Hereford Booze Festival

This past weekend in Hereford was the "Flavours of Herefordshire Food Festival", held in Hereford at the Hereford Racecourse. Over 100 vendors were on display showing off their locally produced products.

The big attraction this year was the "Hairy Bikers". I didn't know who they were but I walked close enough to them that I felt their overwhelming charisma wash over me. Not really, but I did walk by them. I haven't seen their show(s) but I will keep an eye out. They are life-long foodies slash bikers.

Overall, the festival was just ok. The main tent was too small for the crowd, so much so that we skipped more than one booth we would have otherwise tried out. The area near the first tent's entrance was a clear example of lack of understanding of people management. It was somewhere in this area a lovely, older lady identified us (must be my American flag jean jacket and constant singing of Bruce Springsteen tunes) as American and made an unsavoury comment to my wife about her "American" conduct "in line". This whole place was such a bloody mess that I heard more than one person say they were giving up and going outside so I'm not sure what was done that was uniquely American. Worse yet, many vendors also sold out of their more popular items before we got to them -- like the new winter flavors ofTyrell's Potato Crisps, including beef and horseradish. Nuts!

There is no question that the laws over here must be more lenient on the small batch production of liquor, beer, wine, and cider. About a fifth of the larger and more popular exhibits were alcohol related, including local whiskey and vodka producers. And they all had samples. Needless to say, by the time my previously-empty stomach made its way to the vendors outside selling sandwiches (we had a delicious roasted lamb baguette) and pizzas, I had a decent little freebie buzz going on. A few tastes of beer, some Celtic hootch, lime Vodka, rosehip wine, some dry cider, some sweet cider, Tyrell's vodka (of potato crisp fame), some bubbly, and so forth. The crowd didn't seem quite so bad by the time I reached the end of the tent.

Two good things came out of the event. First, I bolstered my liquor cabinet with some exciting new additions. Second, I gathered lots of pamphlets for local vendors -- many with websites and free local delivery. I expect I will soon be exploring websites about rare breed meats and getting them delivered straight to my gullet. At the top of my list is Frasers of Turnastone.

About the booze: I mentioned Monkhide in a previous post about our day trip to Ludlow. They were again selling their flavored wines, vodkas, whiskeys, and brandies. I already had a bottle of their vanilla vodka, maple whiskey, and pear brandy. We added a bottle of lime vodka and cherry brandy. The vanilla and lime vodkas are recommended to be frozen -- their alcohol content is such that they won't freeze solid but they turn to thick slush. Monkhide recommends letting them stand for a few minutes and then drinking the still icy result. I've tried it with the vanilla and it really is excellent.

I also sampled some local whiskey from a Welsh distillery, Penderyn. They had four varieties on sale -- including one that was "peated" (I think that means the malt used for the whiskey has been roasted by a source partially fueled by peat to give it an earthy flavour) and that one gentleman explained to me was there just to "appease the Scots." Ok, then. I bought a bottle of their main offering -- it really is fine stuff. Check out their website for awards and reviews, including pictures of the Prince drinking the stuff -- apparently he serves this brand at home. For you Chicago folks, it is also available at Binny's and Sam's.

Not sure if I would go next year, but the list of exhibitors and their websites is a good compilation of local resources that I will look forward to.

Cheers!