Food & Drink Reviews
Cleddau Brewing – Red and West
Pembrokeshire’s Cleddau Brewing have had a remarkable rise and are already stocked by some of Wales’ biggest supermarkets. Key to this success is a range that includes conventional strength beers, each partnered by a lower-alcohol (usually around 2%) version. Think of them as full fat and half fat, each with almost identical flavour profiles. And key to this tremendous start, is taste, None of them disappoint.
We started with the normal strength Red, a lovely copper coloured ale. Pleasant malt and roasted barley with gentle caramel notes on the palate, followed by hints of vanilla and a more toffee-ish finish, all cleaned up by gently bitter hops. I love a traditional red and this was right up there. I then blind-tasted the lo. And really struggled to taste the difference. After three or four attempts I did work it out, not because the lo was less good, it just had a very slightly different taste, a touch less malt may be. But, by George, it was still good.
And now for something completely different, West. Unsurprisingly, it’s inspired by west coast IPA’s. A lovely old gold colour, it is, contrary to recent trends towards ultra-hopping, wonderfully balanced. Yes, it’s not short on hoppy flavour and bitterness but there’s a lovely biscuity barley-ness to it and a hint of citrus. I also enjoyed its mineral profile and effervescence, which made me wonder if it had been ‘Burtonised’, such was its crisp, sparkly finish. As for the lo, this time, I honestly couldn’t tell the difference!
To our knowledge, this is the first time any brewer, anywhere, has produced a complete range of beers, each with lo and hi alcohol expressions. And what’s more, whether you opt for lo alcohol or hi, on the basis of these two, they’ll all be utterly convincing as they all taste great. Da iawn Cleddau!
Mallows Mixers
With years of experience in the drinks business, Andy and Rhys of Mallows Beverages, who are well known for their exciting range of spirits (think chocolate, chilli & sea-salt gin), have turned their innovative eye to mixers. All beautifully presented with individual floral labels, the mixers are created at the family-run firm in Mid-Wales. We sampled four. The Hot One (fiery ginger beer) has a sweet, gingery, deceptively gentle taste that is speedily followed by a fiery kick, that leaves the mouth and throat warm and deliciously tingly. Great alone but adds oomph to a Whisky Ginger. The Exotic One (mediterranean tonic) is gently aromatic with herby notes. On its own its a deliciously, elegant drink, but also beautifully complements a clean, juniper-led gin. The Being Good One (light tonic) is crisp with delicate hints of quinine. While enjoyable alone, it’s the perfect foil for a botanic-heavy gin.
The Radiant One (infused with bovine collagen) has robust quinine overtones and a gentle sharpness, and partners well with a variety of gins. The added collagen provides extra protein, meaning you could be supporting healthy skin, hair and nails while at the same time enjoying your tipple. Crafty!
Pen y Bryn Honey Confectionary
Carys, owner and founder of Pen y Bryn Apiary, fell in love with beekeeping at the tender age of 12, while helping her uncle with his beehives. Recognised for producing award-winning honeys and honey-jams (which we always enjoy reviewing at TB) we were excited to learn that she has teamed up with other North Walian producers to create unique honey-based confectionary. We tried both the Honey Dark and Honey Milk Dragon Fire Chocolate bars as well as her Luxury Honey Fudge. Packing a proverbial punch, the chocolate was like nothing we’ve tried before. The milk chocolate’s creamy tones are energized with a robust kick of chilli, while the soft honey notes gently round off the whole. Delicious. The dark chocolate has an intense depth (courtesy of 55% cocoa solids) which is cut through with tangy sea-salt and zipped up by the chilli, while the whole experience is wonderfully mellowed by the honey. Certainly not for the faint of heart. The Luxury Honey Fudge, however, is total indulgence. Created alongside master fudge-makers at Llanddwyn, it is a triumph. Sumptuous, creamy and silky fudginess, with those deliciously floral round honey tones. Absolutely gorgeous. We just couldn’t get enough.
Welsh Tapestry Marmalade from Radnor Preserves
Here at TB we are long-time superfans of Powys-based, Radnor Preserves, producers of hand-crafted preserves, marmalades and chutneys. Radnor take only best quality ingredients and transform it into glorious tasting products that celebrate the best of traditional preserve-making, while often adding their own uniquely, innovative twist. Think, Lime & Laver Marmalade or Blackberry & Cracked Black Pepper Preserve. So, you can imagine how eager we were to try Radnor’s brand-new offering, Welsh Tapestry Marmalade. Named to honour Wales’ textile heritage, it weaves together limes, lemons and ruby red grapefruits with more traditional oranges, creating a delicious tapestry of taste. We spread the amber-coloured, citrus-scented marmalade liberally on lightly buttered sourdough toast, and we loved it. Gently sweet, the higher notes from the lemons and limes make this lighter and zingier than a more traditional marmalade, while the grapefruit brings its own deeply characteristic, almost bitter citrus bass notes. No wonder this is award winning stuff. We couldn’t help but pop another slice into the toaster so that we could go again!
Fungi Foods
There has been a lot of chatter lately about the flavour and health benefits of different mushrooms, so we were keen to see what Wales has to offer. Enter Caernarfon-based purveyors of all things mushroom related, Fungi Foods, established in 2022 to supply sustainably sourced, UK grown produce. As newcomers to the world of dried mushrooms, we were initially a little wary. However, reassuringly the mushrooms all came with step-by-step rehydration instructions, as well as handy recipes and we were soon cooking up a storm! We made a deliciously creamy risotto with the Umami Risotto kit. The dried fungi delivered deep, earthy notes and an intense savouriness that elevated the dish to a league we have never previously achieved. The next evening, we stir-fried using the Exotic mix.
Different mushrooms carried unique flavours and textures, some robustly gamey, others more lightly savoury, with the carefully balanced mix lifting the entirety of the dish. And finally, famed for its cognitive enhancing properties, we tried the Lion’s Mane pieces, sauteed (some with and others without garlic) on toast. With an almost shellfish-like bite and texture, these were altogether more delicately flavoured. The gently sweet, nutty flavour was tasty on its own, but delicious with garlic. We are converts, fully understanding the fun to be had with fungi!
Hafod Brewery Sunrise
Here at taste.blas we’re rather fond of Mold based, Hafod Brewery’s beers. They have a knack of finding just the right balance between traditional and contemporary, which means every single one of their beers that we’ve tried, whilst not straying too far from exemplary styles of yester-year, manages to gently challenge and intrigue with a subtly different take on its theme.
Take Sunrise. On the face of it, it’s a classic, old-school, session pale ale. At 3.8% it’s not too strong, whilst the hop profile, barley flavours and bitterness don’t set out to assault the senses, it’s wonderfully balanced, with a refreshing, clean bitterness. But the choice of solely citrus hops also lends a lovely mellow grapefruit that slowly emerges as the liquid, and its aroma, develop in the mouth. An approach that brings it bang up to date. Precisely because it’s not a frontal assault, it makes for a great beer for a lazy, sunny day, that can easily be enjoyed all day long if the mood takes.
Marios Blackcurrant and Cassis Sorbet
It would be remiss of us not to try family-owned Mario’s Blackcurrant and Cassis Sorbet. Why? It won the Golden Fork at the most recent Great Taste Awards, which means it’s reckoned to be the absolute best food product to come out of Wales in the last year. And, of course, we’re having a blisteringly hot start to the summer, so what better way to cool off a little, whilst enjoying something that tastes sublime.
The first thing that strikes you is the vibrant colour, a delightful, vivid, summery splash of deep mauve invites you in. This is courtesy of the real blackcurrants (not syrup or flavouring) and is also clearly evident in the explosion of flavour as it hits your tastebuds. Bold, fresh currant tartness, offset by a gentle fruit sweetness, all taken to another level of intensity by the deep, complex, cassis. And it just keeps revealing more levels of flavour and intensity as it melts in the mouth. Added to this is the texture. It’s as close to ice-cream, with its velvety, dense mouthfeel, as any sorbet we’ve tried, and not at all icy (as is too often the case). It just screams luxury, in every sense, while remaining true to what a sorbet should be – refreshing and zingy. Fully deserving of a Golden Fork.
In The Welsh Wind Ceredig
Ceredig is the second in Ceredigion-based In The Welsh Wind’s ‘flight’ of three blended malt whiskies. It’s not a single malt, being blended from single malts from across Wales with their own ‘green malt’ (a first for them and the UK). Made from 100% unkilned barley, grown locally, it is then aged in bourbon and port casks. But don’t fall into thinking blended means compromised. This little beauty is as stunning as many a single malt.
On the nose, the first impressions were more sherry than port, and touches of candied fruit. The more I focussed, the more I thought I’m getting heather honey, alongside freshly cut wood. On the palate, it’s delicate and refined, with a little patience revealing layers of subtle spice and hints of caramel on top of the aforementioned sherry and grassy, woody notes. A few drops of water accentuate these and unearth a touch of smokiness, sufficient to wrap your tongue around. The gentle spice notes subside in the finish, to also reveal red wine aromas and mouthfeel.
Ceredig isn’t a brutal assault on the senses. It’s a cultured and classy dram that allows you to take your time hunting out its wonderful nuances. The ‘green malt’ in combination with other fine Welsh malts, alongside top-drawer blending, prove that a blend can be remarkable, in its own right.
Conwy Brewery Beachcomber
Conwy have gone from strength to strength in recent years and now have a range that offers beers for every conceivable occasion. For long summer days they have plenty of options from a hoppy Cali IPA’s to a sharp, refreshing Helles lager. Pitched somewhere in the middle is Beachcomber. It’s a blonde beer that boasts a fuller bodied, more beery taste, that most ale drinkers yearn for, with gently forward hops, and a nice sharp grapefruit-like pick-me-up zing. Conwy’s bottle conditioning lends it a gentle yeast flavour, akin to some Belgium Abbey beers, which adds even more interest, leaning gently towards lager territory. What’s more, when served chilled, it has a fundamentally light, crisp nature, giving it that invigorating ‘lager’ style that we’re all so desperate for on hot day.
If you like your ales, but want something that’s both interesting, with plenty to tickle your tastebuds, and refreshing without a hop onslaught, give it a try – you’ll be mighty pleased you did.
Coconut Kitchen Sauces and Dressings
We've long been fans of Coconut Kitchen's Thai pastes and sauces – the only shop-bought versions we've tried that genuinely match freshly made restaurant flavours. Coconut Kitchen began as a restaurant in Abersoch, twice awarded Wales' Best Oriental Restaurant, which explains why their pastes are so authentic – made to exacting standards from fresh, genuine ingredients. Since 2018 they've focused purely on their retail range, steadily expanding it, and we've now tried three of their latest additions.
First up was the Chilli, Garlic and Basil Thai stir-fry sauce, cooked with king prawns and veg. Two things stood out: an unbelievable depth of flavour, thanks to quality ingredients – green peppercorns, chilli, garlic and Thai basil, all toasted before blending – and real skill in the balance, with no single flavour overpowering the others and a lovely chilli kick. It also tastes wonderfully natural, not oversweetened, with none of the synthetic quality found in many similar sauces.
The same principles held for the other two. The Honey, Garlic and Pepper Sauce, used as a marinade for chicken and pork ribs, was sweeter, as you’d expect, but equally natural, blessed with caramelised honey, ginger, garlic and oriental spices that taste great. Finally, the Miso, Sesame and Lime dressing offered wonderful umami depth while staying lighter and fresher, with zesty lime and nutty sesame shining through, perfect for a crunchy salad. Versatile too – it worked brilliantly as a stir-fry sauce and to add substance to ramen broth. Essentials for any kitchen!
Dà Mhìle Absinthe
Dà Mhìle’s is a remarkable story, born from the vision of one man, John Savage-Onstwedder, who had already founded Caws Teifi artisan cheese makers. In the early 1990s, John set out to create a malt whisky to mark the new millennium, and it would be organic, a world first. Fast-forward 30 years and Dà Mhìle is going strong, producing a range of exceptional and imaginative organic spirits onsite that continue the legacy. I have the good fortune to be trying their 3-star Great Taste winning Absinthe, while, appropriately, watching France play Spain.
It’s an organic classic Absinthe, the green variety, steeped in herbs post-distillation for colour and flavour. Neat, despite its smoothness and lack of burn, its strength (67% abv), wormwood bitterness and intense aniseed and fennel make it a bit of a challenge, best savoured in small measures, as you’d expect from a quality absinthe. The custom is to bring it down to under 40% abv with ice-cold water, then progressively add more to taste. This gives a trademark haze and transforms it, releasing abundant, fragrant aniseed, fennel and herb aromas, and revealing layer after layer of complex flavour: sweet black liquorice, dry grassy herbs and an invigorating bitterness. A spot of sugar, ideally added the traditional way by pouring water slowly over a cube into the absinthe below, softens the bitterness further. It’s an amazing experience. Don’t discount Absinthe based on past experiences or a dislike of aniseed. Quality breaks boundaries, and this is a different league. France may have lost, but Dà Mhìle’s Absinthe is a clear winner.
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