Artisan-Food : News

Luxury handmade damson gin chocolates...

Sat, 18 Mar 2006 05:00:00 GMT

The Windermere Ice Cream and Chocolate company are launching a new product this year. Well known for their great Ice cream made out of fresh Organic milk from the Low Sizergh Barn they are building up an equally great range of chocolates. The latest in this line is ones using damsons. Presented in a beautifully designed damson and gold coloured box, their handmade damson gin chocolates taste superb. The slight almost acidic freshness of the damson is contrasted perfectly by the smooth Belgian chocolate. A wonderful chocolate treat. Damsons are one of Englands oldest fruits, the orchards can be found in the Lyth and Winster valleys of Cumbria. The Damsons for these chocolates come from Cowmire Hall which are then traditionally steeped in London Gin to produce a delicious liqueur.The gin soaked damsons are then combined using a special recipe and turned into luxury handmade chocolates. You can visit their website on www.windermereicecream.co.uk - Martin

Lakes and Cumbria today, teaming with food....

Thu, 09 Mar 2006 00:00:00 GMT

We've teamed up with Cumbria's most popular tourist and travel guide. In the bigger and better new issue for 2006, Artisan-food will be contributing to a small but well formed foodie section to coincide with the launch of our website in early April. This publication is aimed at tourists but locals love it too, it is available in hundreds of outlets around the county. The magazine also sells particularly well in the service stations on the major routes feeding the Lakes. Issue 14 will go on sale at the end of April until Mid October. Keep an eye out for it, there are some great little gems in it, like the story of the 40 foot double articulated lorry that got stranded whilst trying to go over the Hard Knot pass.....

A date with Christian Dymond...

Mon, 06 Mar 2006 05:00:00 GMT

Dear Martin and Cecilia. Congratulations on your excellent website, promoting Cumbrian food and drink. I'm sorry it's taken me so long to get in touch. Andy at the Jumble Room gave me your email address some time ago. You probably already know that the Cumbria Life Food and Drink Festival is taking place between Saturday, April 29 and Sunday, May 7, with about 70 events around the county (promoting local produce) and a two day food and drink fair at Rheged on Sunday, April 30 and Monday, May 1. There are pages on Cumbria Life's own website promoting
the festival.... www.CumbriaLife.co.uk All best, Christian.

Herdwicks on a day out to London....

Tue, 21 Feb 2006 05:00:00 GMT

It sounds like something out of Wallace and Grommit, but its for real. On Saturday the 17th of June, Farmer Sharp will take 60 Herdwicks over the Millenium Bridge en route between the Borough market and the Smithfields market. The Bishop of Southwark will give a symbolical send off to the flock from Southwark Cathedral's courtyard. Making use of the age old droving rights of Freemen of the City of London, Farmer Sharp, five sheep dogs, two mounted police and several shepherds will accompany the Herdwicks through Borough Market, along Clink Street, over the Millennium Bridge and after passing in front of the west doors of St Paul's Cathedral, the sheep will be driven twoards Smithfields. Here they will be penned for the duration of the St Bartholomew's Fair festivities that day. The Herdwick flock will be supplied by Farmer Sharp who will also provide mutton produce from his stall at Borough Market to feed visitors. A champion of the Mutton Renaissance campaign, Sharp recently supplied mutton for the launch of the Mutton Renaissance Club whose patron is The Prince of Wales. Gathering a tide of support from British chefs like Gordon Ramsay and top restaurants such as The Ritz and Le Gavroche, mutton is enjoying a nationwide revival. Generations of Farmer Sharp's family have been involved in the mutton trade and particularly in Herdwicks. His uncle Thomas Storey was Beatrix Potter's shepherd, his grandfather used to send sheep to Smithfields by train and his great great grandfather had a butcher's shop on Stan Laurel's road, The Ellers in Ulverston. - Martin

Turning chutney into charity…..

Sat, 04 Feb 2006 05:00:00 GMT

One of Cumbria's Rick Stein food heroes, Demels, is donating 5p from every jar of chutney it sells between the 1st of April and the end of October to help the Tsunami victims. Demels was founded by Manel Trepte a Sri Lankan Lady, now it is owned and run by John Tiscorina and Howard Wilson. The chutneys are handmade by their Sri Lankan Chef, Banda. If you have never tried them, go out and buy some, there is loads of choice and you will contribute towards a worthwhile cause. You can read the full press release by clicking here. (PDF) – Martin

Ancient Fat Ducks spotted in Cumbria?

Fri, 03 Feb 2006 05:00:00 GMT

Heston Blumenthal is probably best known for his molecular approach to cuisine. He has a team of chefs, scientists and psychologists researching food for him throughout the world. His restaurant, The Fat Duck, opened in 1995 and was awarded its third Michelin star in January 2004. It was also recently voted the best restaurant in the world. One of his team, research and development chef Mary-Ellen Mctague, has been working in Shap, with Ivan Day on the development of some historic English recipes for both the Fat Duck and Hind's Head in Bray. Watch out for those ancient Fat Ducks, it looks like a case of the old ones being the best ones! - Martin

Slow food but fast news - you send it we'll spread it !

Tue, 31 Jan 2006 05:00:00 GMT

You know how you can get the weather and news to appear in your web browser, it just happens when you start the programme. Most good journalists have their browsers set up this way, ie to gather the news. Now any journalist anywhere can get your news from Artisan Food this way too. It is a much more efficient way of getting news than trawling through hundreds of e-mails. It also means that if you set up your browser this way you too can get the news this way.

I will be contacting the local media and journalists who cover food items, to let them know about this new news feed from Artisan-Food.

If you want your news to appear in this section e-mail news@artisan-food.com, be sure to identify your company, and provide contact details within the message. Your message will be put in as you write it.

This service is free.

Martin

For the technical :

The "news and views from the kitchen page" generates what is called an XML news feed, sometimes referred to as RSS, really simple syndication. This lets suitably equipped news readers get their information directly. I use a browser called Firefox, (like Explorer but more configurable and safer) and use live bookmarks this has the news reader automatically built in. I can the easily check Artisan Food news, by clicking on the bookmark. Call me if you need help. 015394 35012. I'll do my best. Martin

Lakes Ice Cream

Tue, 31 Jan 2006 05:00:00 GMT

Lakes Ice Cream : You may be interested to know that from the 6th of Feb 06 we will be using milk from South Lakes Organic Milk (Ulverston) for all our dairy ice cream. We also make a ewes milk ice cream ( Birks Head Farm Bleatarn Appleby) for those who are allergic to cows milk! The best email address to use for us is icecream@btconnect.com. - Peter