SCOTLAND’S FOOD & DRINK EVENT DIARY 2010
From Dumfries & Galloway in the south to Shetland in the north, they say there is always something going on for the food-loving visitor to Scotland. Some of the food festivals on offer are listed below.
January
BURNS’ NIGHT
25 January
Throughout Scotland
Every year, Scotland celebrates the anniversary of the birth of her national poet. Traditionally haggis, neeps and tatties (mashed turnips and potatoes) are served at Burns Suppers with a traditional ‘Address to the Haggis’ and of course, plenty of whisky.
APRIL
EASTEREGGSTRAVAGANZA
4 April
Traquair House, Scottish Borders
Easter fun at the historic Traquair House with new egg hunts in the maze, children’s activities and workshops. Thousands of eggs to be found and lots of other Easter prizes.
www.traquair.co.uk
CELT FOR A DAY
4 April,11am-4pm
Relive Scotland’s Celtic past with a day of Iron Age costumes, cooking and crafts.
THE CRANNOG CREPERIE
8 April, 11am-4pm
All day Iron Age breakfast.
CELT FOR A DAY
15 April,11am-4pm
Relive Scotland’s Celtic past with a day of Iron Age costumes, cooking and crafts.
CELTIC FOOD AND DRINK FESTIVAL
25th April, 11am – 4pm
Scottish Crannog Centre, Kenmore, Perthshire
Going back to the Iron Age at the Scottish Crannog Centre needn’t mean mouldy old grub. The aroma of Celtic spit-roast at this food and drink festival would be enough to make anyone’s mouth water. The festival’s prehistoric cooking demonstrations include not just the spit roast, but pit cooking, bread baking and other ancient techniques, local smoked meats, dairy products and tasty herb and meat dishes all washed down with authentic beverages including iron age beer making.
Website: www.crannog.co.uk
PAISLEY BEER FESTIVAL
28 April – 1 May
Paisley Town Hall, Paisley
The Paisley Beer Festival gives visitors the chance to taste what local breweries have to offer. The annual event attracts thousands of people keen to sample over 130 real cask conditioned ales and ciders not to mention an array of foreign beers.
The four-day festival is the biggest real ale festival in Scotland. The brewers will pit their finest ales against the competition in a bid for the gold, silver and bronze medals awarded by a judging panel.
www.paisleybeerfestival.org.uk
SPIRIT OF SPEYSIDE WHISKY FESTIVAL
29 April – 3 May
Throughout Speyside.
Major whisky festival with over 200 events.
Visitors to the Festival in 2010 will be able to enjoy the best that Speyside has to offer. Themed on Whisky, Food and the Heritage and Culture of Speyside, the festival will aim to deliver a full range of quality events including the opportunity to visit distilleries not normally open to the public and to follow in the footsteps of whisky smugglers on walks through the countryside.
www.spiritofspeyside.com
MAY
LOCH FYNE FOOD FAIR
15 – 16 May
Next to Inveraray Castle, Inveraray
A feast of west coast food with a wide range of foods, sold by the producers.
Alongside Loch Fyne Oysters’ own sea food stands, stalls include Winston Churchill Venison, Isabella’s Preserves, Lambros Quality Foods, the Inverloch Cheese Company, Orkney Herrings, Barbreck Farms, Bumble Puddings, The Really Garlicky Company, Great Glen Game, Robin’s Herbs and Ayrshire Confections. Food from Argyll will be a prominent presence at the festival.
Ales will be supplied by Fyne Ales plus specially selected wines from Europe and Australia. There will be live music throughout both days and a music event on Saturday evening. Entertainment and activities for all ages.
http://lochfyne.com/Events/Loch-Fyne-Food-Fair.aspx
FESTIVAL OF NETTLES
16 May,11am-4pm
Cooking and crafts in homage to the humble nettle.
ISLAY FESTIVAL OF MALT AND MUSIC
22-30 May
Across Islay
Feis Ile, the Islay Festival of Malt and Music, was founded by the local people of Islay in 1986 to celebrate the heritage and culture of Isle of Islay.
Since 2000 Feis Ile has been run in conjunction with the distilleries of Islay and Jura and Port Ellen Maltings. Each distillery has its own open day, putting on special events. Islay has a wealth of musical talent which is very much in evidence at the ceilidhs, while mainland artists are also brought to the island for the festival week.
www.islayfestival.org
IRON AGE BREAD AND BUTTER MAKING
23 May, 11am-4pm.
Learn the basics the Iron Age way.
TASTE OF EDINBURGH
28 – 31 May
The Meadows, Edinburgh
The Taste of Edinburgh festival is an upmarket food and drink festival set in the beautiful outdoor surroundings of The Meadows. A celebration of Scottish food and drink, Taste of Edinburgh gives food lovers the chance to enjoy the best that Scottish restaurants, chefs, and food and drink producers have to offer. Festival-goers can sample dishes from Edinburgh’s top restaurants and enjoy food from the rising star chefs in Scotland, as well as the established Michelin-starred gurus.
Learn all the little tricks of the trade at the Chef’s Theatre, and find out more about picking a great complementary wine at the Wine Experience.
You’ll find unrivalled opportunities to get up close and personal with the chefs, and to enjoy plentiful tastings and demonstrations.
www.channel4.com
JUNE
TASTE OF GRAMPIAN
5 June
Thainstone Centre, Inverurie
This one day food and drink festival is a great day out for all the family. Visitors can discover and sample the wide range of high quality food and drink products from Grampian in the north east of Scotland. Local producers invite you to taste and buy the finest smoked salmon, mouth-watering shortbread, delicious ice-cream, sumptuous prime roast beef, creamy fudge and maybe a dram or two of the best Scottish whiskies from local distilleries plus much more.
The festival programme also includes music, children’s entertainment, arts and crafts, cookery competitions and demonstrations from local and celebrity chefs.
www.tasteofgrampian.co.uk
MIDSUMMER MUSIC AND CELTIC FEAST
21 June, 8-11pm
Mark the lightest part of the year with a traditional Celtic festival.
ROYAL HIGHLAND SHOW
The Highland Showgrounds, Ingliston, Edinburgh
24 – 27 June
This will be the 170th show, a celebration of Scottish farming, food and rural life. Organisers are working on plans to mark this “golden” anniversary. Fabulous food and drink are one of the highlights of the show attracting foodies from near and far. Over 100 Scottish food and drink exhibitors will attend alongside gourmet suppliers from across the UK. There are also cookery demonstrations and produce competitions with plenty of opportunities to sample along the way.
The Royal Highland is one of Scotland’s major events with an attendance in 2009 of 176,522 and a five year average of 160,521. Website: www.royalhighlandshow.org
The Scottish Traditional Boat Festival
26 – 27 June
Portsoy, near Banff
With its great gathering of traditional vessels, craft demonstrators, music, song and dance, a host of activities to take part in and delicious food, the Scottish Traditional Boat Festival is now increasingly recognised as a unique celebration of the maritime and rural cultural heritage of the North East. The great traditions of the Grampian region’s superb raw materials from the land and sea have become an increasingly important element of the whole event. The Food Fayre features the very best suppliers and there are ongoing cookery demonstrations. Across the whole festival high quality catering is available to suit every taste and pocket.
www.scottishtraditionalboatfestival.co.uk
JULY
BERRIES, BEASTS AND WILD COOKING
18 July, 11am-4pm
Forage your way to a feast.
AUGUST
FOODIES AT THE FESTIVAL
13-15 August
Edinburgh
Foodies at the Festival is one of the main food events at the Edinburgh festival, serving up popular food and drink master classes. Classes will be held in areas ranging from chocolate to speciality cheeses. There are more stalls than ever and a new area for hot food. There will also be a cafe-style seating area for visitors. A Chefs Theatre will show cookery demonstrations from top Scottish chefs.
www.foodiesfestival.com
WHISKY FRINGE
14 – 15 August
Mansfield Traquair, Edinburgh
Scheduled to take place during the Edinburgh Festival and Fringe, when the city is buzzing with international visitors, the line-up of whisky distillers and bottlers includes Arran, Benriach, Bruichladdich, Macallan, Morrison Bowmore, Moet Hennessey and Old Pulteney. Visitors are simply given a nosing glass and a programme and helped to find their way through over 200 whiskies. The festival runs from 2 – 6pm.
www.royalmilewhiskies.com
ARBROATH SEA FEST
21 – 22 August
Arbroath, Angus
The annual Arbroath Sea Fest offers entertainment for all the family. The diverse programme varies from year to year but regular features include boat-dressing competitions, fishing displays, train displays and cookery demonstrations. Raft racing takes participants past the spectacular cliffs north of Arbroath. For those who enjoy a bit of retail therapy there is a wide range of stalls selling everything from fresh seafood to handmade jewellery, crafts and confectionery.
The star of the show is undoubtedly the Arbroath Smokie (haddock smoked over hardwood) but past years have also seen trout specialities, suckling pig, venison and ostrich all available from the Smokie Trail, comprising 70-odd stalls along the harbour.
www.angusahead.com/VisitAngus/VisitEvents/SeaFestIntro.asp
SEPTEMBER
Dundee Flower & Food Festival 2010
3 – 5 September
Camperdown Country Park, Dundee
With over two acres of marquees set in the magnificent grounds of Camperdown Country Park, this festival has become the region’s top lifestyle event and offers the best in food, horticulture and live entertainment. The packed weekend programme includes free cookery and gardening demonstrations, children’s activities, a craft fair, the chance to buy an amazing range of plants and quality food products and much more. The festival is the main competitive horticultural show on the east coast and the Food Festival is now an integral part of the line up, featuring celebrity and local chefs and allowing visitors to purchase some of the best local, national and international produce.
www.dundeeflowerandfoodfestival.com
SCOTTISH FOOD FORTNIGHT
4 – 19 September Various venues across Scotland
Scottish Food Fortnight takes place across Scotland, from the Outer Hebrides to the Borders. The programme of events will include farmers’ markets, exhibitions, samplings, and debates on attracting the best talent into the food and drink industry.
www.scottishfoodfortnight.co.uk
LIVING FOOD AT CAWDOR CASTLE
25 September Cawdor Castle, Highlands
The Living Food event was first launched in 2006 and is a celebration of organic and sustainable food. Attended in 2006 by over 3000 people, it set a bench mark for the quality of its produce, as well as providing education and information on healthy eating and local produce. Held in marquees in the beautiful grounds of the castle, Living Food will be even bigger this year featuring entertainment for all ages including special guests, over 50 produce stalls, informative food and drink lectures, live music and cookery demonstrations. The event runs from 10am to 5pm.
www.cawdorcastle.com
OCTOBER
SHETLAND FOOD FESTIVAL
1 – 10 October 2010
Shetland is renowned for its top quality produce including unusual specialities like black potatoes and seawater oatcakes. This year’s Shetland food spectacular will include a food theatre with professional and novice chefs cooking up a variety of dishes using local produce; Ready, Steady, Shetland, based on the popular television show, Ready, Steady, Cook and featuring local celebrities and members of the public making the best use of local produce; a producers’ market featuring local producers; morning fish market tours to see the huge array of freshly landed catch at Shetland’s biggest fish auction; and bannock-making workshops for visitors to try their hand at making the traditional Shetland dish. Throughout the festival a number of eateries across the islands will be putting on daily specials and creating special menus.
www.shetlandfoodfestival.com
CRANN-APPLE CIDER FESTIVAL
3 October, 11am-4pm
Celebrate this quintessential autumn food with a festival of its own.
FOOD AND FIRE
17th October, 11am-4pm
Primitive pyrotechnia and fungi fun.
NOVEMBER
Taste of Dumfries & Galloway
6 – 7 November
Kirroughtree Visitor Centre, Newton Stewart
Savour the Flavours of Dumfries & Galloway at this tasty event celebrating Dumfries & Galloway food and drink. There will be plenty of delicious goodies for visitors to sample, enjoy and buy as food and drink producers from across Scotland’s south west showcase their treats, share their passions and tell the story of their food and drink at this friendly event. www.savourtheflavours.co.uk
CHRISTMAS OPENING AT TRAQUAIR
27 – 28 November
Scottish Borders
Free entry to Traquair House and grounds with festive activities and fun. A sumptuous Santa’s grotto, mulled wine, puppet shows and great sales in all the shops, including the authentic 18th century brewery.
www.traquair.co.uk
DECEMBER
FOODIES CHRISTMAS 2010
4 – 5 December
Assembly Rooms, Edinburgh
The ideal festive shopping experience with over 80 speciality food and drink and local producers. Visitors will have the opportunity to meet Scotland’s top chefs who will be cooking live in the Chefs Theatre, preparing their favourite seasonal dishes and adding their own modern twist; taste a selection of signature dishes from the finest local restaurants; buy fresh and speciality food from local producers; try their hand at a food and drink master class; and enjoy some live music.
www.foodiesfestival.com
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