Crowds flock to savour the flavour of Taste 2

Sep 1 2008 by Richard Fletcher, The Journal

THERE may have been Caribbean-style music playing, but the flavour of Saturday’s Journal Taste 2 Festival was distinctly local.

To the rhythm of the North Tyneside Steel Band, and with the smell of fresh coffee mingling with the cooking meat on the Geordie Burger stand, people from across the North East got a taste of the wealth of quality food and drink on offer in their region.

Despite the event beginning at 10am, people were still arriving at 2pm to get into The Journal Taste 2 Festival at Linden Hall Hotel, Longhorsley, near Morpeth.

And the thousands who turned out were well rewarded with stalls including meat, fish, chocolate, cheese, ice cream and fruit, each with enthusiastic owners willing to talk with passion about their produce.

Former Newcastle United star David Ginola was one big attraction. The former footballer introduced the crowds to his wine range and launched his Coste Brulade 2007 Rosé wine.

He told the crowd: “I’m very proud to be here.

“I used to have a glass of white wine before dinner. On a nice day in the North East with family and friends you can open a bottle of this and enjoy. I’m not here to taste the Newcastle Brown Ale. My target is to have Newcastle United with Coste Brulade across the front of their shirts.”

Alistair Brown, of Strathmore Hebridean, a high quality lamb farmer based at Medomsley, Durham, explained why Taste 2 was so important for small-scale artisan producers.

He said: “We attended the first at Gibside and it was very well received by the public. They couldn’t believe you could find that quality of meat on normal sale. It will be expensive if you sell it via the supermarkets but direct, there’s no premium. That’s why The Journal Taste exhibitions are so worthwhile.”

Sue Robinson of Hadrian Sweets began making cakes for her diabetic grandmother because she could never eat mince pies at Christmas.

Since then, her business has expanded and five years ago moved to Haltwhistle, Northumberland. She now finds attending festivals helps her speak to the public and learn about their demands and allergies. And she alters her range of sweets to suit them.

She said: “I think the festival has been good. We’re hidden away in the sticks and The Journal did a good job at Gibside letting people know we existed. It’s word of mouth from there.

“There are a lot of people like The Journal now supporting us. We’ve seen quite a few local shops opening up this year to just sell locally produced food.” Kevin Paris, 33 from Durham, said he always cooked meals from scratch and would rather pay a bit extra for quality local food.

He said: “It’s great to meet the stallholders. There’s a few products here that we’ve been buying, but we have to go to the food festival to buy them.

“Supermarkets have got their place, but it’s nice you can go out and buy this kind of produce.”

It was not just the public who appreciated the food on offer. Butcher Tony Willis, from Haydon Bridge, said hosts Linden Hall bought 100kg of his sausages the night before the event and he was up until 1.30am making more.

Mr Willis actually began his career in supermarkets, but felt there was not enough effort going into the final product.

He said of the festival: “It gets your name out there.”

John Yearnshire, a retired Northumbria Police officer who now trains police in Abu Dhabi, and wife Stephanie, came to the festival while staying in their Northumberland house, and tasted some of Mr Willis’s sausages.

Mr Yearnshire said: “That pork and apricot sausage was lovely. I’d like to see this event get bigger.”

Retired couple Michael and Kathleen Janaway, from Seaton Sluice, made comparisons with where they go on holiday.

Mr Janaway said: “Where we go in the south of France, it’s easier to get fresh food. The variety of food and fresh vegetables is so different. But things are changing here, with more Bistro style restaurants, and people more aware of good food.”

Page 2: Taste event helps pair spread their honest message >>