A Short Irish Tourism Film - How Fairhead in Co Antrim got it's name

Here's a short 5 minute Tourism Film that my good friend John Bustard produced for Northern Ireland Tourism a few years ago. The video describes the influence, in Ireland, of the Vikings on their arrival.


Fair Head is a large headland overlooking Ballycastle, Co. Antrim. This is the story of how Fairhead in Co Antrim got it's name. 

Watch out for the disgruntled messenger that ends up gettin thrown over a cliff (That's Me!) 

The film was made and by produced by John Bustard of Awakin Publishing, based in Portballintrae, near the Giants Caueway in Northern Ireland.

AWAKIN stands for ‘Audio-Visual Welcoming Applications. Knowledge and Innovation Now!

They build Simple, Practical and useful experiences to support your visitors.

Their chosen tools are:

• Smartphone Apps
• Mobile Ready Web iBooks
• Social Games
• Facebook Delivery
• Twitter Strategy & Responsible E-Marketing

They provide these tools to help you find new customers, retain valuable customers, to increase their spend and to keep them connected to your business. They offer this with clear and understandable pricing as well as advice to help you take and automate action quickly and effectively!

Find out more about them HERE

Enjoy!
zack

EatGalway is Bordbia's June 2012 JUST ASK Restaurant of the Month

“Just Ask! is a public awareness campaign run by Bordbia, The Irish Food Board, that aims to encourage consumers, when eating out, to look for information on where the food on their plate comes from and to encourage chefs to provide this information on their menus.”

In recent years, here in Ireland, the publicity generated by chefs in kitchens demanding better produce to work with in the first place have heightened the standards expected by customers in restaurants. Although often more expensive to buy because of the scale of operation, locally sourced produce, especially meats, are finally becoming the norm and the expected on Irish menus.

Restaurants are encouraged to provide transparency to customers by crediting the local suppliers for their product and providing supplier (particularly meat) details and country of origin information on their menus.


Each Month Bordbia pick one Just Ask Restaurant of the Month based on these criteria

and their June 2012 recommendation is: 

EatGalway – a trio of restaurants in Galway City!

JP McMahon, Chef & one of the proprietors of EatGalway

Drigín Gaffey one of the proprietors of EatGalway

Chef JP McMahon who owns the restaurants with his wife Drigín Gaffey, said, "We are committed to showcasing local and speciality Irish foods, albeit with international interpretation.  Our mantra is ‘Three restaurants, One philosophy: Good Food, Local Suppliers and Artisan Produce’. Their supplier list reads like a who's who of the best of west-coast Irish artisan produce!

Click the Logo for more Details

Gastro Pub food at Massimo

Massimo Restaurant - part of EatGalway

"The Allen family’s Castlemine Farm in Co. Roscommon supplies us with free range pork, lamb and grass fed beef.  Irish pork, lamb and beef are also supplied by Collerans Butchers of Galway and Morgan Maguire Meats in Ballinasloe."

Click on the Logo for more Details

The food at Cava Restaurant is made for sharing

Cava Tapas Restaurant - part of EatGalway

"The Friendly Farmer (Ronan Byrne) of Athenry supplies us with free range chicken and livers, while locally sourced fresh fish is supplied by both Moycullen Seafoods and Gannet Fishmongers in Galway."

Click on the Logo for more Details

Aniar's kitchen is run by Enda McEvoy -Bridgestone Chef of the Year, 2011

Aniar Restaurant - part of EatGalway

"Smoked salmon, mackerel and tuna all come from Connemara Smokehouse of Galway.  Our respected suppliers are listed on our menus”.

Click Here for more details and the EatGalway website.

See here for previous JUST ASK winners http://www.bordbia.ie/aboutfood/eatout/pages/previouswinners.aspx

If you are own an Irish Restaurant you can check to see if you fit the criteria to be considered for a JUST ASK recommendation Click HERE

A Review of some Terras Gauda wines New to the Irish Market

The Spanish Wine Group TERRAS GAUDA has launched several new wines on the Irish market and they kindly sent me a few bottles to sample. I really love my wine but I would never pretend to be a connoisseur. If it tastes good, that to me, is the most important quality. And these tasted great! 


So here is my first ever wine review. I hope you enjoy reading it, as much as I did testing for it!!

The Vineyards of the Terras Gauda estate lie in the O Rosal valley, close to the mouth of the river Miño in the A Guarda area. This is north-western Spain, only a few miles from the border with Portugal. The vineyards, which are between 50 and 150 metres above sea level, enjoy an exceptional micro-climate characterised by mild temperatures, with an annual average of 15°C, very little frost and abundant rainfall (sounds like Cavan!) The micro-climate is ideal for ripening the grapes with a high sugar content and a lower acidity level than in other parts of the Rías Baixas designation of origin area that lie further to the north.

Click here for the Terras Gauda website

La Mar 2009

First up is this wonderful La Mar 2009. Made from a mix of Caino Blanco grapes 85% which is a native variety from O Rosal area (and was virtually extinct) and Albariño grapes 15%. This distinctly unique wine is the first ever to be produced almost entirely from the indigenous Caino Blanco grape. This is a bold and determined white wine that carries itself with the dignity of someone who knows their capabilities! Initially sweet to taste, it develops a bite, that then mellows and leaves you with a ripe fruity pleasure on the tongue. There are fine smells of cut grass, mango and balsamic and even a touch of pine forest! It finishes with a ripe peachy-tasting tingle (as I reach for another glass!) Alcohol strength 12.5%.

La Prohibicion 2006

La Prohibicion 2006 is a superb red wine from the Terras Gauda stable, made from a grape mix of 60% Garnacha Tintorera and 40% Mencía. It is a fragrant, seductive wine with a fruity nose, hints of rich sunblushed cherries and wee touches of herbs & spices. We shared this over some grilled lamb cutlets and found it perfectly well balanced for red meats and yet a brave enough wine to enjoy on its own standing. It is one of the tastiest red wines I've ever had and that's the truth! Alcohol strength 14%.

Pittacum Barrica 2007 

This Pittacum Barrica 2007 is simply divine! A rich plummy coloured red, this wine is very decadent and deserves to be drank with your very best friend! Made with 100% Mencía grapes, there are tastes of raspberries and cherries and chocolate in it and you can almost feel each flavour wash separately over your tongue. And after all that, it finishes with a sort of vanilla-toffee taste that reminds me of baileys & brown bread ice-cream. Delicious! Alcohol strength 14.5%.

Terras Gauda O Rosal

The Terras Gauda O Rosal is considered the flagship wine of the winery and it certainly stood up to its reputation. Made from grapes native to the region they blend Albarino 70%, Loureira 20% and Caino Blanco 10% to create a wonderfully crisp and well-rounded white wine. Actually it is more of a greenish-yellow in colour but it is just perfect for a seafood barbecue. We could taste something that resembles that smell you get when you're peeling a ripe & juicy orange, crossed with homemade apple & cinnamon tart with honey drizzled on it! A fresh clean lip-smacking bite finished of the drink. Alcohol strength 12.5%.

Pittacum Aurea 2007

Next out of my sampling box was this tasty wee number. Pittacum Aurea 2007 is a limited production run of only 950 cases making this one of the more expensive of my lot, retailing at around the €35 mark. But again it is a very impressive red wine from the Terras Gauda group and it's also made with 100% Mencia grapes grown on the estate. Due to it's altitude location they can harvest these grapes up to a month earlier than the rest of the region and this helps give the wine its unique flavour. This wine is oak aged for 20 months. It has good fruity flavours of strawberry and plum or maybe cherry and has a light spicy edge to it also. We tasted it with Bellingham blue cheese and some of my venison pate and they worked great together. It was recommended that the wine be decanted and the extra oxygen mix certainly did help release some wonderful aromas in the wine. Definitely a wine for an extra special guest! Alcohol strength 14.5%.

Abadia de San Campio 2010

This white from Terras Gauda is called Abadia de San Campio 2010. Look out for it over the summer because this wine was simply a fruity, bright, cold, aromatic, tasty bottle of ripened and fermented 100% Albarino grapes. We sat in the garden and drank this bottle on one of the hottest days of the year so far and wished we had three more! A very bright and clear wine, it smelled lovely even as it was just popped and even better once it was poured. Maybe it's only my imagination, but I believe in pouring wine into a glass with gusto, to get more air moving through it and open up all those delicious juicy perfumes - none of this balancing it on the tips of your fingers and thumbs stuff that you see young waiters just out of college doing! This wine would be great with shellfish or crab salad or any fresh seafood probably. The little crisp edge as it washes down your throat reminded me of an apple called a Kerry Pippen that one of my aunties used to grow. We loved it. Alcohol strength 12.5%.

Quinta Sardonia 2007 

As with when you're coming up with any new recipe, it takes several times tested and tried to get the perfect balance of ingredients and flavours. The work has proved well worth it for this very adult red wine, the Quinta Sardonia 2007. Made with a variety of grapes with 52% Tinto Fino and 26% Cabernet Sauvignon along with Merlot, Syrah, Petit Verdot, Cabernet Franc and Malbec, the winery has produced a very fine mature wine that drinks well. A deep reddish-purple wine full of aromas, it tastes of blackberries and plumbs with a gorgeous black peppery feel on the lips. The wine is clarified with egg whites, in the same way you make a traditional Consommé and aged for sixteen months in oak barrels before bottling. There is a great range of flavours in this luscious red - I even got a little taste of old fashioned strong tea somewhere towards the end of my generous sips!  

It was recommended to open this wine two hours before drinking to open up the aromas, so I poured it into a decanter as I didn't think much air would get down that narrow neck! Certainly a red wine that can stand proudly among the many other excellent wines available today. Alcohol strength 15%.

And there you have it. My first ever review of some wines and I think I was very lucky to get such a superb selection to start with!

Thanks to the guys at Terras Gauda for the wine. These wines are distributed in Ireland by:

GHS CLASSIC DRINKS, LTD.Steve Dwyer
Twitter @classic_drinks
Unit 5 OC Commercial Park, Little Island, Cork.

Tel: 00 353 21451 0066

www.classicdrinks.ie

Win 2 Tickets to Food & Wine Awards 2012

Now in their 12th year, the FOOD&WINE Magazine Restaurant of the Year Awards are considered the most prestigious and authoritative culinary awards on the Irish calendar, in that they recognise and reward Ireland’s best restaurants and chefs. 

The Awards will be held in the Convention Centre, Dublin, on Sunday 19th August 2012.

Irish Wine Importer Febvre & Co. are the new Main Sponsors of this year's event. 

Speaking at the announcement of the sponsorship, Kerri Judge, Marketing Manager, Febvre & Company spoke of her delight about the sponsorship and the synergies it offered: 

“As a family owned distributor, representing Maison Louis Latour and other family-owned wineries, to be given the opportunity to sponsor the prestigious FOOD&WINE Magazine Restaurant of the Year awards makes great sense! 

"Most of the restaurants in Ireland are family run to the highest international standards and we are proud to be associated with them and with FOOD&WINE Magazine”  Kerri  added.

Voting in the FOOD&WINE Magazine/ Louis Latour Restaurant of the Year awards is NOW OPEN!

The public can vote for their favourite restaurant by completing the voting forms in the current issue of FOOD&WINE Magazine, or by completing the voting forms in their favourite restaurant.

Votes can be cast in the Categories of:

Best Restaurant (Ulster, Munster, Leinster, Connaught and Dublin) 

Best Chef (Ulster, Munster, Leinster, Connaught and Dublin)

Best Wine Experience

Best Sommelier

Best Casual Dining Experience

Best Ethnic/World Cuisine

Best Service

Best Style Award

Ross Golden-Bannon, Editor of FOOD&WINE Magazine said:“We are thrilled to have well-respected brands such as Febvre and Maison Louis Latour on board for the 2012 FOOD&WINE Magazine Restaurant of the Year Awards.  The FOOD&WINE Magazine Restaurant of the Year Awards are considered the most authoritative in the country and to be aligned with such iconic brands as Febvre, Maison Louis Latour and other quality wineries illustrates the calibre of the Awards”.

Votes can be cast in the FOOD&WINE Magazine Restaurant of the Year Awards between now and 25th June, 2012.

Win 2 Tickets to the Awards Ceremony! 

To enter you must Nominate your Favourite Restaurant & Chef in Ireland!

by clicking HERE for this special competition page on Harmonia's Website.

For further Details Contact Sarah Currey, at Harmonia in Dublin
on (01) 240 5387 or email scurrey@harmonia.ie 

Irish Restaurant Awards 2012 National Finals - Full Results

see HERE for 2013 Irish Restaurant Awards Full Results

The Regional and All Ireland Titles of the Irish Restaurant Awards were announced at the Awards Ceremony which was held in the Burlington Hotel Dublin on Monday 14th May 2012. 

The awards celebrate all aspects of the Industry from Chefs and Restaurants to Food Producers, Local Food Heroes and Cookery Schools. Nominations for the awards are made by readers of the Sunday Independent LIFE Magazine and members of the Restaurants Association of Ireland.


The event recognizes achievement and excellence in the Restaurant and Hospitality Industry throughout the Island of Ireland. The Irish Restaurant Awards are brought to you by The Restaurants Association of Ireland and are sponsored by Santa Rita/Sunday Independent LIFE Magazine & others. The awards are the largest and most coveted awards in the Irish Restaurant Industry.


County winners were announced at a number of Regional Events in the run up to this main event.  Guests at the main event were treated to a five course menu prepared by the winning Chefs in each of the five regions from last year.

There were 3 components to the final phase of the process & each element was independently assessed by KPMG.

1. Mystery Guest Visit (35%) -This component of the awards was conducted by Prism Consulting headed by Hugo Arnold, independent food writer and consultant (http://www.hugoarnold.com). All County Winners received a mystery guest visit throughout the month of April.

2. National Awards Academy (55%) -The National Awards Academy were made up by representatives from each of the regional judging panels and they met during May to Judge the County Winners.

3. Menu Judging (10%) -All County winners and the Dublin Shortlist in each category were asked to submit a copy of their food menu and wine list for judging.

The Winners in each of the following categories were:



BEST CASUAL DINING 2012

This category recognises the dining experience which best offers outstanding value, excellent food, appropriate service, genuine hospitality and an appropriate overall dining experience.

ULSTER - Il Pirata
MUNSTER - La Cucina
LEINSTER - A. Caviston
CONNAUGHT - Mulberrys Restaurant & Wine Bar
DUBLIN - O'Connells
ALL-IRELAND WINNER - O'Connells

BEST HOTEL RESTAURANT 2012

This category will recognise a hotel restaurant that demonstrates the very best in a dining experience as evidenced by attention to detail, a well-structured, balanced and appropriate menu, exemplary customer service and enjoyable and suitable atmosphere.

• ULSTER - The River Room @ Galgorm Resort
• MUNSTER - The Long Room @ Doonbeg
• LEINSTER - Beaches Restaurant @ Kelly's Resort Hotel
• CONNAUGHT - Ballynahinch Castle
• DUBLIN - Seasons Restaurant @ The Four Seasons Hotel
• ALL-IRELAND WINNER - The Long Room @ Doonbeg

BEST GASTRO PUB 2012

Goes to the gastro pub with an impressive food aspect, genuine and demonstrable hospitality and an outstanding, relevant and complementary drinks offering.

• ULSTER - The Brewers House
• MUNSTER - The Roadside Tavern
• LEINSTER - The Fatted Calf
• CONNAUGHT - Bar One
• DUBLIN - The Chop House
• ALL-IRELAND WINNER - The Chop House

BEST CHEF 2012

The chef who most impresses in their approach, design and execution of dishes and who is clearly pushing at culinary boundaries in Ireland.

• ULSTER - Joery Castel, The Boathouse
• MUNSTER - Wade Murphy, The Long Room @ Doonbeg
• LEINSTER - Garrett Byrne, Campagne
• CONNAUGHT - Philippe Farineau, Mount Falcon
• DUBLIN - Ross Lewis, Chapter One
• ALL-IRELAND WINNER - Garrett Byrne, Campagne

BEST WINE EXPERIENCE 2012

This goes to the restaurant offering a balanced and appropriate wine list, an interesting range of producers and which strives for excellence in the service of wine.

Best Wine Experience Ireland - West @ The Twelve Hotel

Best Restaurant 2012

This goes to the restaurant offering a balanced and appropriate wine list, an interesting range of producers and which strives for excellence in the service of wine.

• ULSTER - James Street South
• MUNSTER - Les Gourmandises
• LEINSTER - Campagne
• CONNAUGHT - Artisan
• DUBLIN - Chapter One
• ALL-IRELAND WINNER - Chapter One

Best Kids Size Me 2012

This award goes to the restaurant who aims to ensure children have access to healthier food options when dining out by making child size portions of appropriate adult meals available as an alternative to ordering from the standard children's menu.

Best Kid Size Me Menu Ireland  - Ely Gastro Pub, Dublin

Best Customer Service 2012

This award recognises the establishment that demonstrably goes above and beyond a normal level of service and does it consistently and in an appropriate manner.



ULSTER - Harveys Point Hotel
MUNSTER - Isaacs Restaurant
LEINSTER - Viewmount House
CONNAUGHT - Renvyle House
DUBLIN - Rasam
ALL-IRELAND WINNER - Harveys Point Hotel

*Comeragh Mountain Lamb - Local Food Hero 2012 Sponsored by Life Magazine

INDUSTRY CATEGORIES

Best Restaurant Website sponsored by Lightbox - Milano, Ireland
Best Coffee Experience sponsored by Robert Roberts - 3FE, Dublin 
Best Ethnic Restaurant sponsored by Tiger Beer - Ananda, Dublin 
Best Artisan Producer sponsored by IFSA - Boulabane Ice-Cream
Best Club Restaurant sponsored by La Rousse - Restaurant FortyOne @ Residence, Dublin
Just Ask 2012 sponsored by Bord Bia - L. Mulligan Grocer, Dublin 
Best Seafood Experience sponsored by Kish - O'Gradys On The Pier, Co. Galway
Best Supplier sponsored by RAI - Pallas Foods
Great Value Dining sponsored by Tourism Ireland - Thyme, Co. Westmeath
Best Practice in Energy Management sponsored by Calor - Dromoland Castle, Co. Clare
Best Innovative Restaurant sponsored by Failte Ireland - Mulberry Garden, Dublin 
Best Restaurant Design sponsored by Hugh Jordan - Bijou, Dublin 
Best Cocktail Experience sponsored by Smirnoff Mojito - The Exchequer, Dublin 
Best Newcomer sponsored by Elavon - The Green House, Dublin
Best Cookery School sponsored by Avonmore - The Tannery Cookery School, Co. Waterford

The Irish Restaurant Awards 2012 are independently supervised by:

For more details see  http://www.rai.ie/news-top-restaurants-in-ireland-announced-at-the-santa-rita-life-magazine-irish-restaurant-awards-2012-105.html

Congrats to Everyone that got through to the finals and Well Done to All the Winners!

Zack

A National Irish Tea Cosy Competition!

"A cuppa Tea's a Darling Thing!"  as Joxer Daly said to Captain Boyle in 'Juno & the Paycock', Sean O'Casey's famous play. In the play, the Boyle family are set against the political and social events of the Irish Civil War in 1922. 

Irish playwrite Sean O'Casey wrote "Juno & the Paycock" in 1924

Click here for an excellent website about Sean O'Casey
Set in a tenement house, Juno and the Paycock is an epic tale of survival and vengeance punctuated by dreadful poverty. Juno, the spirited matriarch of the Boyle household tries to keep her family together while it is being pulled apart by growing political unrest. Her husband, Captain Jack Boyle drinks his way through his days with his side-kick Joxer Daly, while their children fail tragically in their own search for a better life.

"A cuppa Tae's a darlin' thing, a darlin' thing" says Joxer Daly

They spend more time drinking tea, procrastinating and talking about a revolution, than working or taking part in anything!


The lovely people from the Irish Craft Festival 2012 are looking back towards the golden days of the Tea Cosy, by looking forward to people using them again! 

They have launched a Tea Cosy Making Competition as part of their festival and the idea has really taken off! Part of what they are trying to do is to get people making their tea in a Teapot again and to stop making 'one in a cup'. 

And right they are! No-one ever drinks only one cup of tea! And after all the talk, this week on Twitter, about Tea, making tea, the politics of tea and more, it is a great idea that they have spawned!


Here are some pictures of home-made Tea-Cosies that I found:

So, Now is Your chance to get involved!

You can find out more and Enter the competition here at: http://craftfestival.wordpress.com/teacosy/

What a lovely idea!


Zack