TASTING NOTES

Thursday 5 November 2009

First Birthday Party

    

Simply Delicious Gluhwein  Made with a Simply Delicious sachet this German winter drink is a great way to warm up.

            Cave Aged Kings Gruyere AOC  The cheese of western Switzerland, with a delicate, distinguished flavour. Made since at least 1115 AD in and around the small town of Gruyères, today it is still produced by village cheese dairies in western Switzerland according to the traditional recipe.  Le Gruyère AOC owes its characteristic delicacy and flavour to the top quality raw milk produced by cows fed on grass in the summer and hay in winter, coupled with the skill of the master-cheesemakers.  No less than 400 litres of fresh milk are needed to produce a single wheel weighing around 35kg.  During the slow maturation process, which takes several months in special cheese cellars, the wheels are turned regularly and rubbed down with salty water. The maturing process lasts between five and 18 months.

            Smoked Organic Ashdown Foresters   (High Weald Dairy, Sussex) is an unpressed cheese with a creamy, slightly squidgy texture not dissimilar to a Gouda. It is handcrafted with an attractive basket weave rind and matured for about 3 months.
The whole cheese weighs about 2kg is naturally smoked over oak chippings to give a smell and taste reminiscent of the mists of Autumn.
GOLD MEDAL WINNER – WINNER of its class: The BEST FLAVOUR ADDED CHEESE class, at the British Cheese Awards 2008

Perl Las  (Caws Cenarths' Dairy, Dyfed Wales) Perl Las is an organic, cows’ milkcheese.  A blue Caerphillycheese, Perl Las has a delicate, salty flavour when young, but becomes golden in colour and stronger and more lemony in taste as it matures. It has a creamy, lingering aftertaste. Produced in wheels of 2.5 kg and trickles of 600 g, the cheese has won several awards, including:

Welsh True Taste 2003 - Gold Award

Organic Food Awards 2002 - Joint Winner

British Cheese Awards 2005 - Best British Blue Export

Royal Welsh Show - Best Farmhouse Caerffili a record number of times

Curworthy Devon Oke  "Moorish" - that's Curworthy: a unique full-fat semi-hard cheese made on an historic farm deep in the heart of the rich Devon countryside. Stockbeare is situated near Okehampton with the tors of Dartmoor standing proudly on the skyline.  Daily, the milk produced by its herd of Friesian cows is stirred, scalded and matured into a unique cheese that is creamy with a light buttery taste when young and a full flavoured mellowness when aged. No colouring or preservatives whatsoever are added - except salt which enhances the flavour and lengthens the cheese's life.

Pathos Halloumi with Premium Sundried Tomatoes and Tapenade   Damon has made this simple canapé to demonstrate how products from the Deli can be used to create delicious combinations and attractive snacks.  After our lunchtime rush, ask him if he has time to give you a personal demonstration in our kitchen!

Damon’s Beetroot Chutney for Cheese  One of the best chutneys Damon has made this year, perfect with hard and medium to strong cheeses but very versatile so good on any cheeseboard.  Try it with Smoked Ashdown Forester or Cave Aged Gruyere.

Ballancourt Pate  Pork Pate with Chestnuts.  This is just one of the many pates we stock.  Imported from France, the quality speaks for itself.  We stock a wide range of traditional and unusual flavours.

Pathos Olives  These green Greek olives are pitted and in oil with mushrooms, peppers and garlic.  Please ask if you would like to sample any other olives.

 Traditional Humous   This is a great accompaniment to a meze platter or can be enjoyed as a snack to dip into between meals.  It is great in a sandwich with roasted vegetables.

 

Chilli Jam Company  The Happy Medium   This local producer from Emsworth makes a lovely range of chilli condiments.  Use them in sandwiches or in cooking.

Ouse Valley Pineapple Lime & Lemon Marmalade  (local Sussex producer) Winner of a Great Taste ’07 Gold Award, this marmalade is packed full of fruit and great taste.  

Your Piece Baking Company   In days gone by, the working folk of Scotland would make large portions of oat porridge for breakfast, any left over was traditionally stored flat in a kitchen drawer where once dry it would stay fresh. A piece would be cut from the dry porridge and with the addition of cheese and fish would be used as the basis for lunch for the coming days. This gave rise to the saying you still hear today;”Don’t forget your piece!”  In honour of this tradition Your Piece have created a range of delicious, individually hand made Oatcakes, Shortbread and Highlanders. We never use artificial preservatives, colours, flavours or hydrogenated fat. Unique biscuits lovingly crafted from the finest ingredients and hand baked in Fife, Scotland. 

Scarlet Cookies  Sample a tasty new addition to the shelves of Simply Delicious, all you need to bake your own is an egg and some butter.  Three great flavours and a real winner as a present for younger members of the family. 

Paynes Whiskey Fudge  Paynes is a fully working commercial beekeeping company established in 1922 by Mr Fred Payne.  Still family run, it maintains the traditional family business values of quality goods and friendly service.  Paynes supply honey from their own hives, from the South Downs in Sussex, to a range of honeys from around the world.  They supply us with wonderful fudge in many flavours.

Montezumas Chocolate  We are going to give you a chance to sample another of the fantastic organic chocolates from this local company.  This time it will be “Spice It Up”, an organic dark chocolate and dragon ginger  bar.  “Montezumas  are very proud of the acclaim we have won in the 9 short years since our creation. Most recently it was the Viva! award for best Vegan chocolate, but we also have many others under our belt including best Sussex sustainable business in 2008. Hopefully, the chocolate speaks for itself…”

Nut Knowle Farm produces a comprehensive range of Vegetarian, Pasteurised Goats Milk Cheeses to suit all palates.  The cheeses are lovingly made by hand in their own dairy.  We all their range which include soft, hard and a brie style cheese.  As well as gift jars of mixed flavoured Wealdway Logs.

 

            Goodwood Smoked   Unpasteurised Cow’s Milk Cheese.  Traditionally smoked over hard woods.  Suitable for Vegetarians.

 

Scrumpy Sussex   From the traditional Cheese Dairy, this handmade Unpasturised Cow’s Milk Cheese is made with Cider, Herbs & Garlic.  It is suitable for Vegetarians.

Damon’s Rhubarb Chutney   Made last week, using the finest English rhubarb, this chutney is perfect to accompany cheeses and the spicy version is great with cold meats.

Free Range Ham   Produced from pigs that are bread near Chichester, this tasty English ham is as local as you can get.

Stratta Smoked Garlic Infused Extra Virgin Olive Oil.  This oil was a winner of a Silver Great Taste Award.  Mary and John Stratta produce their award winning range from their home in Sussex.  They take great care in sourcing their ingredients, locally wherever possible and can provide full information on any of the products in their range. 

Succulent soft fruits, savoury herbs, spicy aromatics, single estate extra virgin olive oils, organically grown citrus fruits all offer their individual perfections in providing perfectly balance combinations.  Sweet fruit vinegars, rare flower vinegars, fruit balsamics, infused olive oils, salt preserved lemons, spiced fruits...and the list goes on.  Special offer for this tasting event, buy any oil and vinegar and get £2.50 off the total price.

Happy Medium   Part of the products made by the Chilli Jam Company in Emsworth, this is great as a dip or used to cook with.

Woodchester Lemon & Dill Sauce  part of a comprehensive range of luxury sweet and savoury sauces, marinades and dressings.  All made by hand in the South West of England using quality natural and organic ingredients.  This modern sauce can be used as a dressing or to marinate meat or fish.

Black & White Mini Humbugs   Classic English Seaside sweet.  A real favourite.

Montezuma Chocolate  Truffles part of the superb organic range made in Birdham by this great company.  Other varieties include Chilli Chocolate, Orange & Geranium and Peppermint with Vanilla.

Bakewell Cookies   With the traditional English flavouring of Cherries and Almond, these biscuits are lovely with a cup of tea.

Paynes English Honey  Paynes is a fully working commercial beekeeping company established in 1922 by Mr Fred Payne. Still family run, it maintains the traditional family business values of quality goods and friendly service.  Paynes supply honey from their own hives, from the South Downs in Sussex, to a range of honeys from around the world.

Various Fruit Ices   Let us know what you think of these fruit ices as we are trying to decide which ones to stock this summer.

Saturday 21 February 2009

Mulled Cider   Made by Damon using Ringden Apple Juice, local Gospel Green cider and pieces of apple to create a mixture that is warmed with spices and will certainly warm those who sample it.

                The Chilli Jam Company  Tessa the owner is joining us to provide you with information as well as tastings of various products from her extensive range.  All of her products are made from the best fresh ingredients, local wherever possible and do not contain any artificial preservatives or additives.  They are all superb accompaniments to cheese, salads, vegetarian and vegan dishes and all hot and cold meats (try our Chilli JAM with Roast Lamb!!)
They can also be used to spice and enhance all your culinary creations from pasta to casseroles to barbeques. Try making your own dressings, sauces, marinades and dips using whichever of our products suits your chilli taste buds.

            Colston Bassett Stilton   For almost a century, Colston Bassett and District Dairy has been making the finest quality Blue Stilton, "King of Cheeses".  A highly skilled, dedicated and experienced team use the same time honoured recipe and methods used by generations to make this unique, award winning cheese, every day taking the milk from the same pastures and the same farms that founded the dairy as a co-operative in 1913. Colston Bassett, a rural village in the heart of the English countryside, has become famous to lovers of fine cheese worldwide.  This cheese won three awards at this year’s World Cheese Awards including best English cheese.

             Organic Duddleswell   (High Weald Dairy, Sussex) made with Organic sheep’s  milk from Sussex, Duddleswell, is the flagship cheese at High Weald.  It, is a hard pressed dale-type cheese with a natural rind, a smooth creamy texture and a delicious nutty flavour.  It makes an excellent choice for the cheese board and is available as a 2kg truckle or as individual wedges and can be naturally smoked over oak chippings.
BRONZE MEDAL WINNER at the World Cheese Awards 2006
SILVER MEDAL WINNER at the World Cheese Awards 2005.

Farmhouse Pork Pate  Produced especially for Simply Delicious by a small artisan company in France, this pate is just one of many varieties we stock which include pheasant, ostrich, guinea fowl and venison, to name a few.  We also stock many of these pates with some unusual combinations like duck and nettle, pheasant and hazelnut and hare and burgundy wine.

Fantasy Olives  A delicious mix of Greek green and black olives marinated in herbs and spices including chilli, garlic & a herb marinade.

Latzimas Gold EVO Oil  This superb extra virgin oil comes from the region of North Mylopotamos in Rethymno, Crete; a protected origin name product possessing superb properties of light taste and pure colour.  The family run business has capitalized all its age - old knowledge in producing olive oil making this extra virgin a great success not only in Greece but around the world.  The production of Latzimas comes from the highest quality crop of the world famous "Koroneika" variety of the family's estate and combines years of traditional methods of cold pressing extraction with modern technology. This oil forms part of a range of products that include organic oils and balsamic vinegars.  This oil won Gold at the 2008 Great Taste Awards. 

Parma Ham   Parma Ham is made from the rear haunches of the pig; four ingredients are essential to the production of Parma Ham:  Italian pigs, salt, air and time. Parma Ham is an all-natural ham; additives such as sugar, spices, smoke, water and nitrites are prohibited.  Making a Parma ham is a long and painstaking process with only 4 breeds of pig acceptable . The curing is controlled carefully so that the ham absorbs only enough salt to preserve it. By the end, a trimmed ham will have lost more than a quarter of its weight through moisture loss, helping to concentrate the flavour. The meat becomes tender and the distinctive aroma and flavour of Parma Ham emerge.  Only hams produced and cured in the hills around Parma may become Parma Hams.

All Parma Ham producers must be located within the geographical boundaries of the Parma production area, 5 km south of the via Emilia, limited to the east by the river Enza and on the west by the river Stirone, and up to an altitude of 900m.

Pelekan Greek Seafood   Octopus piquant in TomatoSauce   Established in 1928, Pelekan has become synonymous with delicious ready to eat products. Pelekan's secret recipes, total quality commitment and their unique gastronomic research centre in Thessaloniki, Greece, give the company the cutting edge over its competitors.

 

Montezuma Peppermint & Vanilla  This superb organic Milk Chocolate  with Vanilla adds a little something to the chocolate and peppermint bar that stops it becoming anything that could be called conventional. 

Woodchester Sticky Toffee Sauce   Part of a comprehensive range of luxury sweet and savoury sauces, marinades and dressings.  All made by hand in the South West of England using quality natural and organic ingredients.

Paynes English Honey Fudge  Made traditionally by Paynes Southdown English Honey company, a fully working commercial beekeeping farm established in 1922 by Mr Fred Payne.  Still family run, it maintains the traditional family business values of quality goods and friendly service.  Paynes supply honey from their own hives, from the South Downs along the ridge of Sussex, as well as a comprehensive range of honeys from around the world and some lovely moreish fudge.

Yorkshire Crisps Cheddar & Caramelised Onion Chutney   Completely Natural Flavours with no additives. 

Simply Delicious Farmhouse Pickle   Try our delicious pickle which is made and bottled especially for us from a local company.

Thursday 18 December 2008

    

Mulled wine with Gran Stead’s Ginger  Gran Stead is not just a name – she was a very real person. Christiana Stead was born in 1898 in a small country village called Middleton-in-Teesdale in the north of England. The recipe - now over 150 years old and passed on by Christiana Stead - uses all natural ingredients, including the oil extracted from the rhizome of the ginger plant. The result is a mellow, versatile drink for both summer and winter.  Damon’s favourite tipple is vodka & Gran Stead’s Ginger!  Made in Sussex.

            Ashdown Foresters (High Weald Dairy, Sussex) is an unpressed cheese with a creamy, slightly squidgy texture not dissimilar to a Gouda. It is handcrafted with an attractive basket weave rind and matured for about 3 months.
The whole cheese weighs about 2kg and it is also available as a smoked cheese, naturally smoked over oak chippings to give a smell and taste reminiscent of the mists of Autumn.
GOLD MEDAL WINNER - Organic Ashdown Foresters at the British Cheese Awards 2008
BRONZE MEDAL WINNER at the Nantwich Cheese Show 2007 and 2008
GOLD MEDAL WINNER at the World Cheese Awards 2006

Saint Giles (new in 2008) (High Weald Dairy, Sussex) made with Organic Cow's milk from the cows on their farm, is a continental style, semi soft creamy cheese, similar, in essence to the Saint Paulin style cheese found in France. It has a rich, buttery texture, a creamy mild flavour and a stunning edible orange rind which is made from organic carrot.
BRONZE MEDAL WINNER - the British Cheese Awards 2008

Emmentaler Switzerland AOC is registered since 2006 as an AOC ( Appellation d'origine contrôlée).  The original Emmentaler exists with different age profiles, classic 4 month, reserve 8 month, Premier Cru 14 month. It is produced with raw cow milk adding only natural ingredients (water, salt, natural starters and rennet). Preservatives or ingredients from GMO modified organism are not allowed. Emmental AOC is still produced in small rural dairies.

Echine de Porc Sechee   Whole neck of pork salted with coarse sea salt and rubbed with a mixture of herbs and spices. Aged for many long months in the fresh sea air and smoked with beech wood in an old fashioned fireplace.

Pelekan Haricots Elephants a la Grecque  A traditional greek meze these delicious beans are fantastic eaten warm or cold.  You can enjoy them with greek olives (Kalamata or Black Amfissa) or stuffed peppers with cheese.

Black Amfissa Olives  Amfissa Olives are a style of prepared olives made from Conservolea olives grown in the Amfissa valley at Delphi, in the central mainland of Greece. The Conservolea trees start bearing olives in 3 to 4 years. The olives can be harvested green or black. When black, they are actually a dark purple to a very dark purple. Both green and black are cured in brine.  The olives are more round than oval, with meaty, soft flesh, and a mellow flavour that is mildly sweet.

Deerview Aubergine & Garlic Chutney  (From a Sussex family farm) Very spicy - wonderful with cold meats or blend and mix with mayonnaise. to  makes a wonderful dip or as a sauce for prawns.

Montezuma Chilli Chocolate superb organic Very Dark Chocolate blended with chilli. Organic chilli ground to a fine granular size so the dark chocolate hit comes first followed a few moments later by that chilli bam!  

Montezuma Orange & Geranium Chocolate Dark chocolate blended with a citrus and floral oil may not sound workable, but believe us when we say this is a must have bar.  Locally made about 5 miles from Simply Delicious.

Woodchester Brandy Sauce part of a comprehensive range of luxury sweet and savoury sauces, marinades and dressings.  All made by hand in the South West of England using quality natural and organic ingredients.

Cornish Sea Salt   Launched only this year, Cornish Sea Salt has already made significant waves in the culinary world.  With some of the UK’s leading chefs already onboard – the tide is turning towards Cornish Sea Salt – a new generation of British sea salt that cares as much about how it harvested and the environment it is made in, as it does the way it tastes.

Andalucian Olive Oil  Rich in flavour, fruity and grassy Extra Virgin Olive Oil from Cordoba, Spain.  Excellent all round oil for cooking, dressing or dipping. Medium oil.

Paynes English Honey  Paynes is a fully working commercial beekeeping company established in 1922 by Mr Fred Payne. Still family run, it maintains the traditional family business values of quality goods and friendly service.  Paynes supply honey from their own hives, from the South Downs in Sussex, to a range of honeys from around the world.

The Vacherin that was a taster in November is available to order pre-prepared with garlic and fresh thyme, ready to go in the oven.

 

 

A Taste of England

St George’s Day

Thursday 23 April 2009

A Taste of England

St George’s Day

Thursday 23 April 2009

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