Did you know the River Cottage offer a range of events, dining experiences and cookery classes? Last week I was invited to the River Cottage to sample some of these wonderful events – naturally I jumped at the chance!
I have always been a huge fan of the River Cottage TV programmes and Hugh Fearnley Whittingstall’s passionate, yet ethical approach to cooking, so when I was invited by the River Cottage and Foodies100 to come and visit the River Cottage for myself…I jumped at the chance. In fact ‘jumped’ really doesn’t do my reaction justice…bounced, danced and screamed would be more accurate. 🙂
I was invited as part of a group of 50 specially selected foodie bloggers (I like to think we were hand-picked for our wonderfulness, but I think there may have been a hat involved…) to come and sample a typical River Cottage Event.
I had no idea before I conducted my extensive pre-trip research (OK half an hour on their website the night before), that the River Cottage did events. So I was pleasantly surprised to discover that they do loads of different dining experiences and courses. Their courses include things like butchery, foraging, gardening and bread making, as well as some lovely Christmas options, such a Christmas baking and cheese making. Their dining events range from Sunday lunch to a farmhouse dinner and of course lots of wonderful Christmas and midwinter feasts. The River Cottage can also be booked for weddings and private events.
Most of these events stress that Hugh won’t be there, but if you are desperate to meet him there is a section on the website dedicated to Hugh’s Events – these are some rather exciting looking exclusive events where you are guaranteed to meet Hugh.
Sadly we didn’t meet Hugh, but we were treated to a whole host of River Cottage wonderfulness. The whole River Cottage experience begins with an exciting, if slightly nail-biting tractor ride from the car park down the hill to the River Cottage, which is just as beautiful as it looks on TV.
Spilling out from the tractor, we were greeted with festive welcome drinks and a chance to snoop around and discover the delights of the River Cottage including the iconic farmhouse, the beautiful barn where we had our cookery demonstration and River Cottage dining experience, and this rather gorgeous little yurt.
Our first activity was a taster session of one of the River Cottage’s Christmas Courses: Christmas Curing and Smoking. Seated in the delightful converted barn, decorated with beautiful autumnal produce, we listened attentively as one of the River Cottage chefs, Andy, explained the purpose of brining (to preserve meat) and the advantages of brining your own meat rather than allowing a factory to do it for you (better quality, more interesting flavour and no chemical nasties). He followed this introduction with a series of demonstrations.
First he showed us how to brine a ham using a wonderful sounding concoction of cider, black treacle, bay leaves, cloves and orange zest, as well as the necessary water and salt, which are the key components of brining. We were also shown how to make our own bresaola, which is a delicious tasting air-dried, salted beef.
But the highlight of the demonstration for me was when Andy showed us how to brine a chicken…using gin! This has to be tried and if I am happy with the result, it will most certainly appear on Easy Peasy Foodie in the near future. (Note: I have now tried this…it was amazing – seriously worth it – and you can find the recipe for my Gin Brined Chicken (or Turkey) here.) The gin brine can also be used to brine a turkey…how amazing does that sound for Christmas Day?
Andy was keen to point out that brining will keep the meat moister than slapping on butter or olive oil just before you cook the chicken or turkey, and brining allows you to infuse the meat with wonderful flavours…like gin, juniper berries and lime.
I must say, before watching this demonstration I was a bit sceptical about brining, it sounded like a lot of faff. But after watching and listening to Andy I am really convinced it’s worth it and actually it sounds like a complete doddle – submerge your chicken or turkey in water, salt and flavourings. Leave for 24 hours for a chicken, or 48 hours for a turkey and then cook as normal – easy peasy! And really, really worth it – the flavour and texture of the gin-brined chicken was absolutely out of this world!
Next up we were treated to a couple of blogger networking activities. Not the sort of thing you’d usually get as part of a cookery course or dining experience, but very much the sort of thing that could be built into a bespoke corporate event at the River Cottage, where they offer team building and client entertainment events that can be built to your exact specifications.
Finally we were treated to, in my opinion, the best bit of the evening: a River Cottage Dining Experience. Our dinner began with a delicious Kingston Black Apple Aperitif, from Lyme Bay Winery, and canapés, which included mussels cooked in apple juice, pork croquettes and little toasts topped with goat’s cheese, beetroot and honey.
While we were still munching on our canapés, another of the River Cottage chefs, Sam, came out to talk us through the menu. Being a total foodie, this was a particular highlight…I really enjoyed learning about all the thought, care and attention that had gone into our meal and that it was local and seasonal (well obviously!). In fact the chefs always only decide on the menus on the morning of the River Cottage Events, so that they can ensure they are using produce at its best. Sam finished off by inviting us to pop into the kitchen to see the chefs hard at work – what a brilliant opportunity to be nosy and see how a high quality professional kitchen works!
Every aspect of our meal was delicious and the attention to detail was incredible. Our menu looked like this:
There were also veggie options and the River Cottage team will happily cater for any dietary requirements, you just need to let them know when booking.
I can honestly say I loved it all and could really taste the quality of the produce. I really liked the unusual flavour combinations, which all worked really well. I also appreciated the unfussy presentation. It was pretty without being overly cheffy or pretentious. Although there is no question that the food and cooking is very high quality, and the service is absolutely impeccable, there is also a wonderful rustic quality to dining at the River Cottage which really appealed to me.
The River Cottage is a licensed venue and there is of course an extensive wine and drinks menu – from which I could have happily ordered all sorts of wonderful sounding wines. I was pleased to see there were local English wines available too. Wanting to keep a clear head for all the Facebooking, Tweeting and Instagraming, not to mention the all-important blogger networking (well OK just chatting to a really nice bunch of like-minded people, really – can you call that networking?), I decided against ordering a glass of wine for myself, but the lovely Emma Amoscato from Free From Farmhouse let me have a taste of her bottle of Lyme Bay Shoreline, a delicious Devon white that is just bursting with honey, grapefruit and floral flavours. I will definitely be seeking out that one again in the future.
One thing I particularly liked about the River Cottage dining experience is that there are lots of little courses, rather than fewer larger ones. Spread out over a long evening of feasting, this meant I was constantly eating delicious food, yet I never felt like I’d eaten too much – a good thing as it meant I was able to indulge in a couple of lovely River Cottage petits fours at the end of the evening to go with the wonderful coffee that seemed to appear as if by magic. (A coffee which I later regretted when at gone midnight I was still buzzing…but I just can’t resist a coffee to round off a good meal).
After coffee there was just enough time for a small peruse in the shop area of the barn, where I bought a bottle of the River Cottage’s very own English Pale Ale for my lovely hubby (who was on childcare duties whilst I was away – I figured he’d need a beer!), before catching the tractor up the hill and back to reality.
Thank you River Cottage and Foodies100 for a truly magical evening. I am already plotting when I can come and visit the River Cottage again!
Tempted? Why not pop over to the River Cottage website to find out more about their courses and dining events?
And if you need a local B&B near The River Cottage, I can really recommend the place I stayed – Weycroft Mill House, a ten minute drive away in nearby Axminster. Prices start from £55 per night.
Disclosure: I was invited to spend an afternoon and evening at the River Cottage as a guest of River Cottage and Foodies 100. I was not required to write a favourable review, but after such an amazing experience it would have been hard not to!
Corina says
It sounds like such a great day. I’ve also often wondered whether it’s really worth brining meat first. After all, the turkey is always served with gravy, stuffing, cranberry sauce etc but your description is convincing me. I’m not going to be cooking the Christmas dinner this year but maybe I’ll experiment on a chicken at some point!
Eb Gargano says
Me too, Corina. It always sounds such a hassle when it’s written down in a recipe, but actually watching someone do it made me realise it really was just a 5 minute job and then some waiting! And the flavour is so worth it! Eb x
Jacqui Bellefontaine says
Oh boy I am so jealous now. What a fabulous time you must have had. Ive done a little bit of brining and am definitely keen to try more, the idea of gin brined turkey sounds amazing. Turkey can be dry, so I’m tempted to try that this year.
Eb Gargano says
Sorry! It was a fabulous time and I feel very lucky to have had the opportunity to experience the River Cottage – it’s such a magical place. The gin brined chicken really was as good as it sounds, so I can only imagine how good it would be for a Christmas turkey! Eb x
Vicki Montague says
Gorgeous gorgeous photos!!! So lovely to meet you finally!
Eb Gargano says
Aw, thanks Vicki. It did mean most of my food was a bit on the cold side as I spend such a ridiculously long time taking the photos, so I am glad it was worth it 🙂 Really lovely to meet you finally too. So sorry I didn’t get longer to chat to you – next time!!! Eb x
Angela / Only Crumbs Remain says
It certainly sounds like you all had the most amazing time Eb. I’ve loved seeing all of the images over social media with the roaring log fire, the tractor bus stop and of course the amazing food.
Angela x
Eb Gargano says
I really did! It was such a magical place and very photogenic!! Eb x
Choclette says
What a lovely write up and your photos are gorgeous. Sorry I didn’t get to meet you, there were just so many of us there! I’m doubly lucky as I’m off to a meet Hugh event at Axminster Canteen tomorrow – I might be just a little bit looking forward to it 🙂
Eb Gargano says
Aw, thanks! I did spend an awfully long time taking photos, so I’m glad it was worth it 🙂 Yeah, so sorry I didn’t get to meet you – next time, eh! Oh WOW, that sounds awesome – hope you have a fab time meeting Hugh – I might just be a teensy weensy bit jealous! 😉 Eb x
Mandy says
Oh what a fabulous experience Eb! I’ve had my eye on a course at the River Cottage for a while but it’s quite an investment both in times of time and money – something for the future I think. Would love to know what the veggie option was if you can remember. Thanks for linking up with #CookBlogShare
Eb Gargano says
It was wonderful. I would love to go back again and do one of their courses. Our demo was really just a taster of their curing and brining course – I’d love to spend a whole day doing one – and there are so many good ones to choose from – some quite unusual ones too – like wild food cookery and cheese making! The veggies had a rather delicious looking parsnip and potato rosti with a poached egg to go with the carrot puree and savoy cabbage which the rest of us had. It looked very good. 🙂 Eb x
Louise Fairweather says
I love your pic of everyone photoing the food! It was a lovely evening wasn’t it x #cookblogshare
Eb Gargano says
Haha – that’s a good one, isn’t it? It really captures what it was like. It was nice to be among like-minded people who felt the need to photograph the food and write down what it was before eating it!! 🙂 It was indeed a very lovely evening. Eb x
Intolerant Gourmand says
It was such a lovely evening wasn’t it!! And so lovely to finally meet you too! x #cookblogshare
Eb Gargano says
It really was – so great to meet you too! So sorry not to be able to chat to you longer 🙁 Next time!! Eb x
Afra says
lovely post about the event.
Eb Gargano says
Aw, thanks Afra! It was such a fab evening, wasn’t it? And so lovely to meet you! Eb x
Honestmum says
What a wonderful experience, salivating at the dreamy food, thanks for linking up to #brilliantblogposts
Eb Gargano says
It really was. I am a super lucky girl 🙂 And of course the food was AMAZING!! Eb x
Welsh Cakes and Wellies says
What a lovely experience, it looks amazing and it’s making me very hungry! Great inspiration for Christmas Day turkey, I think I’ll give it a go.
Eb Gargano says
It really was – and the food was so delicious. The gin idea is genius. Definitely going to give that one a go! Eb x
Sarah James @ Tales From The Kitchen Shed says
What a magical place Eb, no wonder you were so excited! Looks like you had a truly memorable evening, gorgeous photos. River Cottage is top of my list for visiting, thanks for sharing your experience x
Eb Gargano says
It really was, Sarah! I would so recommend a visit. They do some amazing sounding courses and a whole host of other foodie events! Eb x
Mel says
It was such a brilliant evening! Lovely write-up, with so many photos that bring back great highlights of the night. Your idea of research is pretty much the same as mine, with a quick Google the day before!
I’ve already tried a couple of things they suggested on the night. We have brined chicken (gin, gin!) this week and it was incredibly moist and delicious, and I have a piece of meat bathing in cheap red wine at the mo, which will hopefully become bresaola in 10 days or so.
Eb Gargano says
Ooh, glad to hear the chicken tasted good – though I don’t see how anything could be bad with 200ml of gin in it 😉 Hope your bresaola works out equally well 🙂 Eb x
Kate - gluten free alchemist says
Sounds like a fantastic evening with amazing food and wonderful company. So pleased you had a good time x
Eb Gargano says
It was amazing…but I was sad not to meet you there! Hope we get to meet at another event some time soon 🙂 Eb x
Charlie Hughes says
It was lovely to meet you over dinner Eb xx Lovely write up. I really enjoyed the experience and connecting to lots of new bloggers 🙂
Eb Gargano says
Aw, thanks! It was lovely to meet you too, Charlie 🙂 It was a great evening and, as you say, it was so nice meeting up with so many lovely bloggers! Eb x
Kirsty Hijacked By Twins says
It really was such a fantastic event and one that I will never forget. I cannot wait to visit with the family next time. It was also lovely to finally get together! xx
Eb Gargano says
It was such a lovely event wasn’t it? And so lovely to finally meet you! And thank you so much for the B&B tip – it was such a lovely place! Eb x