Bottled Passion
19th November 2011
Categories: News
On the 25 acres that make-up the Hawarden Farm Estate no crop is greater than the passion that this family run business creates within their staff.
Stephen Wundke writes
I had the pleasure of talking with Farm Shop “supremo” Alan Downes and could easily have spent the entire day talking to him about the products that his shop sell and just how they come to be on their shelf. Alan rightly says tribute to the man behind the estate, Charles Gladstone, for giving him both the inspiration and the free rein to create what is now simply one of the best farm shops I have ever visited. In fact to call it a farm shop does it a disservice. This is an Aladdin’s cave of taste sensations that oozes passion from every crevice, counter and fridge.
Alan spent 14 years working for Asda in his former life and said he owes a lot to the training they provided and the opportunities they gave him to look into the whole local food agenda that put him in the position some four years ago to make the move from supermarket to “super” farm shop at Hawarden and move the shop from a small hut to what we see today.
It’s been an exciting journey and one that so far has seen year on year growth at levels that no one could have envisaged when they first set out. Alan believes that is down to both the quality of produce that the Estate provides and the sourcing policy for the foods that the estate can’t grow as well as the staffs who just love food.
Whilst the Estate provides more than 50 varieties of fruit and veg, as well as their own pork and lamb, the demands of customers mean that Alan has been able to indulge his passion for food in the extensive range that is now available within the shop and highlight some of the other food heroes from around the UK: the Manx Kippers, Irish White Pudding, Scottish Black pudding, Morecambe Bay and Conwy Bay potted shrimps, Cheshire Farm Ice cream… all flavours and tastes from our seas, shores and fields.
It is not only the goods that come in but also the products that are now made on the premises that boost the offer and to this end the appointment of former Grosvenor Hotel Chef, Toby Beevers, has been integral to the holistic approach that Alan has put in place. “Toby comes with a superb food pedigree and this position now allows him to indulge his passion for food as he seeks to know every aspect of the cycle from field to fork. His recipes both for food made on the premises and those he provides for our customers have already added depth to the care we provide for our customers.”
I spent longer than I intended at Hawarden Estate Farm shop, simply because I love food markets and this was like a Food and Drink festival that you could visit 364 days of the year. Long may they continue to flourish and add flavour to our lives.
For more information and where to find Hawarden Estate Farm Shop go to: www.hawardenestate.co.uk
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