Gold star awards for Croots Farm Shop includes Bake Off star’s cake

Steve Croot and Val Stones

Popular Derbyshire farm shop Croots has scooped two gold star awards in this year’s Great Taste Awards – including one for a cake designed in conjunction with Bake Off star Val Stones.

Val’s Virtuous Cake, a fat-free, sugar-free and egg-free bake created by Val, who is the sister of Croots’ owner Steve Croot, was awarded a gold star accolade in the 2017 awards.

Croots Hickory Smoked Chicken Sausage, created in-house by the butchers at the farm shop near Duffield, also won a gold star in the awards, which are widely regarded as the ‘Oscars’ of the fine food world.

A one star gold award identifies a product as being ‘simply delicious’, according to the Guild of Fine Food, who organise the annual awards.

The judges’ comments for Val’s cake, which is suitable for vegans, included: “A good, wholesome, homemade cake” and “A very good cake – and for all that is missing, you’ve made up for in taste. Good fruit, peel, spice, richness and moisture – very satisfying and with a full flavour without relying on many ingredients.”

Val shot to fame as a popular contestant of last year’s Great British Bake Off, screened on BBC1. She later devised a range of bakes for Croots under the Val at Croots……made with love brand, which include banana and pecan loaf, a range of cookies, cherry shortbread and the virtuous cake.

She is a regular visitor to the farm shop at Farnah House Farm, Wirksworth Road, near Duffield - travelling from her Somerset home to bake and advise on recipes for Croots.

Val said: “I am delighted to hear that Val’s Virtuous Cake has been awarded a one star gold award. I’m very proud of the baking team at Croots.”

For the chicken sausage, the judges’ comments included: “Plump little sausages with an inviting colour.  The aroma is of cured, smoked meats. We felt that for a low-fat chicken sausage this is oozing with positive, meaty flavours” and “A very pleasant, plump and well-cooked sausage, the grind of the meat is good, we detect chorizo in the aroma too, the mouth feel is pleasant, the sweet chorizo has worked with the chicken, we are also very pleased that the sausage is not at all dry and remains moist and pleasantly delicious.”

Steve Croot, who runs the farm shop and café with wife Kay, said: “We are chuffed to win two gold star awards for our products in the 2017 Great Taste Awards, as these really are regarded as the ‘Oscars’ of the fine food world.

“I think we’ve now won 21 Great Taste Awards over the years for products ranging from our sausages and meat to our Croots sloe gin and our Croots muesli mix, which is a huge honour and illustrates the wide range of top quality products we produce here at our Derbyshire farm shop.”

Some 12,366 products were put forward by producers across the UK and other countries for consideration for the 2017 Great Taste Awards, which are acknowledged as the benchmark for speciality food and drink and have been described as the ‘epicurean equivalent of the Booker prize’. Just 35% of entries were accredited after rigorous testing by a panel of more than 500 judges.

These are the latest awards won by Croots, which in June scooped the People’s Choice Award for the Midlands at the Family Business United Awards 2017 and which also recently had two products - Croots Lemon Tart and Croots Lemon Rapeseed Oil - selected as finalists in this year’s Great British Food Awards 2017, run by national magazine Great British Food.

Croots is open Monday to Saturday from 9am to 5pm (Shires Eatery until 4.30pm) and from 10am to 4pm on Sundays. Croots runs Fresh Fish Thursdays between 9am and 1pm on Thursdays.

For more information, visit www.croots.co.uk Find Croots on Twitter @crootsfarm_shop or on Facebook https://www.facebook.com/Croots-Farm-Shop

Press release issued by Nottingham based PR company Perfect 10 PR www.perfect10pr.co.uk

Great Taste Award for Croots Farm Shop’s rump steak

Derbyshire farm shop Croots has struck gold with its rump steak, winning an accolade in the Great Taste Awards 2016.

The rump steak won a gold star in the annual awards, which are regarded as the ‘Oscars’ of the fine food and drink sector.

It is the 13^th Great Taste Award presented to Croots Farm Shop, which is based at Farnah House Farm, Wirksworth Road, near Duffield, and the latest of more than 100 different awards the shop has achieved for its products.

The judges described the rump steak as “a generous and plump looking steak with a pleasant beef flavour and good marbling. A good depth of flavour which would benefit even more from longer ageing.”

Croots Farm Shop owner Steve Croot said: “The Great Taste Awards are given to the finest food and drink products in the UK, so it’s a fantastic achievement to have won yet another. We’ve now been awarded Great Taste Awards for a wide range of products from our homemade Croots sloe gin to our very own muesli mix, as well as a number of meat products like sausages, our leg of lamb and our sticky maple and hickory belly pork.

“The Croots butchers have built up an excellent reputation for their knowledge, skill and advice when it comes to all things meat related, and I’m delighted that their expertise has been recognised once again in such a high profile awards.”

Rump steak is considered to be one of the most flavoursome of beef cuts. The Croots rump steak is home produced at the farm.

Great Taste, organised by the Guild of Fine Food, is the acknowledged benchmark for speciality food and drink and has been described as the ‘epicurean equivalent of the Booker prize’. Products awarded one star are viewed as ‘simply delicious’.

Since 1994, more than 100,000 products have been judged by Great Taste, blind tasted by expert judges who discuss the merits of each product in their search for those that deserve to be championed and given a Great Taste logo. The judges are made up of top chefs and restaurateurs, people who run delis and farm shops, top food hall and retail buyers, acclaimed cooks, food writers and journalists, jam and cake experts from the WI, cheese makers and farmers.

Croots Farm Shop was opened more than eight years ago and is run by husband and wife team Steve and Kay Croot at the farm owned by Kay’s parents Jim and Sue Yates.

It is open Monday to Saturday from 9am to 5pm (Shires Eatery until 4.30pm) and from 10am to 4pm on Sundays. Croots runs Fresh Fish Thursdays between 9am and 1pm on Thursdays.

For more information, visit www.croots.co.uk Find Croots on Twitter @crootsfarm_shop or on Facebook https://www.facebook.com/Croots-Farm-Shop-127012538821/

Press release issued by Nottingham PR company Perfect 10 PR www.perfect10pr.co.uk

Croots Farm Shop gets a gold star in the Great Taste Awards 2014

Derbyshire farm shop Croots has struck gold in the Great Taste Awards 2014 by winning a gold star for its smoked salmon pâté. 

The awards run by the Guild of Fine Food are regarded as the ‘Oscars’ of the fine food world and the annual scheme is the largest and most trusted awards scheme for speciality fine food and drink in the UK. 

Croots Farm Shop, based at Farnah House Farm, Wirksworth Road, near Duffield, has won a number of Great Taste Awards in previous years for its sausages, bacon, pork pie, ale, muesli and lemon oil. 

The latest gold star has been awarded for the store’s smoked salmon pâté, which is made of salmon that’s been smoked on the shop’s premises in its own smokery. The judges said: “A great appearance and good creamy texture with discernible pieces of fish.” 

Farm shop owner Steve Croot said: “We are really pleased to have added another gold star to our collection of awards. It’s the first we have received for our smoked salmon pâté, which is one of the most popular items on our deli counter here at Croots.” 

The shop has won scores of awards for its products since opening in 2008. Croots was also a runner-up in the Best UK Independent Food Retailer 2010 category of the Observer Food Monthly Awards. The year before, it was named in The Independent’s top 50 best food shops. 

Earlier this year, owner Steve Croot was named the Derbyshire Food Hero for 2014.

Croots Farm Shop is open daily from 9am to 5pm (Shires Eatery until 4.30pm). Croots runs Fresh Fish Thursdays between 9am and 1pm on Thursdays.

For more information visit www.croots.co.uk 

@crootsfarm_shop

Press release issued by Nottingham PR company Perfect 10 PR www.perfect10pr.co.uk

Croots Farm Shop wins three Great Taste Awards

Derbyshire farm shop Croots has struck gold in this year’s Great Taste Awards with a trio of gold stars.

The farm shop near Duffield scooped a gold star award for its pork, apple and Stilton sausage, a gold star for its Shire ale, and a gold star for its Croots crunchy fruit muesli.

The awards, run by the Guild of Fine Food, are regarded as the ‘Oscars’ of the food industry and are highly prized.

“We are thrilled to hear that three of our products have won a gold star in the 2013 Great Taste Awards,” said Steve Croot, who runs the farm shop at Farnah House Farm, Wirksworth Road. “These awards are rigorously and professionally judged and to win a gold star signifies that a product is really something quite special.”

Last year Croots Farm Shop scooped a two star gold award for its home smoked back bacon. The previous year it won two one star gold Great Taste Awards for its traditional pork pie and its lemon oil. In 2010 another of Croots’ ales, cow juice beer, won a gold star rating, while the previous year the accolade was given to the farm shop’s black pudding sausage.

The latest awards mean that Croots now has eight gold star Great Taste Awards for its own products.

The pork, apple and Stilton sausage and the crunchy fruit muesli are made at the farm shop, while the Shire ale is one of a number of beers made for Croots by Shottle Farm Brewery, near Belper.

“Nearly 10,000 products were entered into the Great Taste Awards this year, but only a fraction received a one, two or three gold star award,” said Steve Croot. “We are honoured that our products have once against been hailed as some of the best of their kind in the country.”

Judges said of the award-winning sausages: “These look good and plump. They cut very easily. Judges like the look of these sausages in their natural casings. There's a strong taste of Stilton and a pleasant, but very smooth texture.”

They described the crunchy fruit muesli as ‘a wholesome product with no compromise on flavour’ and said that the Shire ale had a wonderful aroma that was warm and rich. They went on to add: “There's a good colour to this beer and it has a great clarity. There is also a pleasant sweetness and a lovely burnt - but in a good way - finish. The carbonation is good and delivers a little prickle up front. There's a lovely whisky note too, a slight peatiness, perhaps from the smoked malt. A good example of this type of beer and the judges like the smokiness.”

Croots Farm Shop opened its doors in June 2008, and has recently expanded with a much larger café and restaurant, Shires Eatery.

On Saturday August 24th it will be staging a free vintage and classic car day, as well as a burger festival, cheese sampling and wine tasting.

Croots Farm Shop is open Sundays from 10am to 4pm (Shires Eatery until 3.45pm), and from Tuesday to Saturday from 9am to 5pm (Shires Eatery until 4.30pm). It is closed on Mondays.

 For more information visit www.croots.co.uk

 Press release issued by Nottingham PR company Perfect 10 PR www.perfect10pr.co.uk

Sausage festival at Croots Farm Shop in Derbyshire

Derbyshire farm shop Croots will be staging a sausage festival later this month…featuring some of its award-winning bangers.

The event takes place on Saturday August 25th at the farm shop in Wirksworth Road, Duffield.

Up to 18 different sausages will be on special offer at Croots, including two of its recently launched flavours sweet chilli, and pork and wild mushroom, as well as a number of its award-winning bangers.

To accompany the sausage tasting sessions being held throughout the day, Shottle Farm Brewery will also be offering beer tasting.

The brewery, based near Belper, has a range of beers on sale at Croots.

“Our sausage festivals have become very popular, and give customers the chance to try some of our different flavours before they buy,” said Steve Croot, who runs the farm shop at Farnah House Farm.

“Sausages and ale make ideal partners, so we’re pleased that we can offer both sausage and beer tasting at our festival.”

Croots is renowned for its home-made sausages and has won numerous awards since opening in June 2008, including Great Taste Awards, which are regarded as the Oscars of the food industry.

Croots Farm Shop and Kitchen is open Sundays from 10am to 4pm (café until 3.45pm), and from Tuesday to Saturday from 9am to 5pm (café until 4.30pm). It is closed on Mondays.

For more information visit www.croots.co.uk

Issued by Nottingham PR company Perfect 10 PR www.perfect10pr.co.uk

Gold Star Award for Anila’s Authentic Sauces’ Hot Mango Pickle

The Hot Mango Pickle produced by Anila’s Authentic Sauces has struck gold in the Great Taste Awards by winning a gold star rating.

Regarded as the ‘Oscars’ of the fine food industry, it was the 12th Great Taste Award won by Anila’s Authentic Sauces, which produces premium curry sauces, pickles, chutneys and dips.

The gold star rating means that the judges found the Hot Mango Pickle to be a “virtually faultless food”.

Their comments included “we love the flavour of the raw mango”, “open textured and chunky giving it a rustic appearance. Nice to see the chilli seeds” and “a great aroma”.

“I am very pleased to hear that the Hot Mango Pickle has been rated as gold star,” said Anila Vaghela, who is celebrating her 20th year in the business in 2012.

“It’s a very popular product with our customers and is made with fresh green mangoes. It’s a perfect accompaniment to many different dishes and snacks, including curries, parathas and chappatis.”

Gluten free, dairy free and with no added sugar, the pickle is one of 17 accompaniments and eight curry sauces produced by Anila’s, which is based in Walton, Surrey, with a production unit in Hounslow.

The Great Taste Awards are run by the Guild of Fine Food and received almost 9,000 entries this year. Less than a third received an accolade of one gold star, two gold star or three gold star following the judging process.

Since 2005, Anila’s has won Great Taste Awards for a number of products, including its Goan Green Curry Sauce, the Spicy Mild Curry Sauce and the Spicy Korma Curry Sauce.

The company has also won other awards. Earlier this year the Goan Green Curry Sauce was named a winner in the FreeFrom Food Awards 2012. It was previously named Best Vegan Product in The Veggie Awards 2011 by Cook Vegetarian! magazine, with the judges saying: “Not only one of the best vegan curry sauces we’ve ever tried but one of the best curry sauces available. Its complexity of flavours makes its taste truly sensational.”

At the FreeFrom Food Awards 2012, the judges said: “Anila’s sauces are always so wonderful as she uses such beautifully fresh and pure ingredients in such perfect balance. Lovely, subtle flavours, gently permeated by the coconut milk. Deep green flavour and fantastic ingredients.”

This year Anila’s launched a new Spicy Indian Salsa to mark 20 years since Anila sold her first curry sauce at a local fair.

Anila’s sauces are free from artificial colours, additives and preservatives, are sugar, dairy and gluten free, contain no onion or garlic, and are suitable for vegetarians and vegans.

The accompaniments are made with single fruits and vegetables, and natural ingredients.

Anila’s Authentic Sauces supplies hundreds of outlets that include speciality food halls, garden centres, delis, farm shops, gift shops and also health stores. The firm also sells direct to the public at farmers’ markets and at food shows and festivals as well as online via www.anilassauces.com

Products are on sale at places like Harrods, John Lewis Oxford Street and Bluewater, Chatsworth Farm Shop, and Booths in Penrith and Manchester.

Visit www.anilassauces.com for more information.

Issued by Perfect 10 PR www.perfect10pr.co.uk

Two star gold award for Croots Farm Shop’s home smoked back bacon

Derbyshire farm shop Croots has struck gold by winning a two star gold award in the annual Great Taste Awards for its home smoked back bacon.

The awards are regarded as the ‘Oscars’ of the fine food industry, and it is the fifth Great Taste Award presented to Croots in the past four years.

Judges described the bacon, which is smoked on the premises at Croots Farm Shop, Duffield, as having “wonderful porkiness. The rind and fat were very tasty as well. Just the right amount of salt. Good meaty texture.”

Farm shop owner Steve Croot said: “We are thrilled to have received another Great Taste Award. The awards are judged by chefs, food writers, retailers and other food experts, and are one of the most highly regarded accolades in the speciality food and drink sector.

“We only started smoking our own bacon at the start of this year, so to have it confirmed that we’re doing it to such a high standard is wonderful for our team at Croots Farm Shop.”

Last year Croots, which is based at Farnah House Farm, Wirksworth Road, scooped two one star gold Great Taste Awards for its traditional pork pie and its lemon oil. In 2010 one of Croots’ ales, Cow Juice Beer, won a gold star rating in the Great Taste Awards, while the previous year the accolade was given to the farm shop’s Black Pudding Sausage.

This year’s award for the home smoked back bacon is a two star gold award – making it one of the best bacons in the country.

The Great Taste Awards are run by the Guild of Fine Food and received almost 9,000 entries this year. Less than a third received an accolade of one gold star, two gold star or three gold star following the judging process.

“It’s always a fantastic boost for our staff to hear that we’ve won another award, and I’d like to thank them for their role in making Croots Farm Shop an award-winning store,” said Steve Croot. “This particular bacon, which at £10.49/kg compares very favourably with the £14.20/kg price at Tesco online, is one of many products that we make ourselves at Croots. Since buying the smoker, we’ve developed several new products which seem to be going down well with our customers.”

Croots Farm Shop has won many awards since launching just over four years ago, especially for its home made sausages, pies and meat products.

The home smoked back bacon previously received an award during Bacon Connoisseurs’ Week in March.

The farm shop was also recently highly commended in the national Deli of the Year competition.

In 2010 it was a runner-up in the Best UK Independent Food Retailer category of the Observer Food Monthly Awards. The year before, it was named in The Independent’s top 50 best food shops.

Croots opened its doors in June 2008 and has gone from strength to strength. As well as the shop and café, it has a plant nursery and a children’s play area.

It stocks products from around 40 producers within a 50-mile radius of the shop, as well as items from further afield, and employs 21 people. The store is particularly popular with sausage fans and estimates it has made around 8 million handmade sausages since opening.

Croots Farm Shop and Kitchen is open Sundays from 10am to 4pm (café until 3.45pm), and from Tuesday to Saturday from 9am to 5pm (café until 4.30pm). It is closed on Mondays.

For more information visit www.croots.co.uk

Issued by Perfect 10 PR www.perfect10pr.co.uk

Derbyshire’s Croots Farm Shop celebrates two gold Great Taste Awards

Derbyshire farm shop Croots is celebrating the news that it has been awarded two Great Taste Awards for its traditional pork pie and its lemon oil.

The awards run by the Guild of Fine Food are regarded as the ‘Oscars’ of the food and drink industry. Croots traditional pork pie and its lemon oil were each awarded a one star gold award by the judges, who included chefs, food writers and retailers.

Last year, one of Croots’ ales, Cow Juice Beer, won a gold star rating in the Great Taste Awards, while the previous year the accolade was given to the farm shop’s Black Pudding Sausage.

“We are thrilled that both our pork pie and our lemon oil have been recognised as gold star standard in the Great Taste Awards, which are one of the most highly regarded food and drink award schemes in the UK,” said Steve Croot, who runs the farm shop at Farnah House Farm, in Wirksworth Road near Duffield.

“Both products are popular with our customers, and I’m delighted to hear that the judges of the Great Taste Awards agreed that they are special, and have given them the seal of approval. Judging is based on taste, not marketing, so customers know that a product that’s been awarded a Great Taste Award is going to taste really good.”

More than 7,400 products were entered into the awards, which are regarded as the benchmark in speciality food and drink, but less than a third were granted gold stars status.

The Great Taste Awards are the latest in a number of awards won by Croots over the past few months.

The shop and café, which recently celebrated its third birthday, was last month commended in the Deli of the Year competition after being nominated by customers as part of a national competition, and it also scooped four accolades in the British Pie Awards 2011, including a gold for its popular steak and kidney pie.

In May, Croots took three golds and a silver award for its sausages and pies at the 17th Robin Hood Championship. And in February Croots won 16 awards for its sausages and pies at the BPEX regional roadshow at Newark Showground in Nottinghamshire.

Last year it was a runner-up in the Best UK Independent Food Retailer 2010 category of the Observer Food Monthly Awards. The year before, it was named in The Independent’s top 50 best food shops.

“Our staff work very hard to create top quality products, and it’s extremely gratifying to receive awards,” said Steve. “The awards we have won recently have been based on either feedback from industry experts or from customers, so it’s great to hear that we are hitting the spot with both.”

Croots, based at Farnah House Farm, opened its doors in June 2008 and has gone from strength to strength. As well as the shop and café, it recently opened a plant nursery.

Croots Farm Shop and Kitchen is open Sundays from 10am to 4pm (café until 3.45pm), and from Tuesday to Saturday from 9am to 5pm (café until 4.30pm). It is closed on Mondays.

For more information visit www.croots.co.uk


Nottingham PR company Perfect 10 PR www.perfect10pr.co.uk

Croots Farm Shop strikes gold with sausages and pies during BPEX roadshow

Croots Farm Shop has some of the best-quality sausages and pies in the East Midlands, according to industry experts.

The Derbyshire farm shop, which has its own butchers’ counter, deli and café, is celebrating after receiving four gold, seven silver and five bronze awards during the BPEX regional roadshow at Newark Showground in Nottinghamshire.

Croots hit the gold standard with its Lincolnshire sausages, beef, ale and mustard sausages, the Merquez (beef and lamb) sausages and the deli counter’s beef cobbler.

Silver awards went to the team’s tomato and basil sausages, and its pork sausages, along with its cottage pies, lasagne, mince and onion pies, steak and Stilton pies and steak and kidney pies.

Croots’ breakfast bangers, lamb and mint sausages, and chilli and lime sausages took bronze, while 19-year-old apprentice butcher Lee Barton won bronze in the young sausage maker category for his pork and cracked black pepper sausages and a bronze for his onion and marmalade sausages

Lee’s prizes took the Croots haul to 16 awards in a single day.

“It’s a tribute to our butchers, Rob Tomkins, Ant Griffiths and Lee, that pork industry experts rate our products so highly,” said Steve Croot, who runs Croots Farm Shop at Farnah House Farm, Wirksworth Road, near Duffield.

“It puts an official stamp of approval on what we have known for a long time – that quality ingredients and real expertise are the key to great local food.

“Our sausages and other meat products are renowned throughout the area and some of our customers come long distances to stock up. We’re absolutely delighted to have picked up 16 awards, including four gold awards.”

The awards are not the first to have been presented to Croots. In 2009, the farm shop received a one star gold award in the Great Taste Awards run by the Guild of Fine Food for its black pudding sausage. In November 2010 Croots won a silver award for its breakfast sausage in a competition held to mark British Sausage Week.

Produced by the shop’s in-house butchers, all the pork sausages at Croots are made using free range Packington Pork from Barton-under-Needwood near Burton-upon-Trent. Croots has a range of around 40 different flavours of banger, which it sells on a rotating basis. The farm shop recently extended its fresh meat counter in response to demand.

Roadshow entries from all over the East Midlands were evaluated by BPEX judges using nationally agreed guidelines in this latest event. The awards promote excellence in pork products and are aimed at small producers. BPEX is a division of the Agriculture and Horticulture Development Board and works to promote English pork nationally and globally.

For more information visit www.croots.co.uk

Croots Farm Shop & Kitchen is open Sundays from 10am to 4pm (café until 3.45pm), and from Tuesday to Saturday from 9am to 5pm (café until 4.30pm). It is closed on Mondays.

Nottingham PR consultant Perfect 10 PR www.perfect10pr.co.uk

Anila's Authentic Sauces gains first distribution order to Switzerland

Anila’s Authentic Sauces will be warming up meals in snowy Switzerland after the firm received its first export order from the country.

Earlier this year the award-winning curry sauce and accompaniments producer won an export order to Germany after exhibiting at the world’s most important food and drink sector trade fair, Anuga.

Anila’s travelled with UK Trade & Investment to exhibit as part of the British Pavilion at Anuga in Cologne in October 2009.

Now the company run by Anila Vaghela has secured a second order as a result of contacts made at the trade fair and has started exporting to Switzerland for the first time.

A Swiss distributor has ordered more than 1,100 jars of curry sauces, chutneys and pickles from the firm, which is based in Walton-on-Thames with a unit in Hounslow, and is run by Anila and her husband Dan.

“This is great news for Anila’s Authentic Sauces,” said Anila Vaghela. “Exhibiting at Anuga marked the start of our push into exporting to Continental Europe, and I am delighted that this is now bearing fruit for us.”

The distributor has taken the whole of Anila’s range, which features eight premium curry sauces, handmade in small batches, and 16 chutneys, pickles and dips made with single fruits and vegetables.

Anila’s now exports to Germany, Ireland, Dubai and Switzerland, and hopes to continue expanding to other countries.

The news of the Switzerland order comes as Anila’s celebrates scooping a two ** Gold Great Taste Award for its popular Goan Green Curry Sauce.

The accolade marked the 11th Great Taste Award presented to Anila’s range of premium curry sauces, chutneys, pickles and dips by The Guild of Fine Food.

To win such a high rating, up to 20 judges unanimously agreed that the Goan Green Curry Sauce had achieved ‘absolute perfection’.

“The Goan Green Curry Sauce is one of our most popular sauces, and we are thoroughly delighted that the judges of the Great Taste Awards 2010 agree that it’s something very special,” said Anila, who founded Anila’s Authentic Sauces in 1997.

The Great Taste Awards are the national benchmark in speciality food and drink, and have been running since 1993.

Made with mint, coriander, spinach and coconut, Anila’s Goan Green Curry Sauce is sold in a range of speciality retailers, delis and farm shops.

Anila’s cooking has always been popular with friends and family, and in the early 1990s she began selling jars of curry sauce on a very small scale in her local community in Walton-on-Thames, Surrey. She sold all 80 jars at her first fair at Weybridge in 1992. Phone calls from very satisfied customers followed, and Anila began fulfilling small orders.

In 1997 she was made redundant from a job as a PA and decided to seize the opportunity to form her own company to develop Anila’s Authentic Sauces.

She carried out extensive research, took expert business advice, and felt there was a gap in the market for high-quality, premium curry sauces. She soon gained a listing in the food hall of her local department store, and before long Anila’s curry sauces were on the shelves of a range of health stores, delicatessens and independent specialist shops.

Anila outgrew her kitchen at home and moved to a catering kitchen in Surbiton in 2002. A year later the business needed larger premises once more, and Anila’s re-located to a 1400 sq ft unit in Hounslow. In 2006, husband Dan also joined the team.

Anila’s products are now sold at John Lewis Oxford Street and John Lewis Bluewater, and top quality gourmet stores, such as Harrods, Wholefoods and Planet Organic, plus hundreds of other outlets that include health food stores, garden centres and gift shops, as well as smaller independent stores such as Budgens at Ascot, Shepperton and Crouch End. Anila’s also sells direct to the public at 28 farmers’ markets across Surrey, Berkshire, Buckinghamshire and Hertfordshire, including Guildford, Walton, Windsor, Maidenhead, Ascot, Cobham, Beaconsfield and Farnham, and online via http://www.anilassauces.com/

Great Moos! Cow Juice Beer wins Gold Star Great Taste Award for Croots Farm Shop in Derbyshire

Croots Farm Shop in Derbyshire has scooped a One Star Gold Great Taste Award for its Cow Juice Beer.


The awards run by the Guild of Fine Food, are regarded as the Oscars of the food and drink industry.

Cow Juice is one of four farmyard beers designed by Steve Croot, who runs the farm shop at Farnah House Farm, Wirksworth Road, Duffield.

It is the first accolade won by the ale, which is produced for Croots Farm Shop by Derbyshire brewery Nutbrook.

“We created our farmyard range of beers last year as part of our regional ale section, and they’ve all been very popular,” said Steve Croot. “It’s fantastic news that the Cow Juice Beer has won such a prestigious award as a one star gold Great Taste Award. It’s a lovely ale and goes down well with our customers.”

The Great Taste Awards are regarded as the benchmark in speciality fine food and drink, and have been running since 1993.

Last year Croots won a Gold Star Great Taste Award for its Black Pudding Sausage.

The Cow Juice Beer was one of only 23 bottled beers to receive a gold star rating in the 2010 Great Taste Awards.

Cow Juice (6%) is brewed in a traditional way using sugars also found in milk, which gives a full-bodied, thicker taste. With familiar roasted stout flavours, it has a warm soothing flavour.

The other beers in the Croots farmyard range are Pig in a Bottle, a ‘hoppy beer’ at 4.5%, Ewe Drink, a sweet beer with a rich golden colour at 3.6% and Croots Shire Ale, a strong brew at 6.2%, which pays tribute to the Shire horses that graze at Farnah House Farm, and features a 50-year-old photo on its label that shows Tom Yates – the grandfather of Steve’s wife Kay – and two Shire horses that lived at the farm in 1959.

A fifth beer in the range, which will be given a rooster theme, is currently being developed by Croots in conjunction with West Hallam-based Nutbrook Brewery. Croots sells around 1,200 bottles of Nutbrook beer every month.

The farmyard beers cost £2.45 per bottle.

Visit http://www.croots.co.uk/

Two ** Gold Great Taste Award for Anila’s ‘ absolutely perfect’ Goan Green Curry Sauce

Anila’s Authentic Sauces has scooped a two ** Gold Great Taste Award for its popular Goan Green Curry Sauce.


The accolade marks the 11th Great Taste Award presented to Anila’s range of premium curry sauces, chutneys, pickles and dips by The Guild of Fine Foods.

To win such a high rating, up to 20 judges unanimously agreed that the Goan Green Curry Sauce had achieved ‘absolute perfection’.

“The Goan Green Curry Sauce is one of our most popular sauces, and we are thoroughly delighted that the judges of the Great Taste Awards 2010 agree that it’s something very special,” said Anila Vaghela, who founded Anila’s Authentic Sauces in 1997.

“It’s such a versatile and delicious curry sauce, and as it is gluten free, dairy free and with no added sugar, as well as being suitable for vegetarians, it appeals to a very wide range of tastes. We love it, our customers love it and now we’ve had confirmation from The Guild of Fine Foods, which promotes excellence in speciality food.”

The Great Taste Awards are the national benchmark in speciality food and drink, and have been running since 1993.

Made with mint, coriander, spinach and coconut, Anila’s Goan Green Curry Sauce is sold in a range of speciality retailers, delis and farm shops, including Harrods and John Lewis Food Halls at Oxford Street and Bluewater.

It is one of eight premium curry sauces, handmade in small batches, by Anila’s, and is perfect with fish, prawns and vegetables. The firm also produces a range of 16 chutneys, pickles and dips made with single fruits and vegetables.

Previous Great Taste Award winners in the range include three *** Gold Awards for Anila’s Spicy Korma and Spicy Mild curry sauces, and awards for the Chilli Chutney and Tindoori Pickle. The Spicy Korma Curry Sauce also scooped a Free From Food Award in 2009.

Anila’s Authentic Sauces is based in Walton-on-Thames with a unit in Hounslow, and is run by Anila and her husband Dan.

Anila’s cooking has always been popular with friends and family, and in the early 1990s she began selling jars of curry sauce on a very small scale in her local community in Walton-on-Thames, Surrey. She sold all 80 jars at her first fair at Weybridge in 1992. Phone calls from very satisfied customers followed, and Anila began fulfilling small orders.

In 1997 she was made redundant from a job as a PA and decided to seize the opportunity to form her own company to develop Anila’s Authentic Sauces.

She carried out extensive research, took expert business advice, and felt there was a gap in the market for high-quality, premium curry sauces. She soon gained a listing in the food hall of her local department store, and before long Anila’s curry sauces were on the shelves of a range of health stores, delicatessens and independent specialist shops.

Anila outgrew her kitchen at home and moved to a catering kitchen in Surbiton in 2002. A year later the business needed larger premises once more, and Anila’s re-located to a 1400 sq ft unit in Hounslow. In 2006, husband Dan also joined the team.

Anila’s products are now sold at John Lewis Oxford Street and John Lewis Bluewater, and top quality gourmet stores, such as Harrods, Wholefoods and Planet Organic, plus hundreds of other outlets that include health food stores, garden centres and gift shops, as well as smaller independent stores such as Budgens at Ascot, Shepperton and Crouch End. Anila’s also sells direct to the public at 28 farmers’ markets across Surrey, Berkshire, Buckinghamshire and Hertfordshire, including Guildford, Walton, Windsor, Maidenhead, Ascot, Cobham, Beaconsfield and Farnham, and online via www.anilassauces.com

Anila's Authentic Sauces provide the perfect ingredient for a feast of dishes

A curry sauce from Anila’s Authentic Sauces is not just the key ingredient for a great-tasting curry… it can also be the basis for a whole range of different dishes.

Perfect for pepping up pizzas, superb in sandwiches, delicious in dips, and mouth-watering in marinades, Anila’s award-winning curry sauces are the ideal store cupboard essential.

And with the barbecue season fast approaching, it’s a great idea to have a few jars on standby so that you’re fully prepared to take advantage of the sunshine…when it appears!

“There are so many different ways that a jar of Anila’s curry sauce can be used in recipes,” explains Anila Vaghela, who founded the family-run business in 1997. “As well as being the key ingredient for tasty authentic curries, they can also be used to spice up a range of dishes….from pizzas to sandwiches.”

Try spreading Anila’s curry sauce onto bread, adding sliced cheese and tomato, and grilling for a delicious snack. Or add a tablespoon of Anila’s curry sauce to salad cream or mayonnaise for a tangy dip that can be served with fresh crunchy vegetables or chips.

Anila’s produces a range of eight premium curry sauces, handmade in small batches and free from preservatives, sugar, dairy and gluten. Suitable for vegetarians and vegans, the sauces are also perfect for those with allium intolerance, as they don’t contain onions or garlic.

Anila’s sauces have won ten Great Taste Awards, and last year her Spicy Korma Curry Sauce scooped a Free From Food Award.

Anila’s also produces a range of 16 chutneys, pickles and dips made with single fruits and vegetables, which team up perfectly with a variety of dishes, snacks and cheeses.

The firm is based in Walton-on-Thames with a unit in Hounslow, and will be exhibiting at The Real Food Festival at Earls Court, London, from May 7th to 10th.

Anila’s products are sold at John Lewis Oxford Street and John Lewis Bluewater, and top quality gourmet stores, such as Harrods and Selfridges, plus hundreds of other outlets that include Wholefoods, Planet Organic, delis, health food stores, garden centres and gift shops. Anila’s also sells direct to the public at 28 farmers’ markets across Surrey, Berkshire, Buckinghamshire and Hertfordshire, including Guildford, Walton, Windsor, Maidenhead, Ascot, Cobham, Beaconsfield and Farnham, and online via www.anilassauces.com