Harvest season has arrived and Kent's orchards, coastline and vineyards are bursting with produce. To celebrate, we've caught up with our friends at the magnificent Macknade in Faversham to hear all about the very best tastes of the season.
The low light seeps through the shutters in the cool early mornings, dew sticks to the grass and Autumn is upon us. Even with the heat of the summer lingering, the cool winter air starts to push in…
Apples & Pears
The glut of berries and soft fruit are replaced by the great harvest of apples and pears…
Whilst August sees the first of the clean, juicy Discoveries, it’s as we get into depths of Autumn that the range of apples really comes good… from Gala and Braeburn to Russet, Bramley and of course, the great Cox!
Ours are from family farms across the county - the Rye’s, the Figgis’ and, notably, the Coulthup’s at Hares Farm, who are located just up the road from Macknade, in Shottenden, where orchards, woodlands and rolling meadows collide.
Pears can’t be overlooked, not least from the hallowed grounds of Brogdale - home of the national fruit collection - and from the ever innovating Blackbird Farming, who we will have trial varieties from this year. These sit alongside classic Conference and Comice varieties - perfect spooned when ‘honey ripe’!
Whilst our greengrocers department is bulging with fresh fruit, the shelves are also full of, amongst others, Julian and his families’ juices and ciders pressed from wonderful Kent fruit. These are grown in the orchards of Biddenden and illustrate the great importance and versatility of the apple crop to our county.
Seafood & Sparkling
As we all know, when it comes to eating native oysters, it is ‘only in the months that have an R’, and there are plenty of those in Autumn! We have joined up with David & Joe, the fantastic South Coast Sea Fayre fishmongers, who join us at Macknade every Saturday to sell, amongst other fresh fish & seafood, wonderful Whitstable Oyster Company oysters. These are an icon of the Kent food scene – best eaten naked straight from the shell or in a thick liquor for a classic beef and oyster pie – the most comforting country cooking as the cold rolls in.
Alongside oysters ‘foraged’ from the coastline (these days, of course, farmed on the Whitstable shores!), game also comes into its own as the weather cools. Everyone has their favourite, but my mind jumps straight to mallard from the carefully managed Kent marshes, alongside a glass of Pinot Noir.
Speaking of wine, I was lucky enough to enjoy a vertical tasting at Gusbourne HQ, the Nest as it is so fondly called, and as a proud (and perhaps biased!) Kentish boy I was blown away by the wines. A trip to The Nest is a real treat for wine lovers and newbies alike.
Hops & Beer
Growing up on Macknade, the hop harvest was always the starting gun for the new season. In a short, sharp window the sunward bines are cut and trailers of hops, pulled by dinky tractors, filled our county lanes, and the scent of fresh and drying hops was everywhere.
The Deal Hop Farm is a wonderful grass roots project on the east coast of the county. It is essentially a cooperative of locals who, supported by craft breweries, gather hops and make a wonderful array of intensely Kentish beers.
As foodie towns go, Deal continues its rise. I love the beers of Time & Tide (the great Spratwaffler named after the fisherman BBQing their catch on the shores of the town!) and the multitude of restaurants, café and delis peppering its high street. A favourite trip of ours is a wander round Betteshanger Country Park (the youngsters love to take their bikes!) finished with a beer and a bite in the town. My eldest’s favourite treat is the Blue Pelican for unparalleled Japanese inspired cooking using the very best of the sea and land nearby.
