The Clare Champion Clare news, sport, entertainment and local notes
CLARE Jam Company enjoyed a sweet moment this weekend winning gold at the Blas na hÉireann Awards in Dingle.
It wasn’t for one of their tasty fruit preserves however, as the company name implies, but for one of their savoury products – traditional Doolin mustard.
The Doolin company’s versatility was rewarded with gold by the judges and they also took the ‘Best in Clare for 2022’ award. Two other Burren-based businesses were also successful, gaining silver and bronze at the leading food awards.
The Burren Smokehouse won silver for their Cold Smoked Honey and Dill salmon, while St Tola Irish Goat cheese won bronze for their St Tola Karst cheese.
This year’s finalists and winners got to experience the Blas Village for the first time. Located in the heart of Dingle, this pop-up village was built for producers across the country to come together and celebrate the very best of Irish food and drink for Blas’s first in-person event in three years.
As well as the awards being held here, finalists and winners have had the opportunity to showcase their products, engage with customers and meet key industry buyers.
Finalists and winners showcased their produce in a new tented market — each tent highlighting a province in Ireland — also a new addition to the festival. Suitably named Eat Ireland in a Day, visitors were able to enjoy the high calibre quality of food & drinks that reached the finalist stage.
Birgitta Curtin of the Burren Smokehouse said: “We are delighted that three of our producers have received the top awards in Ireland for their products. With over 30,000 people at the festival over the weekend, The Burren got a huge amount of recognition from travel writers, journalists and from the general public.”
“It is rewarding to know that all of the work that has gone into developing North Clare as a food destination getting noticed at a national and international level. We were met by so many people that have visited the region in recent years and who have kept coming back because of the food offering!” Added Sioban Ni Ghairbhith of St Tola Irish Goat Cheese.
Speaking after the announcement Artie Clifford, Chairperson and founder of Blas na hÉireann said, “After a three-year hiatus from an in-person event, having a three-day event with the addition of the Blas Village and Eat Ireland in a Day has been worth the wait. I am really proud of what we hosted online but one thing that was repeated over and over was that people missed being in Dingle.
“As well as the excitement of the awards, it has been an intense and fantastic few days of focused networking, catch-ups and creating new connections and I am delighted that we have been able to showcase this exceptional produce to both regular visitors and industry experts in such an approachable and enjoyable way. What a great few days to welcome our Blas family back to Dingle.”
These awards come in the wake of the Burren Ecotourism Network’s recent accolade of being crowned the Irish Times best place to holiday in Ireland in 2022. The Network was commended not only for it’s stunning landscape, breath-taking coast and world-class tourist attractions, but also for it’s grassroots food culture, sustainable tourism vision and community work.
For more information on the Burren Ecotourism Network go to www.burren.ie
