The gentle twittering of the dawn chorus is a lovely way to welcome a new day. But even if you live in a noisy metropolis, you can now wake-up to the sound of real birdsong wherever you are…
Blue tit, photo by Ray Kennedy (rspb-images.com)
BBC Radio 3 will be featuring birdsong throughout May and June as part of its foray into ‘slow radio’. Air-time will be given over to slower-paced, nature-inspired output designed to encourage listeners to pause and appreciate the simple sounds of life. A new feature, Breakfast Birdsong, will air each weekend as part of the Sunday breakfast show between 7-9am.
Breakfast Birdsong will begin with the introduction of a bird (such as the nightingale, cuckoo or warbler), followed by the chance to hear a recording of that bird in the wild and paired with a piece of music. Listeners are promised at least one minute or more of pure birdsong during each programme.
Blackbird, photo by Ray Kennedy (rspb-images.com)
BBC Radio 3’s Late Junction and World on 3 will present a special collaboration with singer and folksong collector Sam Lee in a series exploring what happens when one of nature’s finest singers, the nightingale, meets human artistic creation. Every spring, during the months of April and May, the woods of Sussex resound with the songs of the nightingale. Sam Lee and his musical colleagues venture into the woods to make music with the nightingales, creating a series of completely new, nature-inspired compositions for the Radio 3 audience. The late-night sessions will be broadcast from Tuesday 10 – Friday 13 May and alongside Sam Lee (13 May) will feature Alice Zawadzki (vocals and fiddle, 10 May), Rachel Musson (saxophone, 11 May) and Hyelim Kim (taegum, 12 May).
BBC Radio 3’s birdsong recordings (image Sam Lee)
Later in the summer, Radio 3 returns to the Aldeburgh Festival and will broadcast a complete performance of Messiaen’s birdsong-inspired Catalogue d’Oiseaux (Sunday 19 June). Performed by the festival’s Artistic Director Pierre-Laurent Aimard across four concerts set alongside the myriad real-life birdsong of the Suffolk coast, the piece will be arranged so that the birds depicted are heard as close as possible to the times of day associated with their song, from the pre-dawn chorus before first light at 4:30am over the reedbeds at Snape Maltings to a pre-dusk performance amidst the teeming wildlife of the RSPB Minsmere nature reserve and a late-night concert recorded in full darkness. Complementing the performance, Tom Service takes ornithological matters as his starting point in The Listening Service, for an exploration of the way composers use birdsong in music (5pm, Sunday 19 June).
There may be a rather large RHS flower show taking place in the neighbourhood this May, but this year’s Chelsea Fringe is coming up roses…
Robert Bradford, Flower Poodle, 2016 (Courtesy the artist and Rebecca Hossack Gallery)
The 2016 Chelsea Fringe, the alternative garden festival, has plenty of quirky delights of the floral variety to keep gardeners (and non-gardeners) alike in the pink. Art, design, poetry, music, science and food with a horticultural focus will come together for three weeks of events from 21 May – 12 June across London, the UK and four international locations.
The festival expands beyond SW3 to every London quarter, the far corners of the UK including the Isle of Mull in Scotland, Monmouth in Wales, Margate, Leeds, Bristol and Henley-on-Thames in England, and internationally to Sweden, Poland, Italy and Australia.
Emerging themes for the 2016 Fringe include: health and well-being – the essential benefits of medicinal plants and gardening in battling depression and other health issues; wild food is the new street food – urban food foraging and how to spot edible plants and flowers in a city’s green spaces; a history of guerilla gardening – the importance of green spaces in urban planning and public spaces; domestic farming – how to use your garden space for small-scale food production; and the more decorative art of flower arranging – from how to make posies & table centerpieces to a floating flotilla on the Thames.
Covent Garden Flower Market (Image courtesy the Chelsea Fringe)
A few highlights from the festival include:
Heywood and Condie’s Greenhouse – horticultural installation artists Heywood & Condie have created a piece of sculptural architecture on the forecourt of Royal British Society of Sculptors consisting of a greenhouse constructed from discarded 18th and 19th stained glass. The Christian imagery has been dismantled and reused to present a world of chimeras, mythical creatures and folkloric hybrids. 25 May until September. FREE.
Borough Market: Find and Feast – Join urban forager, Ceri Buckmaster, on a wild food walk around Southwark and discover how to identify seasonal plants and flowers in some unexpected locations, then finish the morning at the demonstration kitchen in Borough Market and learn how to cook delicious recipes using them with chef and food blogger Celia Brooks. 27 May, 11am-2.30pm. FREE.
Perfume in Georgian London – east London Antique emporium, Townhouse, present a series of talks by renowned horticulturist, Stephen Nelson, focusing on the English garden and its direct link to perfume over the past four centuries. 31 May, 3-4pm. FREE.
Prescribing gardens and gardening for mental health and well-being – the British Medical Association Mind Garden presents a lecture series on medicinal plants and their health benefits. 26 May, 2 June, 9 June, 4.30 – 6.30pm. FREE.
Behind the Wall – New Covent Garden Flower Market are offering free tours behind the scenes of the UK’s largest flower market. Visitors will get to see what inspires London’s florists and learn about the market’s history. 21 May, 7 – 8.30pm, FREE.
Floral Flotilla – A fabulous show of a range of river craft covered in variety of floral displays will moor up adjacent to Mill House in Henley-on Thames. Visitors on foot can enjoy a picnic on the bank accompanied by live music by local musicians. 21 May, 11am-3pm. FREE.
Love your morning cup of fairtrade coffee? Now you can visit the actual producers on these brand new tours to Latin America with responsible travel specialists Sumak Travel. Founder Felipe Zalamea explains what to expect on their new Fair Trade Adventures…
View over the stunning Teyuna, or Lost City in Colombia
It is pretty simple to find fair trade coffee or bananas in a supermarket, or fair trade handicrafts online. But it’s still quite difficult for a conscious traveller to find genuine fair trade holidays. From the very beginning, fair trade principles have been at the core of our social business model. When we met with Cafedirect Producers’ Foundation last year, we thought it was the time to go for it: a series of fair trade small group tours to Latin America. So we joined forces to create new and exciting travel experiences, Fair Trade Adventures.
These innovative tours give travellers the rare opportunity to meet many of the outstanding people behind popular fair trade products, such as the artisans behind beautiful handicrafts and the farmers behind the organic coffee you drink every morning.
Harvested coffee beans near Cuzco, Peru (Pic by Harry Dowdney)
12 days in Peru, Costa Rica and Columbia
Travellers will also visit iconic destinations such as Machu Picchu, and off-the-beaten path locations that are truly stunning. We are starting with 12-day trips to Peru (departing 22 April), Costa Rica (departing 14 May), Colombia (departing 20 August) and Northern Peru (departing 16 Sept) this year. Download the brochure for the full itineraries.
What to expect on a Fair Trade Adventure
We believe these tours are the perfect mix of adventure, culture, wildlife, iconic destinations and a little rest and relaxation! And if you’re looking forward to staring the day with something other a commute by train, tube or car, we’ve included boat trips, hiking, horse-riding, 4x4s, bicycles, canoeing and a 40m high suspension bridge!
You could…kick-start the day with a cup of freshly-ground Machu Picchu coffee before visiting the Inca citadel itself; take part in artisanal fishing on Lake Titicaca; visit organic farms along Costa Rica’s Caribbean coastline; venture down the Yorkin River deep into the jungle to meet members of the indigenous Bribri tribe and hear their ancient stories; hop on an immaculate old Willy´s jeep through super-scenic Valle del Cocora, in Colombia’s coffee region; venture completely off the beaten path in Northern Peru to taste the pulp of some of the world’s best cocoas and try your hand at making ceviche and mixing pisco sours; and last but not least, simply chill on pristine white sand beaches.
These tours are not about passively visiting people and places, but actively engaging with them, and returning home feeling enriched and alive again!
View of the Lake Titicaca, Peru – Pic by Harry Dowdney
Where you’ll be staying, what you’ll be eating
Homestays are an important feature on many of Sumak Travel’s existing tours, and our Fair Trade Adventures are no exception. To find out more about the concept, you can read about homely homestays in Lake Titicaca, on our blog.
You could be staying with Ticos in San Jose, Costa Rica, or the Ashaninka Native Community San Miguel, in the Perené Valley, Peru. You’ll also be able to stay on farms and coffee plantations – and try your hand at milking cows, cutting sugar cane, making artisanal cheese and catching your own fish for dinner! But don’t worry, you can also sit back and enjoy the delights of a traditional Caribbean food, Andean recipes with a modern twist, Puma coffee, banana creams, tropical fruits, and some of the world’s best cocoa.
Uros Island, Lake Titicaca (pic by Marvin de Kievit)
Supporting and promoting fair tourism
A fair trade approach to tourism is very much needed in the developing world, and in particular in destinations where tourism is the main industry. If you are tired of mass tourism and tourist traps, if you are looking for an unusual holiday where you can meet fantastic people, and if you would like to learn from some of the amazing people behind our fair trade staples, these tours are for you.
We are strong advocates of fair trade and sustainability, and would love to be able to show you that responsible tourism is not only the most rewarding option, but can be the most exciting one too.
The type of activity and variety of experiences included have been chosen to be as inclusive as possible, making the tours great for solo travellers, couples, groups of friends, and families alike. They are 12 to 14 days long, but for those who can stay longer and have more specific interests (bird-watching, hiking, wildlife, adventure sports, beaches etc), we have created special add-ons, that can be easily included too.
For more information – including prices, dates and booking visit the Fair Trade Adventures page on our website, download the brochure, or contact us at fairtrade@sumak-travel.org or T: 020 3642 4246.
Colourful La Candelaria, in Bogota centre, Colombia
To celebrate the new Chinese Year of the Monkey, we visited the UK’s first Magical Lantern Festival…
Don’t let the typical February weather put you off visiting this spectacular outdoor show (wind and rain made an unwelcome appearance the evening we visited – just wrap up warm and take waterproofs!). The Magical Lantern Festival, making its UK debut at Chiswick House in west London, is a sight to behold, offering enough ‘oooh’ and ‘ahhh’ moments to warm the most jaded of hearts.
The festival is essentially a 1hr+ trail around the grand Chiswick House gardens to view around 50 amazing and beautiful lantern displays. Don’t just think pretty lights – these are intricate and often HUGE sculptures of flowers, animals, birds and temples.
Highlights included the cute pandas, sparkling jellyfish, giant flowers, flocks of flamingoes, a life-sized African safari, and a 60m long Chinese dragon! There are super-sized light sculptures of giraffes, zebra, monkeys and antelope; giant goldfish, Oriental ducks and frogs on lily pads; decorated swans, peacocks and elephants; cute renderings of the Chinese zodiac characters; a ‘terracotta army’; even a marching band of ants.
Good use is made of the grand setting with illuminations floating on the lake, dotted around the trees and set against the Palladian architecture of Chiswick House. (click on our galleries for more pictures from the festival)
Food & Drink
There are a smattering of street food stalls selling warming churros, toast-your-own marshmallows, satay, African curries and venison burgers. All good stuff but not a cornucopia of food and drink that you’d expect at a festival (or an abundance of Chinese goodies we were craving!) – it’s good enough for grabbing a bite to eat at the beginning or end of the trail.
All-in-all, this inaugural festival has enough surprising and intriguing sights to make it a very en-light-ening experience (sorry…).
Visitor info: The Magical Lantern Festival runs until Sunday 6th March 2016, starting at 5pm each day. Tickets are around £16 per person (click here to purchase). Find the festival at Chiswick House and Gardens, London W4 2RP.
Fancy some star-spotting this February half-term? Thanks to low light pollution you could be seeing up to 2,000 stars in one of Yorkshire’s National Parks!
The week-long Dark Skies Festival, taking place from 15th to 21st February 2016, invites visitors to eye the skies and discover the wonder of stargazing in the Yorkshire Dales and North York Moors National Parks.
Star trails, Dalby Forest, North York Moors National Park (c) Classlane Media
The low light pollution in both Parks makes them an ideal location for spotting constellations, shooting stars and other cosmic happenings. Together with sky-at-night events, visitors will also be able to discover more of the nocturnal world within the National Parks with guided torchlight walks highlighting the wildlife activity at night.
The programme of activities includes a host of other events such as a dark sky trail run, evening caving, storytelling, glow-in-the-dark writing, poetry readings, solar system scavenger hunt, telescope-making and craft activities throughout the week.
The main events will be held in and around the National Park Centres in Reeth, Aysgarth Falls and Danby, and Sutton Bank and Hawes, both of which are also designated Dark Sky Discovery sites, with skies that have been found to be sufficiently dark that the Milky Way can be seen to the naked eye.
Dalby Forest, another Milky Way class Dark Sky Discovery site in the North York Moors, will also be involved as well as events held in conjunction with Hidden Horizons on the coast.
Both National Parks are working with groups such as the Reeth Informal Astronomy Group and Whitby & District Astronomical Society to stage the Festival. Businesses and attractions throughout the National Parks are also being encouraged to participate by organising their own dark skies event, making it a celestial celebration right across the Dales and North York Moors from the Pennines to the coast.
Dark sky at Ribblehead viaduct (photo by Matthew Savage)
Richard Darn, astronomer and dark skies hunter, commented: “Yorkshire is fortunate to have some very special spots in both National Parks which are a stargazer’s paradise. In an urban area you will be lucky to see 20 stars on a clear night whereas in an area of low light pollution such as the National Parks you could see as many as 2,000.
“We will glimpse the great winter constellations of Orion and Gemini as they give way to the sparkling spring stars of Leo. We’ll also have a stunning view of Jupiter and a waxing moon. It’s a fabulous time to celebrate this amazing Universe and our wonderful dark parks.”
Glasgow gets ready to host VegFest Scotland, Europe’s largest eco veggie festival this December…
The inaugural VegFest Scotland, taking place 5-6 December at Glasgow’s SEC, is all about going vegan. This family-friendly event will include lots of ideas and inspiration to get healthy eating and vegan activism high on the agenda, including dozens of talks on nutrition, health, lifestyle and campaigns.
vegan-friendly cakes
As food is top of the agenda (obviously!), you can grab lunch at the in-house Levy’s Restaurant and their all-vegan menu, or choose from 12 other specialist caterers and around 140 stalls.
Visitors can enjoy vegan cookery demos, kids cookery classes, family entertainment, live music, comedy, a Hemp Expo on the medicinal benefits of hemp, and more.
Vegan gourmet matured cheeses from Tyne Cheese
Vegfest Scotland organisers added, ”Vegfest Scotland is all about going vegan. It’s not about eating less meat, or choosing eggs over fish, or anything like that. It’s about going vegan, pure and simple. It’s a single issue campaign. Go Vegan. For the planet, for the animals, for your health, and for sustainable global food production. And it’s so easy. Vegfest Scotland will demonstrate just how easy it is to go vegan and stay vegan.”
Glasgow initiative The Only Way is Ethics is behind a number of events around Glasgow City Centre in the week preceding Vegfest.
Tickets and booking: Admission to Vegfest Scotland is by advance tickets as well as payment on the gate. Advance tickets are £5 a day or £8 for the whole weekend. Tickets on the gate are £8 for adults and £4 for claimants. Kids under 16 can enter for free.
Many experts believe the Northern Lights is best viewed during a full-moon. This new trip is geared towards seeing the Aurora Borealis in the Arctic moonlight…
Aurora with the moon (Off the Map Travel)
The Moonlight Aurora experience, created by Arctic travel specialists Off The Map Travel and Aurora experts, gives guests an alternative experience in hunting the Northern Lights in January 2016. Contrary to popular belief, many Aurora experts, from leading guides to world class photographers, believe that the full-moon enhances the Northern Lights rather than detracting from it.
Jonny Cooper, Director of Off the Map Travel and Northern Lights travel expert said; “In our experience, a full-moon only affects really weak Aurora, and then only when the moon is directly behind it. For me, a good full-moon can add a different dimension to experiencing and photographing the Aurora. I love it and am more likely to spend the night looking skyward under the glow of a full-moon.”
Aurora Sky Station (Chad Blakely, Lights Over Lapland)
Rather than the moon, the thing that can most spoilt a good Aurora display is thick cloud cover. Therefore, the Moonlight Aurora experience takes place in Bjorkliden and Abisko, Northern Sweden, which, due to its surrounding mountains, has special weather patterns that deliver more clear nights than other areas across the region.
Off the Map Travel’s Jonny Cooper continues; “The Arctic moon is a spectacular sight in its own right and gives guests a superb focal point when hunting for the Northern Lights to enjoy the Arctic by moonlight.”
Many photographers say that they prefer to capture the Aurora when there’s a full-moon. Chad Blakely, world class Aurora photographer and owner of Lights over Lapland, added; “I love photographing Aurora in moonlight as it gives pictures a completely different feel by lightening the foreground, and instead of the pitch black background, the moonlight gives the sky a rich blue colour which compliments the green of the Aurora. Moonlit Aurora are spectacular – I love them.”
Alone with the lights (Chad Blakely, Lights Over Lapland)
The Moonlight Aurora experience will be held during the full moon from the 22nd of January 2016 and will give guests the chance to enjoy a range of the Arctic winter activities under the full-moon and, hopefully, under spectacular Northern Lights displays.
A four night Moonlight Aurora adventure to Bjorkliden and Abisko in Northern Sweden with Off the Map Travel costs from £1749 per person, excluding flights, based on two sharing. This includes:
transfers
four nights in a spectacular 4* hotel on a full board basis
a private specialist guide
a visit to the ICEHOTEL
private Lights over Lapland moonlight photography tour
dog sledding as the moon rises
visit to the Aurora Sky Station
snowmobile tour
guided moonlit snowshoe walk
Norway fjord trip
Ice-fishing and cooking under the moon
For more information about Moonlight Aurora adventure or Northern Lights holidays visit www.offthemaptravel.co.uk, call +44 (0) 800 566 8901 or email info@offthemaptravel.co.uk
From the cloud forest at Machu Picchu to the Sacred Valley of the Incas, eco tourism pioneer Inkaterra has an Amazonian adventure in store that the whole family can enjoy…
Most adventure treks suit sprightly adults, gap year kids or fitness junkies. But this seven-night adventure holiday in the Peruvian Amazon is just right for families.
Inkaterra Reserva Amazonica
With over forty years of expertise in sustainable tourism, Inkaterra‘s family adventure, reveals the breathtaking wonders of the Amazon, Sacred Valley of the Incas and meet the mists of the cloud forest at Machu Picchu. The trip also supports local communities through conservation programmes.
What’s in store – rainforest and wildlife
The trip starts deep in the heart of the Southern Amazon rainforest, the biodiversity capital of Peru. What a place to wake-up to a symphony of birdsong and monkeys swinging through the branches overhead. Situated in a 10,000 ha. private reserve, Inkaterra Reserva Amazonica has much to discover – take one of the trekking trails and don’t miss the 344m high canopy walkway leading through the heart of the vast Peruvian rainforest and offering a (literal) bird’s-eye view of the plush forest canopy.
Inkaterra Hacienda Urubamba
Accommodation – pick your own food at Pueblo Hotel
The adventure continues at Inkaterra Hacienda Urubamba in the Sacred Valley of the Incas, high in the Peruvian Andes. Whilst discovering the historic wonders of the region, barbecues, bird-watching and twilight hikes await. Accommodation is the Inkaterra Machu Picchu Pueblo Hotel set in farmland, home to an organic plantation, and shrouded by a majestic cloud forest.
Guests can truly immerse themselves in the local farming community by way of picking their own produce as part of the Earth to Plate concept, the brainchild of executive chef, Rafael Casin. The food guests don’t farm themselves is purchased from the association’s Andean Farm Project, where cutting edge agro-ecological techniques are used to grow organic produce and medicinal plants.
Inkaterra Machu Picchu Pueblo Hotel
Protecting rare and endangered wildlife
Amidst the clouds, 372 native orchid species, over 200 species of birds and 111 variety of butterflies can be found along the miles of trails that wind through the forest. Also the spectacled bear which is the only bear species in South America – because of their rapidly dwindling numbers the Inkaterra Spectacled Bear Project is essential to sustaining this rare and endangered native species. The Spectacled Bears Rescue Centre works to rehabilitate the bears, and bring them back into their natural habitat whenever possible.
Inkaterra Machu Picchu Pueblo Hotel works closely with Inkaterra Asociación, an organisation that develops scientific, technological and cultural research projects aimed at managing and protecting the biodiversity and local communities of the Peruvian Andes. With strong ties to the local community, the property works with schools by hosting environmental conservation workshops and running fundraising campaigns for local villages.
Inkaterra La Casona
The final leg – Cusco, capital of the Incan Empire
The last leg of this epic Peruvian adventure brings travellers to Cusco, the vibrant capital of the Incan Empire. Accommodation is baed at Inkaterra La Casona, a renovated 16th century manor located in the heart of the city. After indulging in Andean culture and cuisine, families can revel in the Spanish-colonial ambiance, exploring the ground that was once home to the elite army of the Incas.
Recommended for… Families looking for an adventurous and educational holiday
Be aware that… There is a distance for families to travel between each property
For further information, including prices and booking, visit www.inkaterra.com
It’s time to go slow this autumn and winter… From cooking ‘slow’ brunches to making your own leather tea tray, the new SLOWmotion workshops are here to teach us all the joys of slow living.
Organised by food magazine and event company TOAST, this new series of foodie and lifestyle workshops and events is all about celebrating the ‘slow life’. Mass production and instant gratification, step aside!
SLOWmotion at Rosewood London
Taking place at the beautiful Rosewood hotel in London’s Bloomsbury, expect tasty brunches full of plenty of sharing plates featuring slow food ingredients from the regular Sunday Slow Food & Living Market in the hotel’s courtyard.
As well as eating brunch with foodies including Rosie Birkett and Jackson & Levine, you could even make your own tray, table runner and spoon! Join one of several workshops which each focus on a different craft, and explore mindfulness and slow living by traditional techniques. Each workshop host will teach guests how to make an item to take home (ideal for Christmas gifts) as well as discussing their story and lifestyle.
See the full schedule of events and workshops below.
Tickets: Booking is essential – tickets can be reserved via the TOAST website www.eatdrinktoast.com/events and are priced from £40.00.
Location: The Living Room, Rosewood London, 252 High Holborn, London, WC1V 7EN
Doe at SLOWmotion
SLOWmotion Autumn/Winter 2015 Schedule
12-2:30pm, September 27th – Slow Food Brunch with Signe Johansen
A Slow Food brunch with Signe Johansen, Norwegian-American cook, writer and food anthropologist, and author of best-selling cookbooks Scandilicious and Scandilicious Baking; expect such delights as the Scandi Bloody Mary with tomato juice from the market, 58 Gin, Halen Mon smoked water, dill, horseradish and cucumber and Crispy Cod Cheeks with Nordic Dill Salsa, plus, to take home, Skoleboller or “school buns” – Norwegian vanilla custard filled buns with coconut www.twitter.com/SigneSJohansen
11am-1pm, October 11th – Slow Living Workshop with Grain & Knot
A Slow Living workshop with woodworker Sophie Sellu of Grain & Knot. Learn the art of crafting a spoon from reclaimed timber. During the workshop guests will learn the safest way to use wood carving knives and leave with their very own spoon. A kit of sandpaper and a homemade wood balm will be given to each attendee to continue to care for their spoons at home www.grainandknot.com
11am-1pm, October 18th – Slow Living Workshop with Waffle Design and Curate & Display
A Slow Living and interior design workshop with Waffle Design in collaboration with Curate & Display, a lifestyle and design blog. WAFFLE is a fresh range of home interior accessories made using organic cotton and a tactile waffle weave. The creative lead and founder Ciara McGarrity will share Waffle Design craft secrets, and teach guests how to create bespoke table runners. Tiffany Grant-Riley, the founder or Curate & Display, will talk about her thought process with creative, modern, clean interiors. www.waffledesign.co.uk // www.curateanddisplay.co.uk
12-2:30pm, November 1st – Slow Food Brunch with Rosie Birkett
A Slow Food brunch with Rosie Birkett, food writer, stylist, presenter and author of the bestselling cookbook A Lot on Her Plate, a collection of imaginative, delicious and approachable recipes that draw on the culinary vibrancy of seasonal, fresh produce and simple, store-cupboard ingredients www.rosiebirkett.com
12-2:30pm, November 8th – Slow Food Brunch with Jackson & Levine aka Laura Jackson & Alice Levine
A Slow Food brunch from London’s coolest supperclub hosts Jackson & Levine. With Laura Jackson and Alice Levine both working in TV and radio, they set up their supperclub as a passion project to create an interesting and fun environment for like-minded food folk to sit round a table and enjoy a home cooked meal and a glass (or three) of wine www.jacksonandlevine.co.uk
12-2:30pm, November 15th – Slow Food Brunch with Claire Ptak of Violet Bakery
A Slow Food brunch with Claire Ptak, food stylist, food writer and owner of Violet Bakery in East London. Hailing from California, Claire trained in the pastry department at Chez Panisse with Alice Waters, who subsequently wrote a moving foreword to her recent book The Violet Bakery Cookbook. Claire focuses on seasonal ingredients, natural flavourings, wholegrains and unrefined sugars when baking. Bringing a Californian sensibility to everything she does, she has also worked with Jamie Oliver and Yotam Ottolenghi. www.violetcakes.com
11am-1pm, November 22nd – Slow Living Workshop with Doe Leather
A Slow Living and leather workshop with Doe Leather, one of the last remaining Black Country leather goods workshops. Using natural vegetable-tanned leather, Deborah Thomas will teach guests how to create a beautiful leather tray. Attendees will learn the basics of leather sewing with different coloured harness threads, burnishing (on the edges of the leather with special gum and linen cloths) and then hand-stamp their initials into the final piece www.doeleather.co.uk
12-2:30pm, November 29th – Slow Food Brunch with Meera Sodha
A Slow Food brunch with Meera Sodha, cook, food writer and author of the bestselling cookbook Made in India: Cooked in Britain, a collection or recipes focusing on Gujarati cuisine written as she hovered over her mother’s shoulder at the stove www.meerasodha.com
More events, including Christmas specials, to be announced!
Could this be one of the UK’s best locations for an autumn food and drink festival?
St Albans is not only the birth place of the hot cross bun, but also lays claim to having the highest density of pubs in the UK, one of which is supposedly the oldest – Ye Olde Fighting Cocks dating back to 793AD (more on this later…).
Right now, the town is hosting its eight annual food and drink festival which makes the most of its ale house heritage. Festival goers can enjoy the pop-up ‘Village Green’ in the heart of the cathedral city’s 9th century market square.
St Albans Beer Festival
Get in there quick – the festival is on now and runs until this Sunday 4th October (with Ye Olde Fighting Cocks rugby screenings until the end of Oct).
Festival highlights include:
CAMRA St Albans Beer and Cider Festival – until 3rd October
St Albans hosted the UK’s first-ever beer festival back in 1974, and the event has now grown into the city’s very-own mini Oktoberfest and is the must-attend event in the real-ale calendar. There are more than 350 real ales, ciders, perries and foreign beers including new beers and new breweries across the festival’s six bars. Entertainment will be provided by cult singer/songwriter Jon Otway and the UK’s number one Madness Tribute band One Step Beyond.
Real ale, rugby and roosters – until 31st October
The pub has installed a giant screen in its garden so rugby and real-ale fans can enjoy all the tackles and tries of the Rugby World Cup, while soaking up the glorious surroundings of the pub garden, supping a pint or two of real ale and tucking into some tasty barbecue food from the Famous Fighters Barbecue. This pub now boasts 10 real ales on-tap, fine wine and a menu presided over by a former chef of Michelin-starred restaurant Chapter One.
St Albans Street Finale – 4th October
The city will be embracing its thriving pub culture on the finale day with the Everglades Village Green in the same location that the city has held a market since the 9th century. Some of St Albans’ finest hostelries will be setting up their pop-up pub on the city’s first-ever village green. So visitors can lounge around on a hay bale, while enjoying a pint and a tasty bite to eat from one of the 10 pop-up bars on the Everglades Village Green.
The city has also been experiencing a quirky foodie renaissance, with a number of independent restaurants and diners creating a buzz, most of which will be out in force on finale day. There will be a Chef’s Theatre with live cooking demonstrations from Masterchef finalist Theo Michaels, Michelin-starred chef Phil Thompson and Ye Olde Fighting Cocks chef Christo Tofalli. And for kids, there will be a family zone which will feature Children’s Fair-trade Chocolate Factory.
