West Cork’s Sally Barnes honoured at prestigious awards

The Food Writer Awards were always a highlight of my social calendar and an event I wouldn’t have liked to miss. The awards are slightly different these days as the guild members still award producers but there is no ceremony once more. This year, keep an eye out for the following products:

Food Award: Bread 41, Dublin

Food Award: Calvey's Achill Mountain Lamb, Mayo

Food Award: Coolfin cheese, Galway

Irish Drink Award: All About Kombucha, Galway

Notable contribution to Irish Food Award: Stefan Griesbach of Gannet Fishmongers, Galway

Environmental Award: Rock Farm Slane, Meath

Community Food Award: Our Table, Dublin

Lifetime Achievement Award: Sally Ferns Barnes, Cork

I was delighted to see that Sally Barnes has been awarded the Lifetime Achievement Award – after many (and I mean many) years of championing Irish food and promoting artisan food here and abroad.

Sally is part of the original trailblazers who have transformed Irish food. I met Sally many years ago at the launch of the West Cork Food Festival. She gave a speech and I was so impressed by her passion and knowledge of the emerging food landscape that I contacted her for a write up on the speech.

Sally is a down to earth person; no frills but honest hard work. She was one of the few Irish producers who took the overall prize at the Great Taste Awards in the UK for her smoked tuna. Sally is now giving fish smoking workshops at her smokery in West Cork – check out www.woodcocksmokery.com for details.

I haven’t made it to Bread 41 in Dublin yet but it is on my bucket list. I have heard great things. Eoin Cluskey who is originally a carpenter but opened Bread 41 after a course in Ballymaloe.

Calvey’s Achill Mountain Lamb is long a favourite of chefs who love the quality of the meat, the tenderness and flavour. If you can get your hands on it for Easter, be sure that your family will love you for it.

Coolfin Cheese is made by Teresa Roche of Kylemore Cheese – relatively new to the Irish cheese scene, she has made already a mark that has impressed cheese judges as well as food lovers across Ireland.

Kombucha has gained a huge following over the last few years due to its health benefits. All About Kombucha was founded in 2017 by Emmett Kerrigan and Keith Loftus who brew freshly fermented sparkling tea from organic ingredients. It is available in raspberry, ginger and lemon and carrot and turmeric flavours.

I can’t say much about Gannet Fishmongers or Stefan Griesbach but next time I am in Galway I might just pop in. Same goes for Rock Farm Slane.

Our Table in Dublin is an amazing initiative founded by Malawian Ellie Kisyombe, a former asylum seeker, met café owner and food writer Michelle Darmody - Our Table is a community-based, social enterprise that uses food as a way to connect, start a conversation and draw attention to the realities of those living in Direct Provision. Congratulations to all winners!