and getting to know them. Once they’ve ‘tasted the difference’ and realise that we aren’t expensive – because they can buy two sausages rather than a pack of eight – they come back.” Parry also goes to great lengths to ensure that a visit to Fodder is a “feast

for all of the senses” and to reinforce its connections with farming. “We get suppliers in to make it an experience for customers,” she says. “Our egg supplier recently brought some hens in and let all the kids take home an egg each. So many children are distanced from the link between food and farming.” While creating an experience is key, Parry admits that, in order to increase spend per basket, Fodder has had to become more of a ‘retailer’. “Recognising that people come in for a complete meal solution, not for a bunch of ingredients, has made it easier for them to spend more,” she says. Fodder still guarantees – as it always has – that 85% of the products

on shelf are from Yorkshire, but has added other staple items such as pasta, lemons and bananas, that have to be sourced from further afield. “People need to be able to do their full weekly shop – as far as I can see people never go out without buying a lemon or a banana, and I’ve not yet found a Yorkshire farmer who can grow either,” she says. With the exception of a few citrus fruits, Fodder has stuck staunchly to its commitment to “celebrate everything that is great about Yorkshire”, and this doesn’t start and end with local food. “We’ve got a gift area I never envisaged having,“ says Parry. “This came about when the gamekeeper supplying our butchery counter said his wife made vintage cushions and

BEST OF THE REST

way. From its shaky early start a few years ago when it attempted to stock way too much, Whole Foods has matured into a comfortable, interesting place to shop.

Harrods The magic as you enter the main food hall, where cheese and meat counters burst with gems hardly found elsewhere, still manages to thrill. This is food retailing on a grand scale with staff that relish their role as part of a genuine British tradition. The danger

Whole Foods Market (Kensington store) The ‘big’ shop that feels somehow small – mainly because it is cleverly divided. Wandering from one department to another, customers will find several eclectically stocked speciality shops under a single roof, with staff who are helpful but not in that over-the-top American

www.wholefoodsmarket.com

BEST BRANDS 2014-15

· FINE FOOD DIGEST

asked whether we would stock them. We did, and it’s grown from there to include cards and other gifting lines.” You could say that everything about Fodder is Yorkshire born and bred; all the tradespeople involved in building and fitting out the shop were local, right down to the joiner who created the furniture for the café from Yorkshire wood. Besides being a showcase of local craftsmanship, the building itself is an example of eco-architecture that would not be out of place on Grand Designs. Heating from a ground source pump and a sedum ‘living roof’ are just two of the design features that enable this building to operate sustainably and in harmony with its natural surroundings. Inevitably, though, given its success, Fodder is now bursting out of certain seams. “Our kitchen isn’t big enough, partly because we didn’t know how successful we were going to be when we designed it,” says Parry. “We are taking twice as much as we ever thought we would.” At present, her solution is to squeeze more out of the same space by utilising the kitchen outside normal working hours. “Two staff are coming in every morning at 4am to bake bread before breakfast, but I can see that in two years time we will have to extend,” she says. She would also like to extend the café, but with the kitchen space maxed out, this simply isn’t possible. Ever resourceful, Parry has come up with the idea of ‘Fodder on the hoof’, a concept that takes pressure off the kitchen and café while, as the name suggests, capitalising on the grab-andgo opportunity. She has bought a retro metal airstream caravan and kitted it out with a range and fridges. From Easter next year, the converted ‘silver bullet’ will be parked outside the front door, serving a pared-down menu. “As the café gets busier, people who are busy can grab a coffee and a bite to eat,” says Parry. “It’s about being creative and keeping it fun.” www.fodder.co.uk • The Great Taste Shop of the Year award is unique among retail award schemes. Shops are nominated by Great Taste awardwinning producers – the UK‘s best food producers choosing the UK’s best food shops – and then a shortlist of stores with the most votes are mystery-shopped by expert judges to select the best of the best.

will always be that the Harrods’ environment, with its appealing glitz and refined glamour might overtake the importance of the food. Happily, that doesn’t happen as those responsible for stock selection remain focused on quality. www.harrods.com

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GREAT TASTE SHOP OF THE YEAR Richard Faulks

Ludlow Food Centre Here’s the place to take the kids while you shop in an interesting temple of regionality. They can watch through windows around the store as real artisan foods are made properly, with regular demonstrations of butchery, coffee roasting, cheese-making, baking and jam-making. Clever island sites around the shop focus on local and award winning foods and knowledgeable and chatty staff clearly enjoy engaging with locals and those visiting a town that continues to justify its reputation as a forum for fine food and drink. www.ludlowfoodcentre.co.uk

Macknade Fine Foods Kent is blessed with this Tardis of a farm shop nestling inside an inconspicuous barn, revealing an individuality of stock selection that never fails to quicken the pulse. Wander along packed shelves and marvel at fine British and European foods you’ll rarely see elsewhere. Each selection, including the cheese and charcuterie, is a testimony to the second generation Italian co-owner who spends months each year searching, tasting and importing. And then marvel at the knowledge of those working there, each one sharing his passion. www.macknade.com

Partridges You’d think a fine food emporium on the edge of London’s Sloane Square might seek to imitate its larger, longer-established food hall neighbours close by. You’d be wrong because the flagship store of the Partridges/Shepherd Foods

SECOND PLACE

Gonalston Farm Shop Nottinghamshire By LYNDA SEARBY “I often get accused of being too commercial, but at the end of the day we are all in it to make money,” says Georgina Mason, co-owner of Gonalston Farm Shop and a tutor on the Guild of Fine Food’s Retail Ready courses for budding shop-keepers. And if second place in Great Taste Shop of the Year is where “being too commercial” gets you, it’s definitely worth the criticism. Fuelling the fire, Mason says she’s become even more hard-nosed in her approach over the past few months. “I’ve been trying to run a tighter ship. If you’re not careful, overheads creep up and things you buy on a whim sit keeping the shelves warm.” Analysis of the shop’s accounts

revealed that stockkeeping could be streamlined. “I was holding approximately £50,000 in ambient stock,” says Mason. “Even though we’re still spending the same amount on products, I’ve reduced that by about 10%. It pays dividends to spend time after each quarterly stock-take analysing what is selling and what isn’t, as you can de-list underperforming products and reduce waste.” She cites olive oils as a classic example of a product that farm shops struggle to shift. “I guarantee if I have eight olive oils, two will sell and six won’t,” she says, adding that Indian rubs and seasonings are another slow mover. Her analysis also reveals which products are earning enough margin to justify their place on shelf. “Tracklements never let us down; they always hover around the given margin we want to achieve,” says

Mason. “With some other products there might be one or two in a range that have dipped to, say, 25%, making that supplier’s offer unprofitable.” Whatever else Mason might be guilty of, complacency is certainly not a criticism that can be levelled at her, and this is apparent from the way she is constantly refreshing the shop interior. “Top spots are something we take very seriously and we might change these as often as once a fortnight,” she says. When there isn’t an occasion such as Valentine’s Day or Father’s Day, Mason turns the spotlight on Great Taste winning products. “I see us as the talent scouts of the food industry,” she says. “We hunt out products that have won Great Taste awards and are trying to make more of them year-round, with booklets and information about two- and three star products for six months of the year.” www.gonalstonfarmshop.co.uk

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GREAT TASTE SHOP OF THE YEAR group is a happy marriage of an old-style high-class provisioners with a trendy, modern and accessible food hall. The Saturday artisan market in front of the store nurtures more small food producers than almost anywhere else in the capital, while, inside, the store successfully manages to be a top class food hall while at the same time, maintaining character as a charming grocery shop for the locals. A real gem. www.partridges.co.uk

La Fromagerie If you love cheese you must love La Fromagerie. Its dedicated, climatecontrolled cheese room is an assault on all the senses and boasts the widest, most fascinating selection in the UK – arguably. What is beyond doubt is each example is presented for sale in absolute peak condition and served by knowledgeable staff

THIRD PLACE Darts Farm Topsham, Devon

By MICK WHITWORTH One of the UK‘s most distinctive destination stores, Darts Farm boasts a unique mix of upscale farm shop & butchery, restaurant, café, toy shop and gift shop, alongside lifestyle concessions including AGA, Fired Earth and Cotswold Outdoor and an onsite hair, beauty and fitness spa. On its huge site close to the River Exe in east Devon, it also houses an RSPB shop – ideal for bird watchers visiting the farm’s bird hide and wetland project – and a bike hire facility providing posh Pashley bicycles for those who’d like to explore the adjacent Exe Estuary Trail. There’s even a newly added ‘rapid charging’ station for Tesla Motors, the revolutionary Californian electric supercars that offer 0-60mph acceleration in around four seconds but cost upwards of £60,000. That might tell you something about Darts Farm‘s target clientele. Yet despite appearances, director James Dart – part of the second generation management team alongside brothers Michael (in charge of strategy) and Paul (who runs the farm) – insists recent tough trading conditions have put keen pricing and business efficiency at the top of the family’s agenda.

“We’ve been very conscious in the last few years to make sure we’re offering value for money,” he says. “When you’re selling a lot of artisan, handmade products, they do come at a price. But, for example, this Christmas we worked closely with a local bakery to produce both a luxury mince pie and a traditional version. They’re handmade, so they‘ll never compete directly with volume, supermarket products. But our ‘value’ version would easily compete with so-called ‘luxury’ range in a supermarket.” Even its luxury pies were half the price of those in Fortnum & Mason, he adds. The pursuit of value also extends to the site‘s key butchery section, which went through a major upheaval in November 2013 when long-time concessionaire Gerald David went bust. The Dart brothers took financial control of their own butchery shop, as well as two of Gerald David’s other shops in Devon, and retained his sons Alastair and Philip to run the day-to-day operation. “That first Christmas was a bit of a baptism of fire,” says James Dart, “but we’ve been very pleased with the last 12 months. We’ve allowed those guys to focus on the butchery, and hopefully we are running the shops more efficiently. We’ve got our sourcing right, we’ve got our storage and [on-site] dry-ageing sorted out. BEST BRANDS 2014-15

So there are no constraints on the business now, and I’m of the belief we’re up there with the very best in the country.” While the butchery remains a premium, quality set-up – it moved from barn-reared to free-range on all its turkeys this Christmas, for example – there has been a conscious move to offer affordable alternatives for everyday meals. “I suppose, as a consumer, you felt you were spending slightly more than you wanted to,” says James Dart, choosing his words carefully. “But we feel we can now price-check competitively against anyone of similar quality.” The Darts-run gift shop, food hall and restaurant cover around 20,000 sq ft out of a total retail space of around 50,000 sq ft. Potential new retail partners are approaching the brothers “all the time”, says James Dart, and he expects the site’s next growth phase will feature a mix of its own space and tenants who are “on top of their game”. But there‘s no rush. The recession, he says, has made Darts Farm look carefully at purchasing, ranging, merchandising and margins. And while confidence is returning – and sales overall rose around 6% last year – the lag in wage growth means it’s hard to push prices up. “Trading through this tough market has been a good exercise,” he says. www.dartsfarm.co.uk

· FINE FOOD DIGEST

who’s enthusiasm almost persuades you they love their job so much they’d do it for free. Fresh goods and much more a-plenty and, as a venue for lunch, it’s fun eating at refectory tables with other foodies who prefer top cheese and meats to take-away pizza. www.lafromagerie.co.uk

Arch House Deli A former Deli of the Year, Arch House is a bright, friendly, lively operation that reflects both its foodie location – in the upmarket Clifton district of Bristol – and the personality of owners David Greenman and Debbie Atherton. The couple, who took over in 2009, made their money in IT, so it’s not surprising they use online marketing skillfully. Facebook, Twitter and frequent e-newsletters promote product offers, tastings and a host of special events at a shop that truly engages with its community. www.archhousedeli.com

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After years building our brand in our own retail fishmongers and listening to our customers we entered the great taste awards for the first time this year and have been awarded two gold stars for both our Wild Smoked Salmon and Organic Smoked Salmon and on the back of this we have decided to make our very special products available in the UK. With over 60 years experience smoking salmon and still a family business with three Quinlan brothers at the helm, we are still as passionate about the products we produce as our father has been over the past 60 years. Our genuine Smoked Wild Salmon have been caught by sustainable methods and are slowly smoked over oak chippings for over 24 hours to release the full flavour of this unique fish. Our Organic Salmon come from isolated sea farms ensuring that these fish swim at least 14.000 miles over their lifetime resulting in a clean tasting and firm fleshed fish; these are also smoked in the traditional manner. There is no minimum order and orders are dispatched in insulated boxes for next day delivery. There is no middleman as you are purchasing direct from the smoker. Call Liam Quinlan: 00353 66 9473131 | liam@kerryfish.com

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CHEESE COUNTER OF THE YEAR Richard Faulks

BY GEORGE, HE’S GOOD

BEST BRANDS 2014-15

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With his air-conditioned shop allowing an amazing loose display of British and Continental cheeses, Glasgow’s George Mewes won the Le Gruyère AOP Cheese Counter of the Year trophy at the 2014 World Cheese Awards. Awards judge and FFD cheese correspondent PATRICK McGUIGAN reports on all of this year‘s contenders.

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· FINE FOOD DIGEST

WINNER George Mewes Cheese Byres Road, Glasgow

alk through the door at George Mewes’ Glasgow shop and you are immediately greeted by a blizzard of cheese. Mewes and his team, clad in woolly hats and aprons, dance down the counter handing out flurries of snow white Ragstone and scoops of Vacherin that resemble mini ice creams. It’s all done with grace, good humour and enthusiasm, and without a hint of ‘hard sell’ – customers are given plenty of time and space to browse the counter at their own leisure. “We always give people cheese to try, but it’s not about harassing them,” explains Mewes. “We give them time to taste and then let them come back to us. Everyone is trained the same way here.” The superb service is matched by a cheese counter that has plenty of ‘wow factor’. Air conditioning in the shop maintains a cool temperature, which means the cheeses can be displayed in the open and do not have to be hidden away behind glass. They are piled up into peaks, with circular truckles, triangular wedges and pretty cylinders of goats’ cheese creating an intriguing arrangement of geometric shapes. The counter is completely cleared, cleaned and rebuilt at least twice a week with products moved to different areas and built into new displays each time. On our visit, a jagged arrangement of fang-like Parmesan shards by the door really caught the eye, looking more like an art installation than a cheese display. “Moving things around keeps everyone on their toes,” says Mewes, who adds that the shop stocks around 70 cheeses, split 50/50 between the UK and the Continent. “We don’t hold onto stock. It’s not about having a counter filled sky-high with cheese. We’re all about turning it over and keeping it in the best condition possible.” The thoughtful service and stunning display at the shop on Byres Road are important reasons why the judges decided to award it the Cheese Counter of the Year crown from a shortlist of 10 of the country’s finest cheese shops. The award, which is sponsored by Le Gruyère AOP, was announced at the World Cheese Awards in London and coincided with Mewes’ 50th birthday. It would have been the perfect present if Mewes hadn’t been fighting the flu back in Glasgow. His trusted assistant manager Stephen Sweet was presented with the award in

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ÅKesson’s

Chocolate & fine exotic foods check our new london store, 15b Blenheim Crescent, Notting Hill

BEST BRANDS 2014-15

· FINE FOOD DIGEST

COMPETITION SPONSORED BY

CHEESE COUNTER OF THE YEAR Richard Faulks

BEST OF THE REST

The Cheese Plate, Herts Toby Archer flies the flag for some genuinely unusual cheeses at his Buntingford shop with options such as a stacked blue cheese from Belgium called Grevenbroecker and Barnet Halloumi. The fact that these cheeses sell so well is all down Archer’s charismatic customer service and a beautifully presented counter, which is made of three open-top deck chillers. The shop’s tasting evenings have gone from strength to strength since it was shortlisted in last year’s award, with Archer hosting events several times a month. www.thecheeseplate.co.uk

his stead by last year’s winner, Andy Swinscoe of The Courtyard Dairy. In a nice turn of events, it turns out that Swinscoe and Mewes are friends, with their businesses regularly joining forces to buy Parmigiano Reggiano and Gorgonzola direct from producers in Italy. Strong relationships with cheesemakers and suppliers are a stand-out feature of the shop with products also sourced directly from Scottish producers, such as Barwheys, Isle of Mull and St Andrews Cheese. Staff visit producers to learn more about the production and maturing processes, while cheese-makers such as Tricia Bey of Barwheys often come to the shop to run tastings. Neal’s Yard Dairy is another important supplier, while the stunning range of French cheeses comes from expert affineur Mons. Both companies have been hugely supportive of the business since it opened in 2009, from offering advice on the layout of the shop before it launched to coming north of the border to hold tastings. “Jamie from Neal’s Yard helped

me run the shop a while back, while my staff were off for a couple of days learning how to make Lancashire at Kirkhams,” says Mewes. These close links within the cheese world are not surprising when you consider that Mewes previously worked for two of Scotland’s best known cheese

The counter is completely cleared, cleaned and rebuilt at least twice a week with products moved to different areas and built into new displays each time companies, IJ Mellis and Clark’s. Before that he travelled the world as a chef for 25 years with stints in Australia, Switzerland and Italy, which explains why the shop also does good business with restaurants. Customers include Michelin-starred BEST BRANDS 2014-15

chefs Andrew Fairlie and Tom Kitchen. “I know what chefs are after,” says Mewes. The growing wholesale business helps keep stock turning over so that the cheese sold in the shop is always in top condition – a necessity with some stiff competition in Glasgow, including nearby Peckham’s and the newly opened Whole Foods Market. Mewes’ commitment to sourcing the best cheeses mean that his prices are at the upper end of the market, but cutting corners is just not in his DNA. “Quality sells,” he says. “It’s good that people go to places like Peckham’s and Whole Foods because they are being educated about cheese. “I’m confident that our quality and what we do will pay off. You have to be confident in what you do and explain to customers why these cheeses are so special. “You need to tell them why an unpasteurised Epoisses is a very rare thing and what makes a Beaufort Alpage such a great cheese.” www.georgemewescheese.co.uk · FINE FOOD DIGEST

Hinchliffe’s, West Yorkshire Hinchliffe’s near Huddersfield reckons it is Britain’s oldest farm shop, but a major fire in 2010 almost brought the business to its knees. The shop and restaurant were completely destroyed, but quickly bounced back with an impressive temporary building, while owner Simon Hirst plots the launch of a brand new £3.5m gastropub and farm shop next year. The cheese counter reflects this ambition with a fine range of British classics, supplemented by intriguing Continentals, such as Honey Bee Goat Gouda from Holland. Terrific tasters and recipe cards add to the counter’s charms. www.hinchliffes.com

The Hungry Guest, West Sussex The people of Petworth are lucky to have this chic deli on their doorsteps, not least because of its walk-in cheese room. Once inside, shoppers can choose from a beautifully displayed selection

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For more than 200 years the monks of Ampleforth Abbey have been growing apples in the monastery orchard. Our cider is made from a blend of eating and cooking apples which are pressed in our cider mill and matured for eight months. The apples are also the base for the Ampleforth Cider Brandy and the award winning Ampleforth Apple Liqueur. In 2012 in conjunction with Little Valley Brewery, Ampleforth Abbey Beer was created. Based on a traditional recipe the beer is in the Trappist style and won Yorkshire’s Best Drink in the 2012 Deliciously Yorkshire Awards. All profits from the sale of Ampleforth monastic produce go towards the upkeep and restoration of the Abbey and Monastery.

www.visitors.ampleforth.org.uk gtd@ampleforth.org.uk

01439 766461

• Il Gelato di Ariela was born in 2006 out of Ariela’s pure frustration of not finding proper Gelato in London • Her mission was to make the most amazing Gelato just like the one her dad had been making for the past 40 years back home. • Made the artisan way, using only natural ingredients, real fruit and banning all artificial flavourings and colourings, small batches of each flavour are made and each tub is lovingly hand crafted. • As well as the best Gelato in the UK, Il Gelato di Ariela is able to supply businesses with everything needed to sell Gelato from the cones, the toppings to the point of sale. • We provide the full package, so if Gelato is what your business needs then look no further, we will set you up before you can say GELATO!!

Visit our brand new website

www.ilgelatodiariela.com

The Big Fish Brand supplies salmon fillets in a variety of marinades, a range of three different fish cakes and salmon pearls in a crunchy lemon and pepper coating. These are award winning, innovative salmon products in a freezer to table format. 32

BEST BRANDS 2014-15

· FINE FOOD DIGEST

Lime & Mint Sorbet winner of 2 stars at the Great Taste Awards 2013

Unit C34, Hastingwood Trading Est. Harbet Road, Edmonton - London N18 3HU tel/fax: +44 020 8803 5344 mobile: +44 079 732 948 56 email: info@ilgelatodiariela.com

contact@bigfishbrand.co.uk; Tel 01472 355217; Twitter @BigFishBrand; Facebook bigfishbrand www. bigfishbrand.co.uk

COMPETITION SPONSORED BY

CHEESE COUNTER OF THE YEAR Richard Faulks

supplied by Neal’s Yard Dairy and Mons, such as Epoisses, St Jude and aged Pecorino. The fabulous range of accompaniments includes pickled cherries, fig paste and the deli’s own range of breads, made by master baker and co-owner Troels Bendix. www.thehungryguest.com

Liverpool Cheese Co, Liverpool Housed in a former dairy, this small but perfectly formed shop has built up a strong reputation among Liverpool foodies since opening in 2006. Owners Vickie Anderson and Ian Tomlinson are passionate about educating people, hosting monthly ‘cheese school’ tastings. “We really don’t want to be snobby, so our customer base is quite young,” says Anderson. The counter stocks up to 200 cheese, ranging from Snowdonia Black Bomber to Brinkburn goats’ cheese. www.liverpoolcheesecompany.co.uk

Partridges, London The cheese counter at Sloane Square’s famous food hall has a spring in its step thanks to the shop’s regular food market for artisan producers directly outside, which has helped it develop closer links with cheese-makers. There are around 70-80 cheeses on the counter with 60-70% from Europe – the shop has its own consolidator at Rungis Market near Paris. Many of the cheeses are used in dishes sold on the traiteur counter, such as dauphinoise (Raclette and Morbier) and omelette (Pecorino). www.partridges.co.uk

SECOND PLACE Androuet London E1 One of France’s oldest and most respected cheesemongers, Androuet crossed the Channel in 2009 with a stall in Spitalfields market, which soon developed into a full-blown shop and restaurant. It’s a treasure trove of fabulous items with a heavyweight line-up of perfectly matured French cheeses, complemented by a good range from Switzerland, Spain and Italy, plus a more than decent selection BEST BRANDS 2014-15

from British producers thanks to a reciprocal relationship with Paxton & Whitfield. The business is run by the livewire Alex Guarneri, who is a dynamic presence in the shop, slicing, tasting, sniffing and squeezing the cheeses while talking at a million miles an hour about their provenance and special qualities. Hard-to-find seasonal cheeses are a speciality, with unusual products such as Titounet, Àpres Soleil and Cure Nantais. “I always aim to work with the smallest producers, who have · FINE FOOD DIGEST

their own cows and you can really taste the pasture in the milk,” says Guarneri, who visits cheese-makers and affineurs in France to pick the exact cheeses he wants for the shop. This philosophy is much appreciated by London chefs with Androuet regularly name-dropped on menus and customers including Bruno Loubet and the Terroirs group of wine bars. Androuet’s own restaurant is also an important channel, with diners able to sit at a terrace inside the market and sample the shop’s range in fondues and soufflés. www.androuet.co.uk

COMPETITION SPONSORED BY

CHEESE COUNTER OF THE YEAR Richard Faulks

Paxton & Whitfield, Bath Surrounded by some of the best cheesemakers in Britain, Paxton & Whitfield’s Bath shop takes full advantage of its location with a good range of local cheeses. The shop has developed close relationships with producers such as Jonathan Crump of Gloucestershirebased Standish Park Farm, but also stocks a stunning selection of cheese from further afield from Northumberland’s Berwick Edge to Alpage Gruyère. Shop manager Martin Brown has built up a strong wholesale business to restaurants including Gidleigh Park and Allium, while monthly tastings are held in a local café. www.paxtonandwhitfield.co.uk

THIRD PLACE Buchanans Cheesemonger London W2 When former Paxton & Whitfield employee Rhuaridh Buchanan set up his cheese business last year the idea was to be a wholesaler supplying top London restaurants. Luckily for London’s cheese lovers, the site he found, just off the Edgware Road, also

came with a small retail unit, which has been transformed into a beautiful cheese shop. Supplying restaurants remains the main focus for the business, but the retail side is also important, with the tiled counter showcasing a daily changing selection of 25-30 cheeses picked from the company’s much larger wholesale range. What goes into the shop is dictated by what tastes good and what Buchanan feels like selling on a particular day, while BEST BRANDS 2014-15

a concise range of wines, teas and beers has been chosen specifically for compatibility with cheese. A Lalani black tea, for example, is a great match with Doddington’s washed rind cheese Baltic. A small café area decorated in funky Roquefort wallpaper allows visitors to try out some of these exciting flavour combinations for themselves and is also used to train restaurant staff.

Rippon Cheese, London Blink and you might miss Rippon Cheese, which has been plying its trade for more than 20 years in a quiet back street behind Victoria Station. That would be a real shame because the shop, which is owned by Philip and Karen Rippon, is crammed full of more than 400 different types of cheese. Such a vast range is only possible because the space is in effect the main store room for Rippon’s wholesale business, supplying customers such as the Royal Opera House and Tate Britain.

www.buchananscheesemonger.com

www.ripponcheeselondon.com

· FINE FOOD DIGEST

Authentic Taste • Great Selection • Versatile Free from added sugar, dairy, gluten, onion, garlic, colouring and preservatives Create sensational Indian dishes, instant tasty snacks & transform sandwiches, salads, dips and meals

0845 474 2027, P O Box 407, Walton-on-Thames KT12 3WS www.anilassauces.com

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After listening to your feedback about our fruit vinegars, we have carefully adjusted the balance of our recipes so that the fruit and vinegar tastes are much stronger. The resulting reduction in sweetness is much more what you would expect from an award winning fruit vinegar. No wonder this new recipe won the Nigel Barden Heritage Award at Great Taste!

Womersley Fruit & Herb Vinegars

Very Versatile Vinegars · New Fruitier Recipes for 2015 www.womersleyfoods.com

BEST BRANDS 2014-15

· FINE FOOD DIGEST

SOMERSET CIDER

Vintage Reserve – Great Taste Top 50 2014

Great Taste is the acknowledged benchmark for specialty food and beverages, and have been described as the ‘Oscars’”of the food world. We are excited to announce that we were awarded 5 gold stars at the prestigious awards in the UK. A one-star for our Nougat, a one-star for our Pecan Pebbles, one-star for our Calissons and a two-star for our Spanish Turron!

To see our full range visit our website: www.sheppyscider.com Tel. 01823 461233

@Sheppyscider

Sheppy’s Cider Ltd

www.oohlalaconfectionery.com

New range Sugarpaste Now you can be even more creative with Beau. E: beauproducts@btconnect.com T: 01844 202166

www.beauproducts.co.uk

BEST BRANDS 2014-15

· FINE FOOD DIGEST

Here at The Lyme Bay Winery, we are passionate about producing delicious wines, liqueurs and ciders inspired by traditional recipes but using the most up-to-date production techniques.

We grow, steam cook and prepare the vegetables on our family farm • A choice of over 40 vegetable accompaniments • Available in a range of pack sizes: From 200g single serve pots up to 5kg catering size trays • Suitable for microwave and oven heating • The entire range is gluten-free • 30 Vegetarian Society Approved products • BRC A+ accredited Company • Merchandising support and strong promotion schedule • Low minimum order quantities

How to place your order

If you need any help putting together your order please don’t hesitate to contact us.

If you would like to know more about our products or how you can find them please call us on 028 91 878316 or email info@mashdirect.com or alternatively, visit our website: EE • GLU FR

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www.mashdirect.com

www.lymebaywinery.co.uk

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Lyme Bay Winery, Shute, Axminster, Devon, EX13 7PW Phone: 01297 551355 Email: sales@lymebaywinery.co.uk

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23157 Lyme Bay Advert 100 x 141.5mm.indd 1

Summer 2014. We Just Bottled It.

New Year. Old Favourite.

Once again we at Border Biscuits are delighted to retain our Top 5 position in the Best Brands Survey. With 30 different delicious biscuits in our range, we have a favourite biscuit for every occasion. So long as you’ve stocked up with plenty in the first place!

Folkington’s Juices, The Workshop, Endlewick House, Arlington, East Sussex BN26 6RU 01323 485602 info@folkingtons.com www.folkingtons.com

BEST BRANDS 2014-15

borderbiscuits.co.uk Call us on 01555 662 886 or email: sales@borderbiscuits.co.uk · FINE FOOD DIGEST

NATIONAL & REGIONAL AWARD WINNERS If you’re looking to stock the best in fine food and drink, it makes sense to look at what’s impressing judges in national and regional award schemes. Here, ARABELLA MILEHAM rounds up the past year’s trophy winners, starting with our own Great Taste 2014. GREAT TASTE 2014 www.greattasteawards.co.uk

Supreme Champion Raspberry Sorbetto Snowflake Luxury Gelato www.snowflakegelato.co.uk

It’s been a busy two years for Asad Khan. Since opening the first Snowflake Luxury Gelato boutique in London’s Bayswater, he has seen sales of his traditional artisan gelato shoot into double figures, opened his second store in Soho and run successful popups in Harvey Nichols and Selfridges. However, it was scooping the title of Supreme Champion in this year’s Great Taste awards for its raspberry sorbetto that set the seal on Khan’s year.

Asad Khan: winning Great Taste capped a busy two years

“When we opened our first boutique, we’d never have thought we’d achieve so much so quickly,” says Khan, “and we’re really proud to have won the most prestigious food award in the UK.” Khan, a qualified accountant with a background in corporate IT, clearly has no intention of slackening the pace now. The Great Taste win has already helped the business “immensely”, he says – the judges raved about the smoothness, intense flavour and fresh kick of its raspberry sorbetto (pictured below) – and will help the business leapfrog to the next level of growth. “It would be a shame to miss the opportunity to leverage the win and take it to a wider market while we’re in people’s minds as Supreme Champion,” he admits. As a result, Snowflake is launching six of its most popular flavours into retail tubs from March, targeting premium food halls, cafés and delis. Until now the gelatos have been made in a ‘lab’ in each boutique – but Khan is setting up a dedicated production facility to “significantly” increase production for the new retail

PEAK PERFORMERS

BEST BRANDS 2014-15

· FINE FOOD DIGEST

NATIONAL & REGIONAL AWARD WINNERS tubs, a big ramp up for Snowflake. But he is adamant he won’t abandon the company’s artisan ethos, or outsource its production to a third party. “Absolutely not! It goes against my principles,” he insists. “For a product that has our name on it, that product will be made by us and we’ll source all the ingredients and it won’t be prepared by anyone other than us.” The quality of ingredients, he maintains, is the key to Snowflake’s success. “I want to make sure I’m getting the ingredients from the best source possible and, where we can, we make everything from scratch,” he says. Despite his corporate background, Khan says he has always been a foodie and it was growing up in a greengrocers’ shop that instilled in him the core essentials of retail – “a great product and good service” – from a very young age. Once the retail tubs are on the market, he plans to open five more boutiques in the next few years, and international avenues are also opening up in the Middle East and Far East, which he says will even out the seasonality of the UK market. “We have a clear sight of where we’re going to go and just have to focus on doing the best we can to get that growth, both in the UK and overseas,” he says. “If we manage to achieve that, we’ll be very pleased with where we’ll be by 2020.”

Ambient Product of the Year Ellopia Thyme Honey Ellopia Greek Foods www.ellopiagreekfoods.com

Best Speciality from East Anglia & the Midlands Loin of Pork Redhill Farm Free Range Pork www.redhillfarm.com

Best Welsh Speciality Red Pesto Paté The Patchwork Traditional Food Company www.patchwork-pate.co.uk

Nigel Barden Heritage Award Golden Raspberry & Apache Chilli Vinegar Womersley Fruit & Herb Vinegars www.womersleyfoods.co.uk

Best Speciality from Northern Ireland Moyallan 3 Sweet Bacon Ribs Hannan Meats www.hannanmeats.com

Best Speciality from the North of England Dry Cured Back Bacon Metcalfe’s Beef and Pork www.metcalfes-butchers.co.uk

Best Scottish Speciality Jaffys Mallaig Kippers J Lawrie & Sons www.jaffys.co.uk

Best Irish Speciality Irish Atlantic Sea Salt with Dill Pollen Irish Atlantic Salt

Speciality Producer of the Year Uig Lodge Smoked Salmon www.uiglodge.co.uk

Best Imported Speciality Whole Hot Smoked Salmon Stefan Pålsson

Deli & Farm Shop Signature Dish Strangford Prawn, Leek & Comber Potato Soup Yellow Door Deli

www.stefanpalssonab.se

www.yellowdoordeli.co.uk

www.irishatlanticsalt.ie

Best Speciality from the South West Saddleback Pork Belly Pipers Farm www.pipersfarm.com

Small Artisan Producer of the Year The Artisan Kitchen www.theartisankitchen.co.uk

Woman & Home Great Taste VIP Award Somerset Cheese Company www.somersetcheese.co.uk

Great Taste Shop of the Year Fodder Charcuterie Product of the Year Jamon de Bellota 100% Iberico Pata Negra Juan Pedro Domecq

www.fodder.co.uk

Guild of Fine Food Lifetime Achievement David Lidgate

www.jamonesjuanpedrodomecq. com

BEST BRANDS 2014-15

www.lidgates.com · FINE FOOD DIGEST

Artisan Baking Gifts

Award Winning Artisan Baking Gifts and Luxury Baking Mixes

Bellota is an importer of the finest specialist foods from Spain. We source products from artisans who still use time-honoured methods, with the great attention to detail that is often lost with mass-production. By sourcing direct from the producers we can verify the quality and provenance of our produce. We specialise in cured meats, particularly Jamón Ibérico de Bellota and Jamón Serrano from Trevelez, but over the years we’ve added world award winning cheeses, cooking chorizo, organic olive oils, sherry vinegars, olives, pickles and seafood from the Atlantic Galician coast.

bake@bakeathomekits.co.uk

To request a wholesale brochure please contact us on the details below.

@Bakeathome

info@bellota.co.uk

Bakeathomecompany

5 off a % ll fi orde rst quot rs in BB14 g

www.bakeathomekits.co.uk

Tel: 01621 770 132

The Home of gourmet Scottish Seafood (Multi-award winning) Over 25 luxury frozen seafood lines to choose from

Scottish Cooked Lobster

BEST BRANDS 2014-15

Designed for specialty retail, offering larger sizes and higher specifications from sustainable fisheries. Free national delivery when ordering 5 or more cases For further info. or to become a stockist please contact us at: info@highlandbayseafoods.co.uk · Tel : 0844 397 0044

www.higlandbayseafoods.co.uk

· FINE FOOD DIGEST

Hand Dived Scottish King Scallops

NATIONAL & REGIONAL AWARD WINNERS

TASTE OF THE WEST AWARDS www.tasteofthewest.co.uk

Best of Confectionery Luxury all butter chocolate fudge Buttermilk Confections, Wadebridge, Cornwall

Best of Non-Alcoholic Hot Drinks Homemade chai syrup Henny & Joe’s, Bath, Somerset www.hennyandjoes.co.uk

www.buttermilkconfections.co.uk

Best of Desserts Handmade Christmas pudding Figgy’s Puddings, Exeter, Devon Best of Cured Meat Venison bresaola Touch of Hart, Uffculme, Devon www.touchofhart.com

Best of Fish Manuka salmon paté Mike’s Smokehouse, Kingsbridge, Devon www.mikes-smokehouse.co.uk

Best of Dairy Live organic vanilla yoghurt Brown Cow Organics, Shepton Mallet, Somerset

Best of Beer Big Job St Austell Brewery, St Austell, Cornwall www. staustell brewery.co.uk

www.figgys.co.uk

Best of Savoury Preserves Pear, apple & herb chutney Hillside Foods, Exeter, Devon

Best of Sweet Bakery Toffee flapjack Rolly’s Cake Company, Weymouth, Dorset www.rollysbrownies.co.uk

www.hillsidefoods.co.uk

Best of Cheese Royal Bassett Blue Brinkworth Dairy, Chippenham, Wiltshire

Best of Apple Ciders & Perrys Ashridge sparkling vintage cider Ashridge Cider, Totnes, Devon

www.brinkworthdairy.co.uk

www.ashridgecider.co.uk

Best of Wines, Spirits & Liqueurs Elemental Cornish gin The Cornish Gin Distillery St Columb, Cornwall

www.browncoworganics.co.uk

www.cornishgin.co.uk

Best of Ice Cream Banana & Salted Caramel Ice Cream Mendip Moments, Wells, Somerset

Most Innovative Product Boom Indian curry kits Boom Kitchen, Braunton, Devon

www.mendipmoments.co.uk

www.boomkitchen.co.uk

TASTE OF KENT AWARDS

Best Kentish Wine Ortega 2012 Biddendun Vineyards, Biddendun

www.tasteofkentawards.co.uk/awards

Best Kent Food Product, & Kent Food Product Ambient award 10 ACRE apple cider vinegar Little Stour Orchard, West Stourmouth

www. biddenden vineyards.com

www.littlestourorchard.co.uk

Best Kentish Beer Genesis Goody Ales, Herne www.goodyales.co.uk

BEST BRANDS 2014-15

Kent Food Product - Dairy Winterdale Shaw, Winterdale Cheesemakers, Wrotham www. winterdale. co.uk · FINE FOOD DIGEST

@DEVILSDYNAMITE

DEVILS-DYNAMITE-CHILLI-PASTE

SEA SALTED CARAMEL SPREAD Pure Indulgence

SALES@DEVILSDYNAMITE.CO.UK // 07840 426 947 // WWW.DEVILSDYNAMITE.COM

See our full range of luxury handmade spreads at www.cloudberrybakery.com

GODMINSTER 庐 Le Sa int M o n t des A lp es

Award Winning Vintage Organic Cheddar, Vintage Organic Oak Smoked Cheddar and our delicious hand made Bries

Tasting is believing Contact: Jerome at 07929418672 ww w. m o n t s e t te rro i rs.co m 42

BEST BRANDS 2014-15

For more information on any of our products or for samples please contact our team at

sales@godminster.com or call 01749 813 733

www.facebook.com/godminster

路 FINE FOOD DIGEST

@godminsterfarm

NATIONAL & REGIONAL AWARD WINNERS

WORLD CHEESE AWARDS

THE SCOTLAND FOOD & DRINK EXCELLENCE AWARDS

www.finefoodworld.co.uk/wca

World Champion Trophy Bath Blue The Bath Soft Cheese Company

www.scotlandfoodanddrink.org

Soup, Preserves & Accompaniments Ooft! hot pepper sauce Island Girl

www.parkfarm.co.uk

THE BRITISH CHEESE AWARDS

www.ooftsauce.com

www.thecheeseweb.com/britishcheese-awards

Supreme champion Rosary garlic & herb Rosary Goats Cheese, Salisbury

Fish & Seafood The Kinglas fillet Loch Fyne Oysters, Cairndow

www.rosarygoatscheese.co.uk

www.lochfyne.com

THE YORKSHIRE POST & DELICIOUSLYORKSHIRE TASTE AWARDS TASTE OF ORKNEY AWARDS www.orkneyfoodanddrink.com

Best new product Orkney Buffalo Orkney Buffalo, Deerness

www.deliciouslyorkshire.co.uk

Supreme Champion & Best Ice Cream Mango Yoghurt Ryeburn of Helmsley

Best Wine or Spirit Blackberry whisky The Little Red Berry Co, North Yorkshire

www.ryeburn.com

www.thelittleredberry.co.uk

Best Savoury Condiment Caramelised onion chutney Mercers of Yorkshire, Wheldrake

www.orkneybuffalo.com

Drink - Non Alcoholic Cuddybridge apple juice and Scottish sea buckthorn Cuddybridge Apple Juice, Innerleithen www.cuddybridgeapplejuice.com

www.mercersofyorkshire.co.uk

NANTWICH INTERNATIONAL CHEESE AWARDS www.internationalcheeseawards. co.uk

Best Fish Kippers Staal Smokehouse, Long Riston www.staalsmokehouse.co.uk

Best Cheese Bluemin White Shepherds Purse, Thirsk

Meat: Red, white & game Macsween limited edition venison haggis, and three bird haggis Macsween, Edinburgh

www.shepherdspurse.co.uk

www.macsween.co.uk

Best Sweet Preserve Date & sesame spread Savvy Foods, Sheffield

HEREFORD CIDER MUSEUM INTERNATIONAL CIDER & PERRY COMPETITION www.cidermuseum.co.uk

www.savvyspreads.com

Supreme Champion Whole Blue Stilton Colston Bassett Dairy

Best Beverage and Overall Best Drink Yorkshire Rose tea Bird House Tea Company, Sheffield

Best Ready to Eat Pork, black pudding & red onion marmalade pie Voakes, Whixley

Overall Champion Kingston Black bottle fermented sparkling cider Burrow Hill Cider, Kingsbury Episcopi, Somerset

www.birdhouseteacompany.com

www.voakespies.co.uk

www.ciderbrandy.co.uk

www.colstonbassettdairy.co.uk

BEST BRANDS 2014-15

路 FINE FOOD DIGEST

2014

ST WELSH

2014 E CIA LIT Y

Multi Award - Winning Welsh Ale

www.purplemoose.co.uk TEL: 01766 515 571

BEST BRANDS 2014-15

路 FINE FOOD DIGEST

NATIONAL & REGIONAL AWARD WINNERS FREE FROM FOOD AWARDS

BLAS NA HEIREANN, THE NATIONAL IRISH FOOD AND DRINK AWARDS

www. freefromfoodawards.co.uk

Best free from food 2014 Focaccia Mediterranea, Focaccia per tutti

www.irishfoodawards.com

Supreme Champion Irish creamery butter with wild Irish garlic and pesto Blast & Wilde, Slane

www.focacciapertutti.com

www.blastandwilde.com

HIGHLANDS AND ISLANDS FOOD & DRINK AWARDS

Best Artisan St Tola Organic Goat Cheese Inagh Farmhouse, Ennistymon www.st-tola.ie

www.hifoodanddrinkawards.com

Best New Product Nüsli with apple & blackberry Nüsli,

Environment Award Isle of Skye Sea Salt Company Isle of Skye

INVESTEC FOOD AND DRINK ENTREPRENEUR OF THE YEAR

www.nusli.com

Seafood Innovation Mussel Bites Beara Seafoods, Beara

www.isleofskyeseasalt.co.uk

www.bearaseafoods.com

New Product Award Dairy ice cream range Black Isle Dairy, Daviot

Best Drink Award Range of 12 bottled beers (Black Gold, Caillie, Stag, Cairngorm Gold, Nessie’s Monster Mash, Sheepshagger’s Gold, Trade Winds, Wildcat, Blessed Thistle, Autumn Nuts, Ginger Rodent, White Lady) Cairngorm Brewery Company, Aviemore

www.blackisledairy.co.uk

www.cairngormbrewery.com

Judges’ Award Nettle & Ginger Cordial Highland Cordials

THE WORLD’S ORIGINAL MARMALADE AWARDS

www.highlandcordials.co.uk

dalemainmarmaladeawards.co.uk

British Double Gold Winner Lemon & honey marmalade Yorkshire Wold Bees yorkshirewoldsbees. wordpress.com

Best Newcomer Sandy Ruddock, Scarlett & Mustard www.scarlettandmustard.co.uk

GRAMPIAN FOOD FORUM INNOVATION AWARDS Winners of the World’s Original Marmalade

Awards 2014, United Kingdom

Savoury Double Gold Winner Orange bbq marmalade Double Gold Wild & Fruitful

Silver

Gold

www.wildandfruitful.co.uk

International Double Gold Winner Deep-Rooted Tree marmalade Bokumjari Co

Best Young Entrepreneur Jenny Dawson Rubies in the Rubble www.rubiesintherubble.com

www.bokumjari.co.kr

www.aberdeenshire.gov.uk/ foodawards

Best New Retail Product Award Hint O’ Mint lemonade Summerhouse Drinks, Rosehearty

www.nationaltrust. org.uk

www.summerhousedrinks.com

Overall drinks winner Scotney Bitter Westerham Brewery, Kent

The Most Successful Product from the 2013 Awards Gourmet Berry Fudge Berry Scrumptious, Alford www.felicitychocolates.com

BEST BRANDS 2014-15

NATIONAL TRUST FINE FARM PRODUCE AWARDS

· FINE FOOD DIGEST

www. westerhambrewery. co.uk

l do il w e s l e t w o N

d n a o z i r o Ch n o i t c e f r e P Salami GREAT TASTING SPECIALITY COFFEE We have won over 30 Great Taste Awards and remain dedicated to sourcing high quality, great tasting coffees through our unique Union Direct Trade Model. We are thrilled that we continue to be recognised by the Guild of Fine Foods for the quality of our coffee.

@unionroasted

Visit our fantastic new website www.threelittlepigschorizo.co.uk Buy our award winning range through Hider Foods 01482 504333.

www.unionroasted.com

email us: roastmaster@unionroasted.com

BEST BRANDS 2014-15

路 FINE FOOD DIGEST

terie ning charcu in w d r a w A m Yorkshire producer fro

Exquisite... Award Winning Arabian Specialities

Winner of 45 Great Taste Awards over 9 Years 020 8661 9695 www.terra-rossa.com

SWISS FAMILY

The perfect accompaniment! @TheBayTree #TheBayTree www.thebaytree.co.uk 0845 900 3981

SPIRIT 1845

AWELTMEISTER F F I NKÄSE E-U R WALO CHEESE AWARD WINNER

AFFINEUR MEDAILLÉ - STAGGIONATORE PREMIATO

www.affineurwalo.ch

Only the best cheese from Switzerand are part of

SELECTION WALO VON MÜHLENEN 32 AWARDS AT THE WORLD CHEESE AWARDS, 12 AWARDS IN 2012, 11 AWARDS IN 2013 & 10 AWARDS IN 2014 SPEAK FOR THEMSELVES: • 2 Super Gold • 3 Gold • 1 Silver • 4 Bronze

PRODUCTS AVAILABLE AT:

www.finecheese.co.uk

Contact : WALO VON MÜHLENEN PO Box 295 3186 Düdingen Switzerland walo@affineurwalo.ch T +41 79 217 54 11 BEST BRANDS 2014-15

· FINE FOOD DIGEST

The Essence of

Deliciously healthy snacks thoughtfully crafted using nutritious organic wholefoods

Great Taste

GO AHEAD,THINK BEOND!

At Wildwood we make a range of 15 award winning vinegars. All of our ingredients are Organic, organically grown or foraged from the pristine wild mountains of the west of Ireland. Through an infusion process using Berries, Blossom and Herbs we are able to capture the magic of the hidden essences of nature so that these unique flavours can be brought to your table, your food and your drinks.

ORGANIC VEGAN RAW

WHOLEFOOD

RAW . VEGAN GLUTEN FREE DAIRY FREE SOYA FREE

s Amazingly healthy ingredient

Our flavours include Wild Blackberry, Balsamic Blackberry, Raspberry ,Balsamic Raspberry, Elderberry, Elderflower, Mountain Heather, Samphire and Dill, Rosemary, Wild Garlic, Honeysuckle, Fuschia, Meadowsweet, Wild Mountain Thyme, Wild Rose Petal.

KIDS! GREAT FOR TEN FREE WHEAT & GLU

35g and NEW mini bite sized bars

The vinegars can be purchased in 100ml or 200 ml bottles packed in cases of six and mixed cases can be supplied.

Wildwood Vinegars www.wildwoodvinegars.com

www.beondorganic.com

When it comes to exceptional cheddar, the old ways are still the best. Our award-winning, traditional truckles are wrapped in muslin and allowed to breathe as they slowly mature, resulting in a creamy complex flavour with a long finish.

Stuff of legend

Gold winners at

B 20

Home Farm . Newton St Cyres . Devon . www.quickes.co.uk .quickes.co.uk

BEST BRANDS 2014-15

路 FINE FOOD DIGEST

B ES

British Cheese Awards (Best Cheddar, Best Goats Cheese, Best Export Cheese & Best Traditional Cheese) World Cheese Awards, Great Taste Awards, Nantwich, Royal Bath & West EES ISH CH E AWARD Great Yorkshire, Devon County Show, Taste of the West and Frome RIT 12

T OF CATEGORY

STARS IN THEIR EYES We know which speciality brands were doing the business in 2014, but who would you tip for future greatness? We asked seven industry experts to name their favourite start-ups and emerging brands of the past year. ALEXANDER EVANS Farm shop buyer, Westmorland (Tebay and Gloucester Services) www.westmorlandfamily.com

The Mushroom Garden “I love what Cynan Jones in Snowdonia has done for quite a humble brown product. His shiitake powder is a revelation and he has given it a very cool, smart style, but the success story for us at Christmas 2014 has been the mushroom log. It’s been the ideal foodie gift.”

Lovett Pies “We’re so pleased Lovett Pies are doing well at Gloucester. When I met them two years back, they were selling at Bath Farmers’ Market and making pies in the kitchens of a pub near the Pump Rooms. Their pies are packed full, can be eaten cold or hot and are topped with a poppy seed letter that indicates the flavour.” www.lovettpies.com

www.themagnificent marshmallowcompany.com

www.bigcheesemakingkit.com

www.partridges.co.uk www.startisans.net

Bubbleand “Bubble & squeak for the post nuclear age, in sealed packs ready for the chiller. Their Classic Squeak is becoming legendary. All developed by Rupert Smith and Marita Lietz.” Kold Cocktails “A brilliant idea created by Nick Sotiropoulos. Frozen cocktails

The Artisan Kitchen “Sarah Churchill keeps on winning awards for her preserves. Several of our staff have visited her and seen just how homemade her products are. But the jars are not home-spun or mop-topped; instead they speak of the sophistication and clarity of flavour of the product within. The fruit content is just staggering.” The Big Cheese Making Kit “Our most successful food-related product, since we introduced it this summer, has been The Big Cheese Making Kit. Educational, well thoughtout and just what we need to get people engaged with real food.”

JOHN SHEPHERD Partridges/ Startisan markets London

www.bubbleand.co.uk

www.snowdoniamushrooms.co.uk

The Magnificent Marshmallow Co “Everyone that can (and some that shouldn’t have tried) have been offering us marshmallows. As far as I’m concerned, it’s a local couple that have captured their essentially fun and frivolous aspect, and that’s The Magnificient Marshmallow Co here in Cumbria. Their packaging nods to fairgrounds but quality is what counts and the flavours they use are true. Our favourite is the orange & chocolate.”

EMERGING BRANDS

www.theartisankitchen.co.uk

Severn Spots salami “There is so much British charcuterie out there, but Severn Spots salamis are my absolute favourites. Not just because they are packed with flavour (just like Simon Gaskill’s of the Real Boar Company) but because Richard Harper has thought things through. So the retailer gets attractive salamis, each with a hanging cord and attractive label, but also an informative display stand. Job done.” www.severnspots.co.uk

The Chocolarder “There are so many people doing chocolate but few actually making it from bean to bar. The opening of Gloucester Services coincided with the launch of The Chocolarder in Cornwall. Their chocolate has a crisp snap and high gloss. It’s refined and true of flavour. The most impressive thing about the bars though is their simple, informative presentation.”

suitable for use all the year round. Innovative and delicious.” www.koldcocktails.com

Woodford & Warner: “A big hit at the Duke of York’s Square market. This cordial is a taste of Trinidad and Tobago in a bottle. It can be added to water for a non-alcoholic drink or mixed with spirits for a tempting cocktail. All dreamt up by owner Sarah Moore.” www. woodfordandwarner. com

Cutter & Squidge “Inventors of the famous Biskie (a dessert of biscuit or cake filled with jam, butterscotch or caramel) and makers of delicious cakes, their handmade sea salt caramel sauce is delicious and a must-stock item.” www.cutterandsquidge.com

Piddington’s Jams “Brilliant jams that use unique and delicious flavour combinations with an added little bit of mischief! The branding really helps them stand out on shelf.” www.piddingtonjam.co.uk

www.chocolarder.com

BEST BRANDS 2014-15

· FINE FOOD DIGEST

EMERGING BRANDS FABIO DIU Festivals & Markets Manager Real Food Festival

Arganic “Argan oil is used a lot in cosmetics, but the North African oil is also an amazing ingredient. Extraction is a long, labour-intensive process that relies on handwork, mainly by Berber women in south-western Morocco. Dana Elemara clearly cares about the product and her enthusiasm and commitment mean you can trust the quality (100% organic) and provenance (ethically traded and traceable to the tree).”

www.realfoodfestival.co.uk

Crosstown Doughnuts “Over the last couple of years there have been a few new doughnut brands hitting hot oil, stuffed with inventive fillings and finished with well-styled toppings and glazes. Led by JP Then, Crosstown Doughnuts’ colourful, sourdough creations are excellent. With the current trend for unapologetically indulgent foods, posh doughnuts look set to grow.” www.crosstowndoughnuts.com

Square Root “Robyn [Simms] and Ed [Taylor] make traditional sodas from fresh, local and seasonal ingredients in Hackney, east London. They started out at their local market in Harringay, but demand has seen them peddling Elsie, their vintage tricycle and mobile soda bar, all around London as well getting stocked in numerous indie food shops, bars and cafés. They are now also expanding out of London.”

www. myarganic. co.uk

www.squarerootsoda.co.uk

HEATHER PARRY Managing director Fodder Harrogate

Atlantic Kitchen “Seaweed has been eaten in coastal communities for centuries and, with population growth and demand for protein increasing at a worrying rate, it could become a valuable food source. It’s good for digestion, full of nutrients and a delicious, versatile ingredient. Atlantic Kitchen’s organic sea vegetables, sourced from the Atlantic coasts of Ireland, Spain and France, have already convinced the likes of Ottolenghi, Bruno Loubet and Marcus Wareing.”

Sally’s Pasta “We’ve just started stocking Sally’s fresh pasta, a lovely range including plain pasta, a gluten-free version and a beetroot ravioli – delicious. Sadly, it’s made just over the border in Lancashire, but even so it’s a great product!”

Yorkshire Halloumi “Is there nothing that Yorkshire cannot produce? This versatile and popular cheese is made in Huddersfield, using local milk, by the Yorkshire Dama Cheese Company.”

www.sallyspasta.co.uk

www.yorkshiredamacheese.co.uk

www.masonsyorkshiregin.com

www.tophatteacakes.co.uk

Just Jelly “From Whitby, the home of jet, comes an exciting new brand: Just Jelly. Made in small batches in three infused varieties: mint, rosemary and – my absolute favourite – beetroot, which goes beautifully with cheese, looks stunning on a cheeseboard and is a marriage made in heaven with a meat paté.” www.justjelly.co.uk

www.houseofsverre.com

www.atlantickitchen.co.uk

Masons Gin “Had a bad day? Have a Masons gin. Had a good day? Have a Masons! Well balanced, with juniper, citrus and botanicals, this really good gin from Yorkshire is taking the region – and Fodder – by storm.”

www.fodder.co.uk

Top Hat Teacakes “OMG… try one of these and you’ll die happy! Deliciously thick chocolate, crispy biscuit base and cloud-like mallow, and they come in five flavours: original, raspberry, hazelnut, toffee and orange. Almost one for each day of the week! Beautifully packaged and quickly joining our top sellers list.”

House of Sverre “Gunnar Lieungh’s background is in fashion, and, with business partner Lowry Cremer-Roberts, he brings Nordic aesthetic and attention to detail to this London smokehouse, curing sustainable salmon from the Faroes. After a 10-hour salt cure, fillets are smoked for 12 hours over woods native to Scandinavia: beech, juniper and alder.”

BEST BRANDS 2014-15

· FINE FOOD DIGEST

To start selling the BLUEBERRY BROS range email: sales@yonderberries.co.uk

NEW home baking range for the freezer. Just defrost, roll/pipe and bake! For aspiring bakers without the time to do it from scratch. Cornish Cheese Co. new logo variations From Red Snapper Design 10.9.07

BLUEBERRYNESS... m

e o Ch an f Cornish Blue r m dm fa aMORE! de on the PUNNETS AND h

IN BOTTLES, JARS, sales@yonderberries.co.uk 01647 277360

@blueberrybros /theblueberrybrothers

ORDER NOW FROM TASTE DIRECT Telephone: 01189 761 607 | Email: orders@taste-direct.com Website: www.bakingagent.co.uk

www.theblueberrybrothers.co.uk

Corn

ish Blu

h eC

Our delicious potato crisps are hand cooked, flavoured, bagged and boxed here on the farm.

Our potatoes are cooked in award winning Just Cold Pressed Rapeseed Oil giving our crisps a unique crunch and flavour.

For more information call us on 01543 493081 Email us at feedback@justcrisps.co.uk or visit us at www.justcrisps.co.uk

SUPREME

CHAMPION 2010

BEST BRANDS 2014-15

路 FINE FOOD DIGEST

Artisan-produced, all-natural, condiments & preserves, a colourful array of products from traditional favourites to innovative specialities.

Extra Fru ity A warm ta Strawberry Jam ste of su nshine a any time t of the ye ar.

Extra Fruity Gooseberry Jam

A delectable jam, full of tart flavour.

Very Fruity Blackberry & Apple Jam Delight in these delicious autumn fruits.

To find out more about our tasty products call: 016973 45974, email: claire@claireshandmade.co.uk or visit our website: www.claireshandmade.com

The Gourmet Rumelier

01489 885946

Kent’s Kitchen stockpots make winter cooking easier and tastier.

Visit www.kentskitchen.co.uk, email emma@kentskitchen.co.uk or call 07966 888240

C Sa ots w Ke mw old nt ays Fa ’s ra Kit sto yre ng ch ck & es en al . ’s l

The stockpot range includes beef, chicken, vegetable and fish that all add a great depth of flavour to home-made dishes. Just pop these clever gel stocks straight into soups, stews or casseroles or dissolve in water to add to risottos.

BEST BRANDS 2014-15

· FINE FOOD DIGEST

EMERGING BRANDS JEREMY BOWEN Sales manager Paxton & Whitfield

won’t cook or just need a bit of help with cooking something, tap the app – and for me it has to be the cookinapp.com. I am so with it!” www.cookinapp.com

www.paxtonandwhitfield.co.uk

Halen Mon oak-smoked water “I love this – it’s so versatile. It’s great for cooking potatoes and an easy solution for risotto and – OMG! – pop it in an ice-cube tray and you have bonkers smoked water ice cubes for whisky or even sake.”

Burren Smokehouse “We adore what Birgitta HedinCurtin is doing in County Clare – not revolution but evolution, and quality in everything she does. From delicious wild smoked salmon to salmon with seaweed, she has it all mapped out and in the net.”

World Sake “My greatest discovery of 2014. I’m delighted to have met Asami Tasaka, from World Sake Imports, who drenched me in her passion for this wine (not spirit ). From dry, sharp sake to varieties that taste of maple or bananas – it’s a foodie journey that I am yet to finish.” www.worldsake.com

www.burrensmokehouse.ie

www.halenmon.com

Lewis of London halloumi “Here are three lads on a farm on the outskirts of London, new to cheesemaking, who are trying their best to attract attention with an interesting and honourable product range, including a British-style halloumi.” www.lewisoflondon.co.uk

CHRIS DARLINGTON General manager Battlefield 1403 Farm Shop Shropshire

SCOTT WINSTON Buyer Harrods www.harrods.com

Kobe beef “For some years we’ve sold Wagyu beef, an intensely fat-marbled meat inspired by Japanese Kobe beef. Until this year Kobe has not been widely distributed outside Japan, hence the boom in trade of Wagyu, but in the last six months that’s changed and Harrods stole the march by becoming the first UK butcher to stock genuine Japanese Kobe beef. I highly recommend trying it – although, at £450/kg for fillet, I wouldn’t suggest mincing it for a cottage pie!”

Monty’s Brewery Masquerade “Maquerade is a light golden ale, and unusual in that it’s gluten-free and carries certification from the Coeliac UK society. However, the taste isn’t compromised.”

Coravin “Not strictly food, this one, but revolutionary and certainly a contender for a best brand. Coravin allows you to enjoy a glass of your favourite wine, whenever you like, without even pulling the cork out! The stylish machine sits on top of the bottle and injects a needle through which the wine is drawn. It simultaneously pressurises the bottle with an inert gas so the wine is not exposed to any additional oxygen.”

www.montysbrewery.co.uk

www.coravin.co.uk

Cookinapp.com “Okay, social media, blogs and apps are all a tad in-your-face and can be irritating, but you ignore them at your peril. So if you can’t cook,

www.battlefield1403.com

Oldfields Discovery cider “Although a seasonal cider, this has proved very popular. Made from Discovery apples, it has a unique dryness with a crisp apple-y taste. Intended to be drunk from a flute, like a prosecco, it makes a classy alternative to other sparkling drinks at under £5 a bottle.”

Peter’s Yard spelt & fig crispbread “Blue cheese is my weakness and Peter’s Yard’s original sourdough crispbread will always be a firm favourite. This addition just feeds my addiction and the two together are a match made in heaven.”

www.oldfieldsorchard.co.uk

www.petersyard.com

Mr Moyden’s Shrewsbury Blue “A seasonal cheese hand-crafted by Martin Moyden in Market Drayton, Shropshire, Shrewsbury Blue is made with ewes’ milk from the local Pitchford Estate flock.”

Hansi Baumgartner Blue Queen cheese “Hansi Baumgartner is a talented cheese-maker from Northern Italy’s South Tyrol. A Michelin-starred chef, he switched to cheese after noticing that his region didn’t have much dairy heritage despite having the right environment and animals. Blue Queen is cellaraged, then its centre is removed and combined with chocolate, citrus fruit and Passito dessert wine before being returned to the cheese. The top is decorated with a mosaic of candied peels of lemon and Sicilian Bergamot orange surrounded by a ring of vegetable ash, dotted with gold leaf.” www.degust.com

www.mrmoyden.com

Ross & Ross curing kit “As a bit of fun we have just launched the wonderful Bacon Curing Kit by Ross & Ross. It contains all the ingredients, along with instructions, to make either sweet or smoky bacon. Just add pork! A fun weekend project.” www.rossandrossfood.co.uk

BEST BRANDS 2014-15

· FINE FOOD DIGEST

halfa4_dec1_Layout 1 01/12/2014 20:45 Page 1

HOW DOES YOUR COOKIE CRUMBLE?

Make delicious homemade cookies in minutes with Mo’s Cookie Dough

Once Upon a Time Confectionery Sweet Treats for Discerning Food Lovers

With our all natural pre-prepared cookie dough you can enjoy the delicious smell and taste of warm freshly baked cookies with no mess, no fuss and perfect results every time.

www.moscookiedough.co.uk info@moscookiedough.co.uk tel: 0845 519 7809

www.pandorabell.com hello@pandorabell.com

South West Garlic Farm

Black Garlic

"A highly popular ingredient and a great new healthy snack”

New for 2015 Peeled Black Garlic Cloves

www.southwestgarlicfarm.co.uk

Call: 01297 489254 / 07745 105955

Email: wendy@southwestgarlicfarm.co.uk

BEST BRANDS 2014-15

· FINE FOOD DIGEST

EVERYDAY

The ‘must-stocks’ column in Fine Food Digest’s Deli of the Month slot reveals which brands are doing the business week in, week out for stores around the UK. Here are the heroes of 2014.

HEROES

HOUSE OF BRUAR – Blair Atholl, Perthshire • Shortbread House of Edinburgh • Walkers Shortbread • Nevis Bakery • Inverawe Smokehouses • Summer Isles Foods smoked salmon • MacSween’s of Edinburgh haggis • Rannoch Smokery • Gardiners of Scotland confectionery

MUST-STOCKS

RHUG ESTATE FARM SHOP – Corwen, Denbighshire

• Duskin apple juice •G ordon & Durwood in Crieff (fudge and macaroons) •C ambus O’ May cheese •G odminster cheese •B rodies coffee & tea •C hain Bridge Honey • E dinburgh Preserves •C ottage Delight www.houseofbruar.com

JanuaryFebruary 2014

EPICERIE LUDO – Chorlton, Manchester • Delice de France Parisien baguette • GPG Pinot Grigio • Shop-made fresh chocolate brownies • Lunetta Prosecco Spumante • Delice de France croissants • Cape Heights Shiraz • Little French Cakery loose macaroons • Monty Bojangles truffles • Grumpy Mule organic • Colombian coffee beans • Cartwright & Butler red onion marmalade • Bacon Jam April • Little Doone sweet balsamic 2014 dressing • Wessex Mill French bread flour • Dough It Yourself chilled pizza bases • Barber’s 1833 cheddar

•R hug Estate honey • L ocal free range eggs • P achomama woolly hats •B omb Cosmetics bath and shower products •O lives Et Al loose olives • P urple Moose beers •B acon Jam • J uliette Avri Chateauneuf du Pape • F ederico Paternina ‘Accolado’ Gran Reserva Rioja alen Môn/Anglesey sea salt •H

• Peter’s Yard crispbreads March 2014 • Country Choice bakeoff organic bloomers • Coopers Gourmet sausage rolls • Perl Wen and Perl Las cheese • Gorwydd Caerphilly • Colston Bassett Stilton • Wookey Hole cave-aged cheddar • Tanzaro Food Co family steak & ale pie www.rhug.co.uk

UMAMI DELI – Wantage, Oxfordshire • Brindisa chorizo • Dongé Brie De Meaux • Teapigs earl grey • Union revelation coffee • Hawkshead Westmorland chutney • Olive Branch sun dried tomato paste • Degustibus Tuscan loaf • Olives Et Al tomato-stuffed olives • Dukes Hill ham • Prosciutto di Parma • Pomegranate molasses (Terra Rossa) • Ticklemore Beenleigh Blue cheese

May 2014

www.umami-deli.co.uk

www.epicerieludo.co.uk

+ B E S T B R A N D S 2 0 1 4 - 1 5 ··

FINE FOOD DIGEST

CHAPMANs Leaflet NEW FRONT AW copy.pdf

30/8/11

12:33:25

From the home of fish

Primrose Herd pigs reach for the stars! Deli cio

We are first and foremost breeders and finishers of traditional pedigree breed pigs producing an award winning range of pork products.

EST INGREDIEN TS HE FIN us fishc akes USING T The Chapman Family have been involved in the seafish industry in Grimsby for over fifty years.

Over which time they have amassed invaluable knowledge especially with regards to recognizing and sourcing the best fish available.

Very much a family affair the farm is located in beautiful Cornish countryside within a World Heritage site and our traditional and non-intensive approach to animal husbandry is rewarded with the highest quality meat.

Like many Grimsby housewives, the late Mavis Chapman had her own recipe for fishcakes using the fish that husband Terry would fetch from work.

CMY

Now, her sons Kevin and Paul have taken this recipe to produce a traditional fishcake, and using their mum’s principal of incorporating only the finest ingredients, they manufacture a range of fishcakes.

For all enquiries please contact us at

Based in Grimsby, Lincolnshire, Kevin and Paul have the pick of the fish from local producers and the pick of the crop of Maris Piper potatoes from local growers.

tel: 01209 821408 | mobile: 07866042105 | email: primroseherd@tiscali.co.uk

www.primroseherd.co.uk

email riversidefs@btconnect.com

www.chapmansfishcakes.co.uk

telephone 01472 269871

Red Rapscallion seeks sausages, cheese or pâté for lunch, dinner, maybe more...

Find out more about our BESTSELLING BAD BOY www.thepickledvillage.com

BEST BRANDS 2014-15

· FINE FOOD DIGEST

MUST-STOCKS CASTLE HOWARD FARM SHOP – North Yorkshire • Snowdonia Black Bomber cheese • Yorkshire Blue cheese • Haxby Bakehouse bread • Local honey • Rosebud Preserves • Peter’s Yard crispbreads • Womersley Vinegars – lime, black pepper & lavender • Three Little Pigs Yorkshire salami • Barncliffe brie (Yorkshire Fine Cheeses) June 2014

• Garofalo pasta • P atum Peperium – The Gentleman’s Relish •R yedale Vineyards Yorkshire Lass dry white wine •A mpleforth cider •W old Gold – Wold Top Brewery • L ottie Shaw’s Yorkshire Parkin •B otham’s Yorkshire brack •Y orkshire Provender soup – tomato & red pepper www.castlehoward.co.uk

McCARTNEY’S OF MOIRA – Moira, Co. Down • Glastry Farm Yellow Man honeycomb ice cream • Bim’s Kitchen chilli jam • McCartney's own corned beef • The Bay Tree teddy bear pasta • Suki Tea Apple Loves Mint • The Curry Sauce Co’s Makhani July 2014 curry sauce • Ditty’s Irish oatcakes • Brown Bag oak smoked chilli crisps • Mull of Kintyre cheddar • Barts seasonings range • Ballymaloe relish • Olives Et Al classic mix pitted olives • McCartney’s home-baked deli pies • McCartney's fully loaded potato salad • Cobden & Brown local handmade gluten-free chocolate www.mccartneysofmoira.com

MORTIMER & BENNETT – Chiswick, London STOURHEAD FARM SHOP Stourhead Estate, Wiltshire • Bath Blue cheese • Montgomery farmhouse cheddar • Westcombe farmhouse cheddar • Wiltshire Loaf cheese • Royal Bassett Blue cheese • Pilton sparkling cider • Taylor’s of Bruton fruit scones • Stockan’s thick oatcakes • Fine English water crackers and Bath ovals • Image on Food ‘farmyard’ gingerbread biscuits • Moores Dorset ginger biscuits August • Devon Cottage 2014 clotted cream fudge • Bottled water • Rose Farm pickled eggs and pickled onions (large jars)

SeptEMBER 2014

• Patchwork paté • Brindisa gazpacho • Mortimer & Bennett granola • La Trinquelinette raspberry and apricot jams • Leathams roquito drop peppers • Lane Farm Suffolk Roast Ham • Goose rillettes (Paris) • Mere Fish Farm smoke trout mousse • Cakes baked by Tracie Misiewicz • Alder Tree tayberry Cream Ice

www.stourhead.com

BLOOMFIELDS FINE FOOD – Highworth, Wiltshire • Berkeley Farm Dairy organic butter and milk •W hite Horse Brewery’s Village Idiot golden ale • T he Cotswold Curer salami and chorizo •G illy’s Foods balsamic dressing • S tainswick Farm rapeseed oil • P ippin Doughnuts •G oodness Granola • T he Three Choirs Vineyard Classic

Cuvée sparkling NV • Wiltshire Liqueurs sloe gin and damson vodka • Grumpy Mule organic Sumatra ground coffee • Tracklements chilli jam • Plenty! Pies’ Breton October chicken pie 2014 • Taylerson’s Malmesbury Syrups mulling syrup www.bloomfieldsfinefood.co.uk

• Rachel goats’ cheese (White Lake Cheeses) • Bonnet goats’ cheese (Dunlop Dairy) • Vintage Lincolnshire Poacher • Dongé Brie de Meaux • Tunworth (Hampshire Cheeses) • Parma ham • Macleans Oatcakes • Fine Cheese Co Toast for Cheese range www.mortimerandbennett.com

DELIFONSECA DOCKSIDE – Liverpool • Snowdonia Black Bomber cheddar • Atkins & Potts chillied cherry tomato chutney • Peter’s Yard crispbreads • Hawkshead five fruit marmalade • Olives Et Al tomorosso Sicilian cherry tomatoes • Cheshire Smokehouse pancetta • Cartmel sticky toffee pudding • Giuseppi Giusti balsamic vinegar • Border Biscuits range • The Crossings NZ Sauvignon Blanc • Poddi Tartufi pasta sauce • Bundaberg diet ginger beer

B E S T B R A N D S 2 0 1 4 - 1 5 ··

FINE FOOD DIGEST

• Granoro potato gnocchi • Girolomoni organic pasta • Xochitl tortilla chips • Quaranta nougat range • Vira chocolate fig bonbons • Teapigs peppermint/chamomile www.delifonseca.co.uk

NovemberDecember 2014

The healthier option for kids NO ADDED SUGAR

IS OUR FRUITROM SHAKENEFS NOT THE TRE D IN A STIRRE RY FACTO

1 OF YOUR 5 A DAY

NO ARTIF COLOU ICIAL R FLAVOUS OR RS

SCHOOL FOOD STANDARDS

ABERNETHY SMOKED BUTTER Handmade Abernethy Butter is then cold smoked over wood chips for a unique and distinctive taste.

ABERNETHY BUTTER

COMPLIANT

info@bensonstotallyfruity.co.uk 01451 844134 www.bensonstotallyfruity.co.uk

ha nd m

Winner of 19 Great Taste Awards

ade

Steak & Stilton

Pie

IS A PrOuD wInner OF The GreAT TASTe 2014 AwArDS! william dyer’s seriously sumptuous meaty pie for two, combines prime Scottish Beef and Colston Bassett Stilton finished with a light butter puff pastry. A wonderfully classic British favourite - the judges certainly seemed to agree!

Choi Time, Award Winning Chinese speciality teas that unfurl and blossom in your cup. Hailed as “the Dom Perignon of the tea world” by the Sunday Times Style Magazine.

Other award winning recipes include Lasagne 1✩, Fishermans Pie 2✩, Lamb Hot-Pot 3✩

AwArd winning For more mouth-watering options

call us on 01372 275155 Or go online for details about our Butchers, Deli and Catering team www.williamdyerbutchers.co.uk

Family Butchers

58 WD001_GCheese100x141.5_V1.indd 1

Snowy Flakes

01372 275155 www.williamdyerbutchers.co.uk 18 Craddocks Parade, Ashtead, Surrey, KT21 1QJ @williamdyerltd

BEST BRANDS 2014-15

Phone: 0845 0533269 Email: wholesale@choitime.com Visit: choitime.co.uk · FINE FOOD DIGEST

29/09/2014 15:23

FFD’S PICK OF THE YEAR

TEAM SELECTION

When they’re not chained to their desks bringing you the latest in speciality food, our journalists do occasionally get to try the odd morsel. Here are their favourites from 2014. Mick Whitworth editor Dell’ami Bellota Iberico Sobrasada “I’m a big fan of ‘nduja but, unlike its hotter Italian cousin, this Spanish sobrasada (picked up by Cheese Cellar for its dell’ami range this year) is a meltable sausage that does a similar job a little more gently. The softer spicing of paprika, rather than hot peppers, means you can get more of the fibrous, meaty texture into your rice and pasta dishes without overburdening your tastebuds.” www.cheesecellar.co.uk

Lynda Searby, features writer Balcony Mediterranean teas “I usually find that herbal teas are a let-down – they smell gorgeous yet taste like hot water and grass clippings. Balcony Teas have converted me. I’m breathing in a cup of their orange & ginger as I type and its warming sweet and spicy flavour lives up to its fragrant aroma.”

kits but producing an authentic, aromatic curry from Spicentice’s Malaysian Rendang kit has changed my mind. The spice combinations are spot on, the instructions are very easy to follow and the packaging is smart, trendy and eye-catching to boot.”

Michael Lane, deputy editor

www.spicentice.com

www.balconytea.co.uk

Spicentice curry kits “As a decent home cook, I’ve always been a bit sniffy about spice

Rubies in the Rubble preserves “The idea behind this preservesbrand-with-a-difference is ingenious and simple at the same time. All of Rubies in the Rubble’s jams, chutneys and pickles are made from surplus produce – wonky, out-of-spec fruit and vegetables that would otherwise be discarded. This gives a genuinely ethical dimension and point of difference in an otherwise crowded corner of the speciality market.” www.rubiesintherubble.com

The Foraging Fox beetroot ketchup “On the advice of fellow saucemakers Nicola and Robert Young of Atkins & Potts, I sampled The Foraging Fox’s simple but rather lovely ketchup at this year’s Speciality & Fine Food Fair. It’s slightly sweeter than a tomato sauce. I’m tipping this all-natural condiment – and its creator Frankie Sheekie – for greatness.”

Patrick McGuigan, news writer and cheese expert

www.birdandwild.co.uk

the cheese is rich and creamy with sweet and savoury notes and funky flavours just under the rind.”

www.foragingfox.com

www.mfcheese.com

Cote Hill Lindum “Made by Joe Davenport at Cote Hill Farm in Lincolnshire, Lindum is a Tomme-like cheese washed in local beer giving it nice floral notes and a supple texture. Perfect for melting.”

Bird & Wild Yeti Farm coffee “Exotic provenance and ethical credentials are what pique my interest when it comes to coffee. But so often you’re left to search for these things in the small print on a plain brown paper bag. Bird & Wild delivers on every level. Aside from the evocative packaging and the niche Bird Friendly certification, it is also a top-notch brew.”

Baron Bigod “Move over Brie de Meaux. This bloomy-rind cheese (pronounced ‘by-god’) from Jonny Crickmore at Fen Farm Dairy in Suffolk is made with raw milk from Montbeliarde cows. It has a silky texture with farmyard and mushroom flavours.”

Sensible Dave’s granola “I don’t think I’d seen the bottom of a cereal box before I tried Sensible Dave’s Granola. It takes something pretty special to tempt me away from my morning toast and all three of Dave’s varieties did the trick. It’s very moreish – the orange zest is a masterstroke – but a little goes a long way so you’ll need to learn some restraint.” www.sensibledave.co.uk

www.fenfarmdairy.co.uk

www.cotehill.com

Young Buck “This raw milk blue cheese is made by former School of Artisan Food student Michael Thomson of Mike’s Fancy Cheese Co in County Down. He uses a Stilton recipe, so BEST BRANDS 2014-15

· FINE FOOD DIGEST