Fruity Flavours from East Anglia Tantalise Taste Buds at Great Taste
East Anglia Great Taste results for 2016 available
Following months of judging, the results of the world's most
coveted blind-tasted food awards, Great Taste, have just been released, with
many producers in East Anglia now able to celebrate. Out of the 10,000 products
to be judged, 3,539 were awarded a highly prized Great Taste accolade and a
remarkable 243 are based in East Anglia, including 3-star award-winning
Thursday Cottage's National Trust Passionfruit curd, a “buttery and moreish”
curd with an “enticing nose of fresh passionfruit and intense but not
overpowering flavour”, and Modern Standard Coffee's “well balanced” Momentum
Espresso, which judges commended for its “rich flavour, sharp notes and subtle
fruitiness."
While these producers revel in their success and begin
displaying the unmistakable gold and black Great Taste logo with stars on their
award-winning products, they will wait with much anticipation to see if they
also scoop the top awards for their region. These awards will be announced at
the Great Taste Golden Fork Awards Dinner at The Royal Garden Hotel in London
on Monday 5 September.
Recognised as a stamp of excellence among consumers and
retailers alike, Great Taste, organised by the Guild of Fine Food, values taste
above all else, with no regard for branding or packaging. Whether it is jam,
gin, beef or butter being judged, all products are removed from their wrapper,
jar or bottle before being tasted. The judges then savour, confer and re-taste
to decide which products are worthy of a 1-, 2- or 3-star award.
Judged by over 500 of the most demanding palates, belonging
to food critics, chefs, restaurateurs, cooks, producers and a host of food
writers and journalists, Great Taste is widely acknowledged as the most
respected food accreditation scheme for artisan and speciality food producers.
In the words of highly regarded restaurant and food critic Charles Campion,
“Great Taste is the only food award worth having."
The panel of judges, including; TV chef and author,
Valentine Warner, MasterChef judge and restaurant critic, Charles Campion,
fifth generation baker, Tom Herbert from Hobbs House Bakery, food buyers from
Harrods, Selfridges, Harvey Nichols and Waitrose, James Golding, chef director
of THE PIG Hotels, and Kevin Gratton, chef director of HIX Restaurants, have
together re-judged the 3-star winners to agree on the Top 50 Foods, the Golden
Fork Trophy winners and the Great Taste Supreme Champion for 2016.
Regular Great Taste judge and MasterChef the Professionals
finalist, Adam Handling, hosted the judges at his brand new restaurant, The
Frog in Shoreditch, after the final round of judging, to enjoy a menu made up
of some of the Great Taste 3-star award-winning products of 2016.
As these judges searched for the stars of 2016, waste was
kept to a minimum, with unused products being donated to local food banks and
hampers made up for local businesses to raffle in aid of local charities. The
Guild of Fine Food also donates surplus computer equipment, used to record the
judges' comments, to community-based projects across the UK, which are then
refurbished and used to facilitate after school clubs and many other
initiatives designed to support underprivileged families.
Details of this year's winners can be found at
www.greattasteawards.co.uk and a select range of products will also be made
available via Taste Distribution (www.tastedistribution.co.uk), which has been
established exclusively to distribute Great Taste award-winning products to
independent retailers.
Facts and figures about Great Taste 2016:
10,000 different products entered in 2016 and judged by more
than 500 palates.
Judging took place across the UK and Ireland, including many
sessions at the Guild HQ in Gillingham, Dorset, as well as several other Dorset
venues. This year's Great Taste Roadshows saw Great Taste judged at Fulham
Palace in London, Hotel Minella in Clonmel, Tipperary and Belfast Metropolitan
College's Titanic Quarter Campus.
2,520 awarded 1-star
878 awarded 2-star
141 awarded 3-star
The next stage involves; the Top 50 Foods being announced on
Saturday 6 August on Twitter @guildoffinefood #Top50Foods. Then the final
announcement of the winner of Great Taste Supreme Champion 2016, sponsored by
Harrods, and the regional Golden Fork Awards will be made at The Royal Garden
Hotel in London on Monday 5 September.
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