Alburgh Lamb - Creake Abbey Farmers Market - Lamb & Mint Sausage

Sadly we have almost arrived at the end of our series of reviews of the sausages we harvested from Creake Abbey Farmers Market. The penultimate banger in the spotlight is a new experience here at RMS - a sausage made with lamb. To be precise, the Lamb & Mint Sausage produced by Alburgh Lamb.

We tried to find some web presence for Alburgh Lamb but couldn't, really. There is, however, a wealth of mentions and reviews of their produce, all featuring namechecks of the main man - Jimmy Denny. Briefly, Jimmy breeds mainly Texel Sheep and they are fed on a waste product from the nearby Grain Brewery - the leftover barley mash. But you can read more about it on the fascinating Mrs Portly's Kitchen blog, which if you click the link will probably have you reading for waaay longer than you intend to visit. But do NOT go there and forget to come back here! That's an order.

Where To Find Them:
We bought our Alburgh Lamb sausages at Creake Abbey Farmers Market , although they do sell at several others in East Anglia. Again, it's tough to find much online which is a shame. Maybe Jimmy prefers it this way so that he can match his supply to the demand better?

Stanwatch:
Absolutely zero Stans on show. Mister Denny however was as beamingly cheerful as in every photo that you can find of him.


Flavour:
The first two words in our notes for this review are "Absolutely delicious". Not a bad start. The flavour is unmistakeably lamb with mint - that sounds incredibly obvious but we hadn't tried a lamb sausage before and didn't know what to expect. The lamb treats your tastebuds to a sweet, light and slightly fatty flavour, perfect! And then the mint coughs politely in the background - "Ahem" - and suddenly there's your Sunday roast leg of lamb with mint sauce in your mouth in the shape of a sausage. How cool is that! 

Texture:
Firm but break-up-able. The squidge test (see Silver Spoon Cafe report) was applied and the sausage filling resisted attempts to splosh the fork through it admirably. Large chunks of resolutely lovely lamb confirm these as super sausages. We will have to try to find more lamb bangers (which has a completely different meaning in Wales) as soon as possible.

Vital Statistics:
Average Weight Uncooked = 87 grams
Average Weight Cooked = 70 grams
Meat Content = Dunno % OK I ballsed up again and don't know the figure, sorry....

Value For Money:
£4.36 for 6 sausages weighing 522 grams. This works out as £8.35 per kg and 73p per banger.

We rate this as marvellous value for money.


The Imaginatively Titled Next Day Cold Sausage Test:
Oh no mate, not this time. Do you really think any of these beauties survived the night? It seems the fridge-dwelling sausage pixies stole them all.

And Finally, Esther:
Jimmy Denny proudly boasts about his daughter "Our beautiful Rachael brought up on Alburgh Lamb!!" Can't give a better recommendation than that.

Ian Wright - Creake Abbey Farmers Market - Norfolk Pork Sausage

I bet you didn't know that Ian Wright's sausages have graced these porky pages once before? Way back in March 2012 they were the subject of a guest review written for us by author and sitcom genius Alex Marsh . Here's what he had to say - Jonny B's Review - a positive write-up on the whole.

Now it's time for us to run the RMS rule over Mister Wright's Norfolk Pork sausages, having found them at Creake Abbey Farmers Market, just as Jonny B described. Ian Wright is a lovely chap, gentle in nature, helpful and a pleasure to buy bangers from. Let the rating begin!

Where To Find Them:
Creake Abbey Farmers Market (satnav NR21 9LF). I don't know if they are available elsewhere.  But please do pop along, as well as Ian Wright's you'll be spoiled for choice for good produce.


Flavour:
Mildly salty, but a warm taste of home and childhood. There is more of the salt than pepper, it works quite nicely. Mellow, melting, inoffensive and.....nice.

Texture:
The skins are great, nice work Ian. The texture is quite even throughout, mid-size pieces. When you push this sausage apart you get lots of nice crumbly crumbs. Overall it's slightly disappointing, very uniform all the way through, every slice pretty much identical. Not terrible, far from it, but not mind-blowing either. Just.....nice.


Junior Sidekick's Three Word Verdict:
Not very chewy.

Vital Statistics:
Average Weight Uncooked = 57 grams
Average Weight Cooked = 50 grams
Meat Content = Don't Know - sorry, my bad, won't do it again, etc....


Value For Money:
£3.37 for 6 sausages weighing 341 grams. This works out as £9.88 per kg and 56p per banger.

We rate this as good value for money.

The Imaginatively Titled Next Day Cold Sausage Test:
There were none of these sausages left to test out in the morning. We "will" re-start this part of the reviews soon, promise.


And Finally, Esther:
Nice....

Creake Abbey - North Creake - Pork, Leek & Bacon Sausage

As part of our comeback series of reviews, looking at sausages harvested from Creake Abbey Farmers Market, this week we may be in for a real treat. The sausages are none other than those from Creake Abbey's own Food Hall, produced by an uproariously talented young butcher by the name of Lisa Scothern. It should be no surprise that Lisa's charcuterie skills are so fabulous, as she learned her killer meaty moves from master butchers Ray Smith (River Cottage) and Matt Cockin (Fruitpig Company). OK, not everyone who has ever shaken hands wih David Beckham can bend it like Goldenballs, but Lisa has learned from these Professors of Pork and has the piece of paper to prove it.

When I say "piece of paper" I mean "Degree in Artisan Food Production". This was gained at the School Of Artisan Food in Nottinghamshire, with a major in butchery/charcuterie. This is obviously a very broad subject, as students not only learn how to butcher and process meats, but also "what a fluffer is". Now, unless there's a butcher-specific definition of fluffer, this does seem slightly off-topic? Nevertheless Lisa learned well and set up her own business, "Sherwood Charcuterie". In her own words, "....set up my own business in 2013. My focus was initially on producing great bangers and burgers and cooking at events. I also had a small range of air dried produce. I relocated lock, stock and barrel as I fell in  love with the giant that manages Creake Abbey (all Matt Cockin's fault!!) and we all live happily ever after........My plan is to re-establish a business in wholesaling salami and salumi, once I find a suitable premises locally, whilst keeping a hand in as butcher at Creake Abbey."

Where To Find Them:
The home of this sausage is the food hall at the delightful Creake Abbey Cafe and Food Hall. If you're using your Satnav then type in NR21 9LF. Alternatively find the sausages at Drove Orchards Farm Shop in the gorgeous north Norfolk village of Thornham (PE36 6LS). While you're there head down the lane towards the sea and you may find Junior Sidekick and me crabbing off Thornham sluice gate! Idyllic.

Flavour:
Deep, dark, almost smoky - that was what I wrote in my notes, and before I knew that the bacon included is home-smoked. This is a splendid banger indeed. Just as we like it, each mouthful is a little different which is great to taste and also proof that there is no Mega-Banger X5000 machine pumping these out at a vast rate of knots. The tasty products here are obviously, and superbly, made by hand. You can almost see the thumbprints. Leek or bacon sometimes take centre stage which I particularly admire, and there was the occasional squeak when biting into a larger chunk of the leek. Totally and overwhelmingly delicious.

Texture:
Very coarse and very rough cut. Exactly the way we likes 'em. These sausages are tough to push apart and when you do finally manage it there are large lumps of loveliness tumbling around your plate. Bloody fantastic work. Substantial and  huge lumps of the top-rated Blythburgh pork, big bits of bacon, and what appears to be half a leek here and there - this is Rate My Sausage perfection. Before our recent break from reviewing it became obvious to me that pork and leek was my favourite type of sausage - Oh Emm Jee these bangers have raised the bar, and the enjoyment of eating, to another level. Natural casings are the perfect finishing touch to one of the greatest sausages I've ever had the pleasure of eating.

Vital Statistics:
Average Weight Uncooked = 105 grams (MONSTROUSLY HUGE)
Average Weight Cooked = 92 grams
Meat Content = 75 % pork, and 16% bacon, smoked in Creake Abbey's very own smokehouse. 

Amazingly we were provided with the full list of ingredients, which is a first as butchers are invariably secretive about there bangers. But we're keeping them a secret.


Value For Money:
£6.28 for 6 sausages weighing 631 grams. This works out as £9.95 per kg and 104p per banger.

We rate this as absolutely bloody marvellous value for money.

The Fruitpig Factor:
Lisa Scothern of Creake Abbey and Matt Cockin of the Fruitpig Company are, at the same time, the best of friends and the keenest of rivals. Indeed, Matt is credited (see above) for starting the avalanche of amour that will end in Lisa's forthcoming nuptials, and I have it on 100% good authority that he will be the chief bridesmaid at said wedding. It won't be his first time....

Take It Further:
Right, you have just read this review. And it's feckin' awesome. You want to make your own sausages just like these. Well....maybe you can....

Lisa Scothern is a tutor at the superb Cannon & Cannon's Meat School. Located in Borough Market, London, this place is a meat-lovers nirvana. Check the link, and if it tickles your fancy, treat yourself to an inside track to pork (and more) perfection. You will NOT regret it!



And Finally, Esther:
A Mary Poppins of a sausage - practically perfect in every way.

Papworths - Creake Abbey Farmers Market - Johnson Flyer Sausage

On 7 March this year I took a trip to Creake Abbey Farmers Market and came home with a splendid haul of new sausages to try out. We ran a poll to let you, our beloved readers, decide which sausage we should fry first, and the winning butcher was Papworth's. I chose their unusually named (more on that later) "Norfolk Flyer" sausage to review first, dug out the RMS pans and here we are. Our first new review since July 2013. Not a lot has changed, we'll still be frying not grilling, but instead of olive oil we've changed to rapeseed oil from the most excellent Yare Valley Oils.

It's nice to be back, and we hope you enjoy reading about our often ill-informed and irreverent adventures with sausages....

Where To Find Them:
As already described I found these sausages at Creake Abbey Farmers Market, but this is definitely not the only place that you can buy them. Papworths also have bricks and mortar shops in Market Place, Swaffham (postcode is PE37 7QH for your SatNav), Miller's Walk, Fakenham (NR21 9AP) and Station Road, Sheringham (NR26 8RG).

Stanwatch:
Have a peek at the photo of the stall. On the right is Sam Papworth himself, with an enthusiastic Stan on the left. If you're new to Rate My Sausage you may wonder what the heck I'm on about with the Stan stuff? Well for years I called a local butcher Stan, before he eventually told me that his name was "Terry. It's bloody Terry. TERRY!" Since then we have used Stan as the collective noun for all the staff diligently beavering away behind the counter. The more Stans on view the better we like it.

Flavour:
Subtle-y peppery, discreet seasoning but done well. This is an old recipe with no modern frills, and has been tried and tested over many years. Do not add any of your own salt or pepper as I think you'd overdo it and spoil the taste. If this is how bangers tasted during the second world war then it's no wonder that Adolf got a butt-kicking.


Texture:
The filling is chopped to a medium coarseness, which works well. But how juicy and succulent when you slice one open and press the meat with the flat of your fork. The goodness simply oozes out. The skins are natural and keep these sausages supremely moist through the cooking process.

Vital Statistics:
Average Weight Uncooked = 81 grams - big and bouncy!
Average Weight Cooked = 70 grams
Meat Content = 80%

These sausages look big and that's because they ARE big. Solid chunky lumps of porky pleasure - don't cook too many because you won't manage to eat them all. Alternatively cook LOTS and put some back in the fridge for the next day. Picture two burly lumberjacks using a two-handed saw to carve their way back and forth through a recently felled giant redwood. The Johnson Flyers are the sausagey equivalent of that tree. Really.

Value For Money:
£2.33 for 4 sausages weighing 323 grams. This works out as £7.20 per kg and 58p per banger.

We rate this as very good value for money. Try some soon!


The "Aah, Bisto" Factor:
Delicious sausagey wafts had me clock-watching while the Johnson Flyers were in the pan. Lovely.

Why "Norfolk Flyer"?
A good question, thanks for asking. The sausage was launched to coincide with the 2013 Movember LINK campaign. I'll let Sam's own description do the rest:

The Johnson Flyer – Our Movember Sausage.
Friday 1st November sees the start of Movember, and in our case the launch of a new sausage to go with it.
Richard and Alex are going to grow their Mo's in memory of shop manager John's late father Johnnie Johnson D.F.C.
Johnnie flew over 40 missions to Germany during WWII in a Lancaster bomber.
The butchers will grow their Mo's , and at the end of Movember Johno has agreed to join them in shaving his Mo off! It will be the first time he has gone without for over 45 years.
John knows all too well the importance of good Radiography, as his wife Liz is recovering from cancer, and regularly has to visit hospital in Norwich and London.
With all this in mind we have named the banger "The Johnson Flyer".
It is a robustly flavoured Pork Sausage with black pepper and sage as its’ primary flavours, with hints of nutmeg and coriander in there too.
It is a sausage John can remember making years ago, and was always popular with his customers. With the help of our ingredients company D.F Dickens we have re-created the flavours. Made with our own local Pork we are sure you will enjoy.

Eastern Daily Press Article

ITV News Article

And Finally, Esther:
A really good sausage to have chosen for our return, complete with a fascinating and heart-warming back story. Recommended!

Creake Abbey Farmers Market - What A Haul!

Just in from the fabulous farmers market at Creake Abbey, where I managed to find a bounty of beautiful bangers to review. Yes dear reader, Rate My Sausage is back in business and the sausage reviews will start to appear soon....

The market is bootiful, really bootiful, and judging by the crowds thronging each area it's a firm favourite with local lovers of great local produce. Of course we are mainly about the bangers and we snaffled and stashed away the following:

Lisa Scothern's Pork, Leek & Bacon sausages

Sam  Papworths  Johnson Flyers and Sandringham sausages

Fruitpig Company Rare Breed Pork, Apricot, Red Onion & Ginger sausages

Ian Wright Norfolk Pork sausages

Fen Farm Venison's Venison & Pork sausages

Alburgh Lamb's Lamb & Mint sausages

We've reviewed sausages from some of these butchers before, if you would like to read what we wrote simply click on the blue links in the lines above.

It was great to meet up with some old friends and to meet some new (to me) and talented producers of high quality produce. The morning was a huge success, a major step back to productivity for RMS, and the breakfast in the cafe was lovely (the teapot was a three-cupper!).