A Haven for Food Lovers

Food writer and producer Bee Costello-Bates has brought together some of Monmouthshire's outstanding food and drink producers to share what makes this corner of Wales such a haven for food lovers.

A haven for food lovers, magnificent Monmouthshire boasts 300 square miles of inspiring growers and producers. They work within an array of micro-climates and unique terroirs to develop an incredible array of ingredients and stunning flavours all-year-round. Charcutières, smokeries, cheesemakers, and our very own truffle grower, love the luscious mountain terrains, rivers and woodlands of Monmouthshire. The salt marshes of the Severn Estuary also provide the perfect environment for nature to produce its own tasty wild edibles with each turning of the tide.

You can book a foraging experience and try these gorgeous natural treats for yourself! From artisan flavours and award-winning products to Michelin star restaurants and the Abergavenny Food Festival – it’s all right here on Monmouthshire’s doorstep. So let us take you through some of the wild and wonderful delights of this majestic county!

[Abergavenny Food Festival photos showing Chris Harrod Chef from Whitebrook Restaurant and Rooms]

Abergavenny Food Festival

Monmouthshire’s annual food festival is known the world over, attracting over 35,000 visitors every year. Each September, top producers from Monmouthshire and beyond serve up a splendid collection of artisan food and drink. Definitely one of the highlights of the UK’s culinary year. Meet top chefs and food critics, attend workshops and events. 

www.abergavennyfoodfestival.com

The Angel Bakery, Abergavenny

If you know The Angel Hotel then do pop into The Angel Bakery opposite on 50, Cross Street. Manager Becka Fletcher says their year-round customer base includes locals, walkers, campers, cyclists and holidaymakers. During the Abergavenny Food Festival they team up with Hard Lines Coffee to create delicious one-off pastries. Also check out The Angel’s sourdough, croissants, almond croissants, pains au chocolat, and weekend pastry specials with fruit of the season. “We are influenced by the seasons and what’s local,” says Fletcher who adds that the bakery also sells local chutney, honey and cider. Think asparagus and ricotta quiches along with seasonal sourdoughs such as prune and walnut and toasted linseed. Anyone feeling hungry already?

Visit The Angel Bakery website.

Blorenge Mountain Honey

Blorenge started as a beekeeping hobby that became a business. They can sell you bees but if you’d prefer to eat the bees’ delicious honey then you can buy Blorenge Mountain Honey in a range of artisan shops (such as The Angel Bakery) in Monmouthshire or buy direct from the website. Blorenge’s all-British bees live in such a lovely habitat that apparently they’ve developed lovely temperaments. Not planning to keep bees right now? Then order a jar of Wildflower Summer Honey or the Bulk Honey. Blorenge Mountain Bees website

Brooke’s Farm Dairy

Terroir means everything to Brooke’s Wye Valley Dairy, an award-winning ice cream and cheesemaker in Devauden, Chepstow. It’s even dedicated all its cheese names to the surrounding rivers and woods. “The soil, weather and climate produce our amazingly lush grass, which is so important for our cows,” says owner Hannah Turner. Jersey cows love to graze around the Angiddy Valley River and Fedw [Ved-doo] brook that run through Brooke’s farm. And Wenallt woods inspired Turner to launch a blue cheese, which has already won two Great Taste awards. Brooke’s Dairy makes one of the very few ice creams where everything is bred, milked and made on the farm. Look out for its cheeses - Fedw, Angiddy and Blue Wenallt - in The Marches Deli, Monmouth, Morris’s of Usk and Newhall of Chepstow, while Brooke’s ice cream is served at Chepstow Castle and the popular Tintern railway station.

Brookes Wye Valley Dairy website

[Brooke's Farm Dairy Cheese and Cattle with Hannah Turner]

Black Mountains Smokery

If you’re on the hunt for something different for a picnic or barbecue, or your family just love trying new flavours, you’ll find an array of smoked delights at Black Mountains Smokery found just over the border into Powys. Big favourites at this award-winning smokery, established in 1996, include smoked salmon, duck, chicken and smoked cheeses – they all come ready to serve, and are packed with delicious flavours! All products are available from its website, and independent farm shops and delis. www.smoked-foods.co.uk

Gourmet Gatherings

Once in a while, someone comes along that blows a food lover’s mind and for me it is the sensational forager Chloé Newcomb Hodgetts. She’s foraged everywhere - from Monmouthshire’s wild woods to the warm waters of the Caribbean. “Of all the UK’s most prized, edible wild plant and fungi species, the vast majority are to be found in Monmouthshire,” she says. The marine biologist learned foraging from her family and has been cooking wild feasts around the campfire and at the water’s edges of Britain ever since. We’re so lucky to have Chloé based here in Monmouthshire where she offers a year-round calendar of foraging days out for all the family as well as corporate clients. Chloé will take you on an unforgettable trek through Monmouthshire’s best-kept secrets where you’ll forage your socks off then eat your heart out from her feast of incredible edibles. Think Sea Spinach, Scurvy Grass, Puffball and Porcini Mushrooms, along with the warming, clove scent of Wood Avens – and you’ll also discover how refreshing the glorious Maritime Pine is. Visit Chloé’s website and book a forage today – wild thrills await!

[Gourmet Gatherings Chloe with Mushrooms]

Trealy Farm Charcuterie

From an early age, James Swift made butter with his grandmother in France and hand-processed home-grown ingredients. So it was only natural that one day he’d start his own food company. The depth of knowledge and science in meat fermentation that Swift has acquired across Europe over the years would probably earn him a degree, while his dedication to best practice has helped earn Trealy Farm a host of gold food awards. Today, Trealy Farm produces 39 products, from chorizo and salami to ‘coppa’ air-dried collar. Up to 7 tonnes of premium charcuterie are sold every year – made from rare breed pigs, beef, duck, venison and lamb, all products are free range, high welfare or sourced wild. Swift’s personal favourites include bacon, fennel and chilli snack salami, coppa air-dried collar and boudin noir. Watch this space for new flavours at www.trealyfarmcharcuterie.co.uk or at delis and farm shops across Monmouthshire.

Crafty Pickle Company

The brainchild of two scientists and nutritionists who met while studying at the University of Aberdeen, The Crafty Pickle Company has grown from an idea in 2019 to a exciting fermentation business! Producing everything from kimchee and sauerkraut to kombucha and koji, Crafty Pickle can also help you make your own at its in-person fermenting workshops! You’ll find the Crafty Pickle team fermenting in Bent Green Farm in Crick or book an online workshop here.

[Crafty Pickle making sauerkraut and workshops]

Welsh Truffle Company

Climate experts predict that the UK will become the truffle capital of the world by 2030, overtaking France, Italy and Spain as the highest cultivator of summer and black winter truffles – otherwise known as the highly-prized Perigord. One visionary truffle grower, who planted and inoculated 11 acres of orchards in 2008, has placed Monmouthshire well ahead of the game. Matt Simms, founder of The Welsh Truffle Company, says his spring, summer and winter truffles are extremely high in perfume and flavour due in part to the high concentration of iron, copper, magnesium and zinc. Whether you’re looking for inoculation powder, to buy fresh or frozen truffles, or thinking maybe your dog could be trained to hunt for truffles, you’ll find a truffle treasure trove at www.welshtruffles.com

Blog Writter : Bee Costello-Bates is a freelance writer-producer living in Herefordshire. She writes about the inspiring food and drink producers of The Marches, which include four counties along the English-Welsh border – Monmouthshire, Herefordshire, Powys and Shropshire. Check out her Instagram content @TasteTheMarches