The County of Good Taste
Rutland is well-known as The County of Good Taste, and for good reason. This month ahead of a wealth of events for those who love good food and drink, we’re celebrating a few of the area’s best suppliers and retailers across Rutland (and Stamford) who can help you enjoy the best local products
For local food and drink, both Rutland and Stamford are blessed with some great local suppliers. Over the next few pages, we’ll be meeting some of them and finding out the story behind their produce. Meanwhile, if you’re keen to shop for local food and drink, and to enjoy a great day out too, there are a few forthcoming events we ought to make you aware of…
Rutland Flower Show
A week after Pride appears in print, the Rutland Flower Show takes place on the Rutland Showground from Friday 15th-Sunday 17th August. In addition to its garden theatre, floral displays and live music, there’s a dedicated fine foods marquee with local suppliers and food to enjoy on the day or to take home, ticket £15/adv.
See www.rutlandflowershow.co.uk.
Burghley Summer Fine Food Market
Taking place in the courtyard of Burghley House from 23rd-25th August, the Summer Fine Food Market brings together artisan food producers and street food vendors, in the Chestnut and Stables courtyards. Entry is free, and of course you also get to enjoy the parkland and gardens of Burghley House in all their glory, too!
Free entry, see www.burghley.co.uk.
Rutland Food & Drink Festival
Taking place on Sunday 21st September in Oakham Castle and its grounds, the Market Place and Victoria Hall, the Rutland Food & Drink Festival features over 70 local suppliers and street food vendors. The event is part of Rutland Food & Drink Week which includes discounted dining at some of the best local restaurants and a week of special set menus making the most of local produce.
Free entry, see www.discover-rutland.co.uk.
Rockingham Castle Autumn Artisan Fair
A vibrant mix of local food, drink, and craft producers for a truly memorable experience at Rockingham Castle on Saturday 20th & Sunday 21st September, £7/adults.
See www.rockinghamcastle.com.
The Olive Branch Masterclasses
And finally… when it comes to food and drink, who better to take some hints and tips from than Ben Fisher, Head Chef of The Olive Branch at Clipsham. The pub restaurant hosts an English Wine Dinner in association with the Gusborne Estate on Thursday 25th September, and will host one of its regular Cookery Demonstration events with a three course meal on Thursday 11th September, plus bread, pasta and butchery masterclasses on 8th and 25th September too.
See www.theolivebranchpub.com.
High Welfare Local Beef, Lamb and Pork
British agriculture produces 85% of the beef, 65% of the pork and 114% of the lamb, plus 82% of the poultry and 87% of the eggs we consume in our diets. Collectively, the meat and poultry sector within agriculture is worth nearly £24bn. Sadly, three quarters of that comes from supermarkets, but buying from local producers often means lower food miles, more support for the local economy, and often better quality meat with higher standards of welfare too
Farmer Lou
It’s a busy time for Farmer Lou in Exton. We’re calling just as harvest is beginning, with over 200 acres of barley straw to cut and bale. It’ll make comfortable bedding for her cows, pigs, ewes and sheep during the cooler months. Lou (Louise Scott) doesn’t come from a farming background but started her mixed farming operation in 2012 with just two lamb and four pigs. Today, Lou provides high-welfare grass-fed beef, lamb and pork, selling directly to the public with all meat butchered on site to minimise food miles. Lou provides meat boxes with six or seven items to last the whole week. Also available in the farm shop are sausages, burgers, and award-winning cheese and free range eggs.
(07807 748352, www.farmerlou.co.uk).
Hambleton Farm
Based on the Rutland peninsular and run by Will Nelson and his family, Hambleton Farms raises livestock across 1,000 acres and sources meat from other high welfare local farms too. In August 2019 they moved their butchery into the newly-established Gates Garden Centre Farm Shop and now provide everything from 28-day dry aged beef to local lamb, homemade pies, deli goods plus cooked meats, cheese and charcuterie.
(01664 452847, hambletonfarms.co.uk).
Grasmere Farm
Grasmere Farm is an award-winning pork butcher raising their own Hampshire Cross since 1969 when the Stables family founded the business. As well as shops in the Deepings, Bourne, and in Stamford, you can shop online too, via the company’s website.
(01778 342344, www.grasmere-farm.co.uk).
Northfield Farm
Leo McCourt is a second generation farmer who joined his dad Jan on the family’s farm between Pickwell and Whissendine, just off the A606 after studying at Moulton Agricultural College. Leo adores his Aberdeen Angus, Dexter and White Park cows, and his 100 ewes, mostly Lleyns and Charollais. The family slow-rear their animals on natural pasture ensuring high welfare. The family’s farm shop sells meat and poultry, plus local cheese and deli goods, but you can also shop online via their website.
(01664 474271, www.northfieldfarm.com).
Launde Farm
The Owen family established Launde Farm in 2005 to produce ethically-reared lamb, and now have over 1,600 ewes, mostly Aberfield Cross, adjacent to Launde Abbey. There’s a good farm shop and local delivery is also available to a 15 mile radius.
(01572 490428, laundefarmfoods.co.uk).
Leeson Butchers
|Based on Oakham’s High Street, Steve Leeson has been serving the county since 1998, and has taken the gold award for his pork pies in the worldwide championships at Melton Mowbray in 2018, 2019, 2021, 2022 and 2023, as well as winning countless other prizes at Melton & Belvoir Fat Stock shows. You can buy the company’s products online and have them delivered straight to the door.
(01572 770244, www.leesonbutchers.co.uk).
Artisan Cheese
There are 700 officially recognised British cheese varieties, and as a country we produce over half a million tonnes of cheese every year. That suggests we’re a nation of cheese lovers… however, over 70% of the UK’s cheese production – 358,400 tonnes, is common or garden Cheddar, suggesting that whilst we do love our cheese, and as diverse a country of cheese producers we are (believe it or not, France only has 400 varieties!), we’re not very adventurous as consumers, nor are we particularly good at supporting our local cheese producers and retailers.Happily, in our region, it’s easy to broaden your palate with some rather good retailers and producers very close by…
Otters Fine Foods
Otters was established in Oakham and moved to its current High Street premises in November 2019. A great selection of British, French and Spanish cheese includes soft, hard and smoked cheese with bespoke cheese boards and cheese companions available, and online shopping available too.
(01572 756481, www.ottersfinefoods.co.uk).
Rennet & Rind
One of the area’s most knowledgeable cheese retailers, Rennet & Rind on Stamford’s High Street was founded in 1989 by Mark Hulme, who was joined by Perry Wakeman in 2013. Rennet & Rind became a Patron Academy of Cheese in 2017. Both Mark and Perry are award-winning Affineurs, World Cheese Award Judges, Patrons of the Academy of Cheese and members of the Internationale Guilde des Fromagers. Online shopping and Mystery Cheese Boxes are both available.
(01480 831112, www.rennetandrind.co.uk).
Milk & Ice Cream
In Britain, over 10,800 active dairy farms and their 1.8m dairy cows produce 15bn litres of milk each year, of which 6bn litres is for ‘liquid milk’ i.e.: sold in supermarkets, delivered or consumed in restaurants and cafés. 4.8bn is used to make cheese. Leicestershire and Rutland (DEFRA doesn’t separate the two) has 2,093 farms of which 84 are dairy farms (taking up 12,000 hectares of land with a dairy cow population of 13,800). You can buy milk directly from dairies via vending machines at Vine Farm Dairy Great Dalby (www.vinefarmdairy.co.uk) and the farm’s 350 strong herd of Montbeliarde, Holstein and Jersey cows. Gates Garden Centre’s Farm Shop (01664 454309, www.gatesgardencentre.co.uk) also has a milk vending machine, as does Bassingthorpe Milk at Manor Farm, Boothby Pagnall just off the A1 near Grantham (07908 651815). Meanwhile, Ferneley’s Ice Cream makes the best use of milk from their farm’s 150 pedigree British Fresians to produce as many as 18 different flavours of ice cream at a time, as well as keeping the area’s Stilton producers supplied too. Four generations have been working on the farm since it was established in 1933 and the family put the welfare of their herd and sustainability right at the heart of their operation. The cows – and the farm’s 100 ewes – enjoy a grass-based diet and the farm’s milk is available to purchase in the café and farm shop, which also has a play area and adventure golf course. Enjoy delicious ice cream in the sunshine, or take home a tub or two, and enjoy the delicious taste of the countryside, confident in the knowledge that Ferneley’s herd of British Fresians is among the happiest in the country
(01664 567525, www.ferneleys.co.uk).
Freshly Baked Bread and Cakes|
Not all bread is created equally. Despite the fact that, every day, UK households buy 11m loaves of bread (it’s one of the most common products in our grocery baskets, with 99.8% of households purchasing it) most of the bread we buy is… rubbish. Most of the bread we purchase (80% in fact) is produced using the ultra-fast Chorleywood method. The method was devised at the Chorleywood Flour Milling and Bakery Research Association laboratories in 1961 and reduced the time it took to produce a loaf of bread to a couple of hours rather than, say, 24 hours to allow time for slow fermentation. Ideal for supermarkets, but problematic as ‘fast’ bread is less digestible for those who struggle with gluten, and Chorleywood bread is prone to going mouldy, rather than stale, hence why a third of the bread in Britain (680,000 tonnes year) is thrown away. Happily, there’s another way. Artisan bakeries produce proper bread, and in our area, we’re spoilt for choice with some exceptional bakeries who can help you to fall in love with fresh bread all over again; toasted, slathered in jam or just loaded with proper butter.
Hambleton Bakery
We can’t begin a roundup of the area’s proper bakeries anywhere but in Exton. Back in 2008, Tim Hart, owner of Hambleton Hall, and one of his pastry chefs, Julian Carter, set up Hambleton Bakery. Today the bakery produces 400,000 loaves a year, with 150 wholesale customers and six shops Exton, Oakham, Stamford etc…) and 98 members of staff. Bread accounts for three quarters of the bakery’s output. You can also ‘click and collect’ or purchase it from the company’s Exton bakery and café (open seven day a week), or your local farm shop such as Gates Garden Centre.
(01572 766906, hambletonbakery.co.uk).
Baines Bakery
Established in 1867 by Senior Baines and operating from an early C17th building in Uppingham, the fifth generation of the Baines family still produce quality bread and teatime treats, also stocking products like Rutland honey and Rutland rapeseed oil.
(01572 823317, www.bainesbakery.co.uk).
Cakehead
Rutland’s Helen and Christopher Finnegan created Cakehead in 2004 and deliver boxes of delicious brownies, blondies and caramel shortbreads to your door.
(01572 758940, www.cakehead.co.uk).
Cakes & Co
100% homemade cakes handmade by Stewart and Jade and from teatime confectionery to celebration cakes by the slice or whole cake to collect from the company’s Broad Street bakery and café.
(01780 238370, cakesandcostamford.com)
Jams, Chutneys, Pickles and Preserves
Learn to Preserve: Rosie Jameson is Rutland’s foremost expert on making jams, preserves, chutneys, mustards and on pressure canning too. Having written four recipe books on the subject plus A Bit of a Jam, which is part-autobiographical part-instructional, Rosie offers her books alongside her online courses and is looking to host live courses and demonstrations too, in 2026.
01572 492294, www.rosiemakesjam.com.
Saints & Sinners: Based near Bourne, Saints & Sinner was founded in 2008 by Elaine Dreyer and today, with help from Nicola and Pauline, the three create their traditional batches of homemade products. No fewer than 40 varieties of jam, 36 marmalades, 28 chutneys, six jellies, and raspberry or blackberry vinegar, plus gift sets and more. Products are make using hedgerow-foraged berries, and an online shop allows you to have everything from apricot, almond and amaretto conserve to raspberry & white chocolate conserve or red onion marmalade and farmhouse chutney delivered to your door.
01775 724580, or see www.saintsandsinnerspreserves.co.uk.
Country Kitchen Creations: Richard and Kaye Griffin moved to Lodge Farm in 2000 and by 2003 had started converting outbuildings and barns to provide self-catering accommodation four miles north of Stamford in the medieval hamlet of Aunby. The cottages, overlooking rolling countryside, are set in 5 acres where they have created orchards, woodland, lakes, and flower and vegetable kitchen gardens. They are passionate about achieving their target of self sufficiency from their kitchen gardens which yield lots of fruit, vegetables, and herbs and they are able to offer any surplus for sale to passing locals. The couple (lovingly referred to by friends as Tom and Barabra), say they love knowing what goes into growing their food and they produce everything from chilli jams and hand cut piccalilli to crab apple mint jelly, redcurrant & raspberry jam, as well as Richard’s award winning honey (from his on site apiary), and freshly laid eggs from their chickens. We can definitely recommend visiting the couple’s website and seeing what is available.
07496 068 702, www.clematiscottages.co.uk.
The Herb Nursery, Thistleton
Whether you’re looking for parsley, sage, rosemary or thyme… or any other herb, there’s only one name you need to know in the area. The herb nursery in Thistleton.
Established in 1976 by Arthur & Nancy Bench, it’s now run by second generation of the family, Peter and Christine, ably assisted by Peter’s sister Sally and Paul who bring a wealth of knowledge to the nursery. There are 1,500 plants – herbaceous, vegetables and Pelargoniums – at the nursery with different varieties of each, and some impressive unique varieties too. This is an ideal time for establishing fresh herbs for cooking on your kitchen windowsill or in a sunny orangery.
01572 767658, www.herbnursery.co.uk.
Tea, Coffee & Soft Drinks
Britain’s love affair with hot drinks shows no signs of cooling. As a nation, we consume around 100 million cups of tea and 95 million cups of coffee every single day—proof that these comforting, energising beverages are at the heart of our daily routines.
Rutland Tea Company
Rutland Tea Company crafts premium blends using carefully selected whole leaf teas from ethical estates around the world. Their range spans elegant classics like Earl Grey and Assam, as well as some more adventurous herbal and fruit infusions plus tea-related gifts.
(www.rutlandtea.co.uk).
Derwent & Dunne
Artisan coffee roaster Derwent & Dunne was established in 2022 with a single goal, to make a positive difference to the lives of its customers through the power of great coffee. Each of the company’s coffees are named after founders Crispin & Juliet Moger’s beloved dogs… we recommend Bo’s blend!
(01780 432788, derwentanddunne.co.uk).
Two Chimps Coffee
Andy Cross & Laura Shead roast heir premium coffees in Oakham, under their brand Two Chimps, established in 2016. Coffee delivery subscriptions and coffee tasting experiences are available, and you can even attend a blending session to create your own personalised coffee!
(01572 774389, www.twochimpscoffee.com).
Belvoir Fruit Farms
From its farm in the Vale of Belvoir, this family-run business creates award-winning cordials and sparkling drinks using fresh ingredients. Pev Manners began the business, turning his mother’s homemade elderflower cordial into a commercial product. It remains the halo product, but since then Belvoir Fruit Farm’s range has grown to include a cordials, pressés and non-alcoholic mocktails, available in bottles and cans. Brand new products for the company include their Sparkling Cherry & Raspberry, Passionfruit & Mango drink and a Pink Grapefruit Paloma Mocktail.
(01476 870286, belvoirfruitfarms.co.uk).
Wines & Spirits
Rutland Vineyard, Ketton
Set amidst the rolling hills just south of Ketton, Rutland Vineyard’s tasting barn is a great place to sit and enjoy spectacular views over a glass of First Crush White, Second Nature White and now Second Nature Red, too. Cheese board supplied by Stamford’s Rennet & Rind, good coffee and homemade cakes are available too. Visitors can also book guided vineyard tours and tastings.
www.rutlandvineyard.co.uk
Mallard Point Wine
Mallard Point’s vineyards in Essendine are home to a boutique producer with a flair for innovation. As well as producing elegant still wines, they are one of the first in the area to create a sparkling rosé. The business is also deeply rooted in sustainable farming, with a circular ethos and eco-conscious packaging.
www.mallardpoint.co.uk
Oakham Wines
Tucked away on the High Street, Oakham Wines is a long-established retailer of wines and spirits, offering excellent advice and recommendations.
01572 757124, oakhamwines.co.uk
L’Art de Vivre
L’Art de Vivre brings a taste of France to Mill Street in Oakham, with a superb range of fine wines imported directly from French producers.
01572 724600, www.lartdevivre.co.uk
Bat & Bottle, Oakham
Italy is the passion behind Bat & Bottle, Oakham’s specialist importer of Italian wines. Ben and Emma Robson champion small, independent winemakers and lesser-known regions such as Liguria and Friuli.
01572 759735, www.batwine.uk
Adnams
Adnams’ Stamford branch is one of just a handful of satellite stores outside its Southwold home. Here, visitors can explore the brand’s award-winning spirits, such as its Copper House Dry Gin, alongside craft beers and global wines. Knowledgeable staff and regular sampling events make it a brilliant spot for gifts or stocking the drinks cabinet.
01780 482200, www.adnams.co.uk.
Tipplemill Gin
This artisanal distillery produces London Dry gin inspired by Lincolnshire’s rural character. Tipplemill’s gin is distilled using wheat from the family’s farm own fields and locally-grown botanicals.
www.tipplemill.co.uk
Multum Gin Parvo
Named after the Latin expression for ‘much in little,’ Multum Gin Parvo is a Rutland-based distillery offering flavours like Rhubarb & Pomegranate Jam Gin, Grape & Rutland Gooseberry, Rutland Marmalade Gin, Strawberry & Rutland Lavender and Earl Gray & Rutland Honey plus sloe gin and their citrussy Gincello.
www.multumginparvo.com
Warner’s Distillery
|Although just over the border in Northamptonshire, Warner’s is one of the most established local distilleries. Known for Rhubarb, Apple & Pear, and Raspberry flavours as well as alcohol-free and London Dry gin.
01858 437521, warnersdistillery.com
Baker’s Dozen
This Stamford-based craft brewery was founded by Matt Baker, who brews a core range alongside seasonal specials, both in cans and casks.
www.bakersdozenbrewing.co.uk
Grainstore Brewery, Oakham
Brewing since 1995, Grainstore’s 10 regular beers include Rutland Bitter Osprey and Ten Fifty although there are a range of seasonal ales and ciders too including Tupping Ale from September. Shop online with home delivery, or pop into the brewery taproom, a lively hub, with live music, pub quizzes and freshly brewed ale courtesy of founders William Davis and Peter Atkinson.
01572 770065, grainstorebrewery.com
The Rutland Cider Company
Reviving a centuries-old tradition of cider-making in Rutland, this small-scale producer presses apples from local orchards and hedgerows. Its ciders are dry, unfiltered and full of character, crafted with minimal intervention and maximum flavour. Seasonal releases and limited-edition blends make each bottle a taste of the local countryside.
www.rutlandcider.co.uk.