FOOD AWARDS:Good Irish food, cheery producers and Dingle hospitality. Win, win, win
THE THIRD annual Blas na hÉireann National Irish Food Awards – now there’s a mouthful. They were held in Dingle soon after Black Thursday, and it would be difficult to imagine a better place to have been in that particularly gloomy week. Food producers tend to be an engaging, earnest bunch and here was a generous exchange of ideas and experience, with the talk focused on innovation and the potential of our food industry. Optimism accompanied by belief, which is rare these days.
“I am impressed by the quality of the young producers,” says Peter Ward of Country Choice in Nenagh, Co Tipperary, who presented the awards. “Many graduates are getting into food with an enthusiasm we must protect – and we must provide a varied route to market for them. I will wait for the day they are considered on a par with our young graduates in science and technology.”
Ian Flynn of Flynn’s Kitchens in Riverstick, Co Cork was named “supreme champion” for his spinach and ricotta cannelloni, chosen from 1,000 products. An economics graduate from UCC, he worked as a chef before going on to sell ready-made meals at local markets and now, with the help of Cork Co Enterprise Board, he has a high-spec production unit in the city.
Dublin’s Iseult Janssens, who is 22, won a gold medal for her macaroons, made by her company, The Cake Stand. The young couple from Kooky Dough, Sophie Morris and Graham Clarke, also won an award, as did the affable Cormac O’Dwyer and Tom Dalton of Dungarvan Brewing Company for their Helvick Gold Ale.
Of 30 awards, 12 were won by products supported by Aldi in its Specially Selected range. Nature’s Isle Specially Selected Angus Fillet Steak, produced by AIBP in Nenagh, Co Tipperary, won a well-deserved gold, along with Eucalyptus Honey, produced by Healy’s Honey of Cork, and Caramel Fudge Ice Cream, produced by Silver Pail Dairy in Fermoy. More than 45 per cent of Aldi’s grocery sales is now generated from products of Irish suppliers, producers and manufacturers, a boost for artisan and commercial producers.
The awards are given across 30 categories, and provide a good excuse for food folk and visitors to gather in Dingle. Almost every shop, gallery, hotel and restaurant organises a tasting of some sort – from oysters to kangaroo – and the atmosphere is convivial. Food heroes, such as Giana Ferguson of Gubbeen Cheese, give workshops to encourage aspiring producers, and the tasting menu produced by the Global Village Restaurant is tops. The best award from a local perspective went to Dingle butcher Jerry Kennedy, celebrated for his Blasket Island lamb. Claire Nash of Nash 19 and Kay Harte of the Farmgate Market, both in Cork, were also honoured for their services to food and its traditions in the city.
