Lost Houses of Derbyshire – Mackworth Castle
The stone shell of the gatehouse to site of the ancient seat of the Mackworth family is one of the most memorable sites in the County. Lying only a few hundred yards from the City boundary of Derby, it invariably excites interest from those who see it for the first time, and it has been drawn and painted numerous times by local artists as diverse as Frank Gresley and Ernest Townsend; it was also photographed at a very early date by the ubiquitous Richard Keene. Its picturesque qualities are enhanced by a row of early 18th century brick farm labourers’ cottages, originally thatched, attached to the right. The reason it is called Mackworth Castle is because the name is entirely colloquial, applied to the existing gatehouse simply because it commands a castle-like air in the lane leading through the still largely unspoilt village. Many people actually do not realise that it is merely a rather grand gatehouse behind which once stood the seat of the Mackworth family, although what it was actually called when standing is far from clear – probably ‘the hall’ or similar. In surviving documents it is merely referred to as a ‘capital mansion’ which is fairly typical Medieval legalese for a manor house. What we see today is a two storey three bay Keuper Sandstone crenelated gatehouse with a central depressed arch with ogiform crocketting executed in relief and a hood-mould above it. There are stepped buttresses either side of the central opening and at the angles, an impost band and a cornice below the crenelated parapet which winds round the slender bartizans at the angles and is punctuated by a row of three gargoyle spout heads. The windows were originally traceried, vestiges of which survived by the bricking up of the outer pair. Yet there is neither roof, nor on the north side any wall at all, only two later brick lean-tos put up in the last couple of centuries in order to provide storage for the Regency farm house built behind. Originally there were side rooms with a two-chamber lodging for the gate keeper above, the large room being furnished with a fireplace with a projecting hood, finials and a castellated chimney above. Beside the fireplace is a corbel upon which to place a lamp. Dr. Emery, Britain’s foremost expert on Medieval Country houses is of the opinion that originally there was a rear wall, and visible vestiges of a low pitched roof, their dismantling in the 17th century possibly explaining the appearance of tooled ashlar blocks similar to those still in the building in a lean-to added to the adjoining cottages and to be found elsewhere round about. A closely related gatehouse is that to Worksop Priory, also late 15th century which, although lacking the crenellations (it is today surmounted by what may be a 17th century gable and roof) is of the same general scale, with similarly placed buttresses and windows, although an elaborate traceried shrine to the right of the door relates solely to its religious use. That fronting the North Yorkshire Meynell’s ancient castle at Whorlton is also comparable, although slightly earlier and simpler, with less ornamentation. Yet if this was a gatehouse, built in the third or fourth quarter of the fifteenth century (as its architecture clearly indicates) what happened to the house? A survey undertaken in 1900 identified two house platforms behind the gatehouse, but the reported position of these seems out of kilter with the extant building. More likely the distinct platform on which the present Castle Farm house rests is a more likely site. Here in 1888 some low rubble walling was found suggestive of a timber framed building on a rubble plinth. The inference is that there was a timber framed manor house and a group of the usual outbuildings on adjoining house platforms, raised up to cope with the occasional flooding of the Markeaton Brook, nearby, just as the Medieval stable block of Tudor Markeaton Hall, demolished in 1754, had been. Mackworth family are recorded here at Mackworth from the first quarter of the 13th century. The first of the family to be called ‘de Mackworth’, Philip, was almost certainly a member of the family of Touchet of Markeaton, which included Mackworth, and he and several of his descendants were stewards to the Touchets, especially after they inherited the Barony of Audley of Heleigh, in Cheshire. Several younger sons were also parsons, one being vicar on Longford and another rector of Kirk Langley; a third became a Prebendary of Peterborough Cathedral and Dean of Lincoln. Thomas Mackworth was, on 1st August 1404 the recipient of the earliest datable grant of arms in Derbyshire being allowed, on the authority of his feudal lord, John Touchet, Lord Audley, a shield bearing the arms of Touchet and Audley divided vertically by a jagged line (called dancettée in heraldic jargon) and with a red chevron superimposed bearing gold fretwork. This Tomas, a lawyer and twice MP for Derby, without doubt lived in the timber framed manor house, the vestiges of which were recorded over a century ago in the farmyard of Castle Farm. He also managed to marry an heiress, in Alice, daughter of Sir John Basings of Empingham and Normanton in Rutland and heiress of her childless brother, another Sir John. On Thomas’s death in 1447, he was succeeded by his son Henry, who also held land at Ash (Etwall) and Trusley. Probably in the 1450s, he is thought to have begun improving his estate at Mackworth, starting by erecting the grandiose gatehouse we can still enjoy today, no doubt leaving rebuilding the house itself in matching style (and no doubt of much increased size) until phase two. However, at this stage Sir John Basings the younger died, and Mackworth suddenly found himself unexpectedly possessed of a much larger landed estate in Rutland, and it became clear from surviving documents that he moved there quite soon afterwards. From that moment on, then, all thought of
Reflections on Pollyanna Pickering
Pollyanna Pickering was a warm, caring, highly talented yet unassuming lady who reached the pinnacle of her career as a wildlife artist while achieving international respect for her passionate commitment to conservation. Pollyanna, who passed away recently following a short illness, was born in Leeds in 1942. From her earliest childhood, Pollyanna had paint, pencils and paper to hand. When she decided that she would like to go to art school to further her studies, she was summoned to the headmistress’s office with a portfolio of work. Her headmistress looked through the folder in silence, and slammed it shut with the immortal words “You’ll never make a living at that!” Fortunately Pollyanna’s parents had a little more faith in her abilities, and allowed her to attend Rotherham Art school – and at the end of her first year she won the coveted award for the most promising student. It was here Pollyanna met her husband – to – be, Ken Pickering, an industrial designer. She and Ken married in 1963, after Pollyanna had spent a further three years studying at the London Central School of Art. During her time at Rotherham art school, Pollyanna and Ken would travel out into the Peak District most weekends to sketch and In 1968, they moved to a cottage in Bakewell, a year before Pollyanna gave birth to their daughter Anna-Louise. Shortly afterwards Pollyanna took the brave step of going freelance as a professional artist. Money was very tight, and couldn’t afford to have her pictures framed, and scoured jumble sales to buy frames, painting work to fit them. In 1971 Pollyanna signed with her first publisher, who produced a series of prints of pedigree dogs – and this proved to be the huge turning point in her career. At the time there were no other open edition prints of domestic animals on the market and Pollyanna’s work was an instant hit. A series of over sixty studies of pedigree dogs and cats followed during the 1970’s, and for the first time Pollyanna’s work reached a wider audience, selling throughout the UK and Europe. In 1974 she accepted a commission to design her first ever Christmas cards for a charity – Oxfam. Sadly in 1979 just two years after moving into the home in the Derbyshire Dales, which Pollyanna and her daughter continued to share, Ken died, at the age of 41. He had been diagnosed with cancer before their marriage, but had been in remission for nearly fifteen years. Pollyanna nursed him throughout the final months of his illness. Ultimately his untimely death proved another turning point in Pollyanna’s career. She threw herself body and soul into her work, partly out of the economic necessity of bringing up a young daughter alone – and partly to help cope with the grief of losing her husband. Pollyanna subsequently signed with her current publishers Otter House, and working in close association with them has become the most published fine artist in the UK, with work selling in over 80 countries around the world. Practically every home in Britain will have enjoyed her art at some time in the form of a Christmas or greeting card, print or calendar. Pollyanna also found her original work gaining more and more acclaim, and in 1982 became accredited to her first London Gallery, the Tryon and Moorland. In 1983 her work was first accepted for display in the Royal Academy. In the same year she won her first major award – the prestigious Silver Palette Trophy. By the end of the decade Pollyanna was already firmly established as one of Europe’s leading wildlife artists, a remarkable achievement in a field which remains almost entirely male-dominated. Celebrity clients including David Bowie and John Hurt purchased work, and she was even commissioned to paint Her Majesty The Queen’s favourite racing pigeon! She could never have predicted the diverse opportunities her career would bring – she even became a familiar face on radio and television, filming documentaries for Channel 4 and BBC1 – and over the past five years she became a regular and much loved guest on the Create and Craft channel! Even during the earliest days of her career, her desire to paint animals from life lead her to visit wildlife hospitals to sketch the birds and animals they were looking after. She became more and more interested in the rescue and rehabilitation work they were doing, and this eventually lead to her establishing a wildlife sanctuary from her own home. Caring mainly for injured and orphaned birds of prey, she also rehabilitated foxes, hedgehogs, squirrels and other mammals. This close contact with the creatures in her care continues to be reflected in the realism and vitality of her work. In 1989 Pollyanna’s daughter Anna-Louise joined her mother to work in the business full-time. Originally standing in on a temporary basis to replace Pollyanna’s previous personal assistant who had left to set up her own business, Anna-Louise soon became thoroughly fascinated by and involved in the work, and this unique mother and daughter partnership continued to work and travel together. Pollyanna realised that if she wanted to capture the true character and beauty of the animals she was depicting, she would need to travel to paint them in their natural habitats. Following her first journey into Kenya in 1986 she painted on every single continent. This in itself is surely a unique achievement – there cannot be many artists – especially women – who have packed their art materials and then sketched their chosen subject on each and every one of the seven continents. Accompanied by Anna-Louise, who acted as official photographer on their travels, Pollyanna camped in tents and igloos in the High Arctic in search of polar bears, journeyed by river boat through the forests of Borneo, and just last summer braved crocodile infested rivers in Brazil to sketch wild jaguars. The expeditions were not without their dangers. The intrepid duo found scorpions in their
Celebrity Interview – Jason Manford
He’s one of the biggest names on the comedy circuit, a regular on television, his first album raced into the top ten and he’s also been making a name for himself in musical theatre. You could hardly say Jason Manford is muddling through – but that’s the theme of his new show which is selling out across the UK. He calls it Muddle Class. “We talk about the fact that life changes, we’re trying to make the best of it and we’re trying to muddle through life. We make mistakes, we improve on them and we do what we can. That’s what the show’s all about. “It’s called Muddle Class because it’s a little bit about me but it’s also a little bit about a lot of the audience who turn up. “I’m in a situation where I’m from a working-class background but my kids are a bit middle class. And I don’t really feel that I’m in either of those camps any more. So I created the muddle class which is for people who are a bit of a muddle about where they are.” The cheeky, likeable Mancunian is hardly in a muddle about where he is. His current tour started off at 150 dates but has been extended until next April, allowing an extra 60,000 people to see him doing the job he loves. “It’s a big old tour but once you’ve written it you’d like everybody to see it,” he says. His ITV children’s show What Would Your Kid Do? in which parents are challenged to guess what their children will do in a variety of situations has been commissioned for a second series. And he is contracted to record another two albums for Decca. So how does he fit it all in? “I always have the kids’ holidays off. The tour looks longer than it is because I only do four nights a week. Then I have every fifth week off. It looks worse than it is. I’ve got very supportive people around me and a good family network. It just sort of works really.” Jason has five children, four with his first wife Catherine – they split in 2013 – and a daughter with his second wife, television producer Lucy Dyke who he married last year. Jason John Manford was born on 26 May 1981 in Salford, Greater Manchester. He comes from a family of singers but became interested in comedy after watching people like Peter Kay, Eddie Izzard and Johnny Vegas performing in comedy clubs. He got a job collecting glasses in a club when he was 17. One evening a performer didn’t arrive, so Jason stepped in to fill the gap and his comedy career began to take off. Soon afterwards he was crowned City Life North West Comedian of the Year. A nomination for the Perrier Award at the Edinburgh Festival in 2005 was followed by a guest appearance on the Channel 4 panel show, 8 Out Of 10 Cats. He replaced Dave Spikey as one of the team captains in 2007 and stayed on the show for the next four years. He took his live act to Dubai, Singapore and China as huge numbers of people hooked into his humour. How does he describe his brand of comedy? “I just think it’s funny. I try not to pigeonhole myself too much – other people do that. It’s warm, it’s inclusive, it’s never mean. It’s for grown-ups but I look out (at an audience) and there are people who’ve got their kids and parents with them.” Between tours Jason is always jotting things down as he recognises material which he will write into his next show. “It’s not difficult to write once you get started – getting started is the hardest part. You’re staring at a blank screen or a blank page. That’s the hardest point. But you get an idea of what you want to talk about and what you think is interesting. I start there really and then I start writing jokes.” On the tour Jason will return to the Royal Concert Hall in Nottingham after playing there in February and will also head over to Derby Arena. He’s looking forward to the Derby gig: “I’ve not done it before so I’m looking forward to seeing what that one’s like.” He says he enjoys East Midlands’ audiences: “They’re great fun. I’ve always included them on my tour. It’s nice to hang out there for a few days. Even when I was on the circuit I used to play Jongleurs or the comedy clubs, so I’ve always had a good time there.” Jason’s last tour, First World Problems, sold really well, as did the accompanying DVD. But he’s not sure whether a recording of Muddle Class will get into the shops. “We’re going to film it and see how the land lies. I don’t know if anyone buys DVDs any more, to be honest. First World Problems was four years ago. Since then with the rise of Netflix and Amazon the world has changed, so we’ll just have to see.” Jason’s career has also changed in that time. He played impresario Leo Bloom in Mel Brooks’ wacky musical The Producers when it toured in 2015, took the role of Caractacus Potts in a tour of Chitty Chitty Bang Bang and has acted in a couple of television dramas. Last year he released his first album A Different Stage, featuring some of his favourite show tunes, which was recorded with the Prague Symphony Orchestra. Does he have any preference for a particular brand of show business? “Stand-up’s always my proper job but I like entertaining people. Whether it’s telling jokes, singing a song or doing a tap dance, I’m fine with all of that. I love being on stage – it’s all I’ve ever known. It’s a lovely feeling making people laugh.” It’s far removed from some of the darker sides of his life. In 2010 he resigned as co-host of
It’s Not Just Any Old Hooch
Ten years ago, you would expect to find one or two brands of gin on offer at the golf club and, if you were lucky, a slice of lemon from a jar. Only a teetotal hermit could fail to notice gin is everywhere. There are gin parties, ginemas (gin and a film night), ginvent calendars and gin-flavoured spa treatments. Even Burton-on-Trent, the spiritual home of beer, hosted a Gin and Rum Festival in the market hall in May this year. It’s not just any old hooch. Ten years ago, you would expect to find one or two brands of gin on offer at the golf club and, if you were lucky, a slice of lemon from a jar. These days, the clubhouse is likely to have a gin menu featuring artisan and craft gins laced with exotic ingredients like buckthorn, loganberry and peppercorns. It all adds up to an industry which is worth £1.2 billion a year according to the Wine and Spirit Trade Association. Since gin shook off its Mother’s Ruin image, quaint cafes and farm shops are getting in on the act. Whereas the strongest thing on offer may once have been a cup of English Breakfast, The Apple Tree tea house, Ockbrook is offering gin tasting evenings hosted by a be-suited booze raconteur. Considering we are in the grip of a revolution, it is still a big surprise to find there is a new craft gin being produced in the Derbyshire woods. Shining Cliff Woods at Ambergate may be on the map with local ramblers and people who have a thing about bluebells, but it is completely unexpected to stumble across a ‘proper’ distillery business (as opposed to one man in his shed) occupying 11,000 square feet in the former Johnson & Nephew wire works in the woods. White Peak Distillery has risen from the ashes of the old wire industry thanks to one man – Max Vaughan of Quarndon – driven by his long-term dream to make whisky. But it was the hiring of a talented head distiller, Shaun Smith, which led Max to consider producing an artisan gin packed with flavours found in the local woodland. “If we put our name on the bottle, we have to be proud of it. We love being in the Peak District and the area around us and we wanted our gin to be an expression of this,” explains Max as he stands by the distillery gates through which you can glimpse acres of verdant woodland. “Shaun had previously made a successful gin and he was determined to create something authentic and different. Shining Cliff gin was inspired by the flowers and herbs we found in the wood like rosehip, elderberry and Mayflower.” The pair spent many months in the wonderfully aromatic ‘research and development bunker’ where – with only a 30 litre still at his disposal – Shaun began to perfect the inaugural gin. “It meant lots of trips out and about the woods on my bike looking at the plants and the hedgerows to find things suitable for Shining Cliff gin,” Shaun recalls. “We had around ten styles of gin initially which we narrowed down to six, then to three that we were really happy with. We also discarded a few flavour combinations along the way. Like wild garlic, even though we have lots in the wood, we’ll never see a wild garlic or spruce needle gin coming to market.” The months of tinkering can be seen by counting the glass bottles on a large unit of pigeon holes; each contains single flavour distillations used while devising the prefect blend. The final Shining Cliff gin really is stunning testimony to all Shaun’s chemistry, if not alchemy skills and features 13 different flavourings or botanicals; many evocative of the woodland setting around the distillery. “We had a lot of positive feed-back on the gin – people even saying it’s the best they’ve tried which is a huge compliment,” Max adds. “Our goal was to make a gin which, like whisky, is good enough to be served neat. I call it a sipping gin. It’s got flavours of citrus so it doesn’t really need anything added except, perhaps, a slice of orange peel.” Shining Cliff gin may have gathered a loyal fan-base but it’s actually a delicious warm-up act to the star of the show. At the end of April Max and Shaun took delivery of 18 tonnes of barley; the first stage in the development of a single malt whisky. It will be the first ever commercially produced in Derbyshire. White Peak will be one of only 15 other distilleries making, or developing, whisky in England. “It will be twelve months before the first tasting and three years before it can be officially called whisky,” Max explains. “We’re currently inviting people to join our Temperance Club, so-called because they will have to wait. But their patience will be rewarded with a limited-edition bottle once a year for the next decade. In addition, the members’ names – 1876 of them in honour of the date of the factory opening – will be etched onto bricks and built into the distillery wall.” As Max describes it – surrounded by the bespoke gleaming copper still built in Scotland and stainless steel-work made by Musk Engineering at Swadlincote – you can almost taste the light peaty, slightly floral malt which will be housed in bourbon casks shipped over from America and wine casks from Portugal. “I am a whisky fan,” says Max when asked why he is so passionate to develop a whisky when he has a ‘hit’ gin product on his hands. “My dad Barrie introduced me to whisky and to the Scotch Whisky Society. It’s there I heard about a guy who worked behind the member’s bar who had started a small whisky distillery in Battersea. Something about this story really resonated with me. I did a lot of research over three years, visiting distilleries and talking
Walk Derbyshire – Foolow & Silly Dale
There are no records of any simpleton, either in Foolow or Silly Dale; both names come from Anglo Saxon English and have entirely different meanings than in today’s language. Foolow means multi-coloured hill, possibly a reference to nearby Eyam Edge. Silly is Old English for pretty, an apt description of this little-known dale, especially in late spring when the limestone-loving flowers are in full bloom. The walk starts and finishes in Foolow, a village of light grey limestone cottages, arguably the most picturesque in the Peak District National Park. There is a bay-windowed manor house and the Bull’s Head offers an excellent menu to satisfy the hunger of the hardiest walker. Until 1888 when the tiny limestone church dedicated to St Hugh was opened, church-goers congregated around the ancient stone cross and its pagan bull-ring standing next to the duck pond. Until 1932 when pipes were laid, water was a problem in this upland village. Before then villagers had to collect water from a well a little way along the Hucklow Edge road above the village. Cattle enjoyed the convenience of the attractive duck pond on the village green and in celebration of the gift of water, village wells have been dressed since 1983 on the Saturday prior to the last Sunday in August. Starting from Foolow the walk climbs up to Hucklow Edge before turning west and descending to the neighbouring village of Great Hucklow. This village, clustered around its pub, the Queen Anne, is really a group of five inter-linked hamlets where lead miners delving 600 feet beneath the ground, worked the riches of High Rake, following a series of inter-connected veins running north-westwards. Pack Horse teams once carried the ore together with Cheshire salt across the high limestone moorland, by trackways that can still be traced for miles. From 1938 until 1970, the playwright L du Garde Peach produced plays in the popular Playhouse theatre, based on an old barn in the village. Beyond Hucklow, the walk descends into Silly Dale and, on climbing out of it, crosses a series of green fields back to Foolow. Useful Information 3miles (5km) of easy walking along rural lanes, field paths and a flowery dale. Recommended map: Ordnance Survey 1:25000 scale Outdoor Leisure map The Peak District – White Peak Area Sheet 24. Refreshments: Bull’s Head (Foolow), Queen Anne (great Hucklow), pubs and cafes in Eyam. Public Transport: TM Travel 65 service from Sheffield and Calver Sough runs hourly Monday/Saturday and two hourly on Sunday. G&J Holmes/Hulleys 66 service between Buxton and Chesterfield runs two hourly from Chesterfield Monday/Saturday and three hourly on Sunday. Parking: roadside around Foolow village, but please do not block local access. The Walk : With your back to the duck pond in Foolow, take the road past the church and head towards Hucklow Edge. Follow this road for just under a mile. The old village well at the side of the road to your left is protected by a wall with a narrow stile to keep animals away from the one-time sole drinking water supply for Foolow, once a scarcity on these dry limestone uplands. Regrettably the water is now unfit for human consumption. Just before the road begins to climb steeply and bears right towards Hucklow Edge, turn left and cross a stone stile in order to follow a wall-side path. Gliders from the Gliding Club behind the edge can usually be seen soaring gracefully on the up-sweeping currents of air. Tree-lined hollows and rough ground uphill towards the edge indicate the position of abandoned lead-mining activity. Joining a narrow lane turn left and follow it until it reaches a side road. Turn left along the road, following it below a belt of trees. At the far end of the woods, turn left over a stile and follow waymarking arrows and splashes of paint down into the Grindlow section of Great Hucklow. Bear left along the village road and then fork right towards the main road. Cross the road diagonally left and right, then go to the left of a single bungalow. Follow the narrow, walled track, down into Silly Dale. Surface water has not flowed down Silly Dale for at least 10,000 years, when catastrophic floods marked the end of the last Ice Age. Flowers growing along the dale include white meadow saxifrage, purple cranesbill and spotted orchids. Turn left at the T-junction marking the dale end and cross over to the opposite side of the dale. Go to the left over a stile, and bear right and then half left, uphill. Following stiles cross nine increasingly narrow fields as you near the village, all the way back into Foolow, entering the village by going past the Manor House in order to reach the duck pond. Foolow is built around a wide village green with the highly photogenic duck pond as its centre point. A fourteenth-century cross and a bull-ring-stone are on the far side of the pond. Better still is the Bull’s Head pub a few yards further along the Eyam road to your right [wpgmza id=”37″] 00
Product Test – Get The Glamour with Clarins
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Restaurant Review – The New Bath Hotel, Matlock
The New Bath Hotel and Spa, with its fine Georgian façade, has always struck an impressive pose, standing for over 250 years as a sentinel at the southern entrance to Matlock Bath. It has recently undergone a major refurbishment and from the moment Susan and I walked into the light and open main entrance the care and thoughtful styling was evident. This is a little bit of Knightsbridge on the edge of The Peak. New Executive Head Chef John Shuttleworth has instigated a tasting menu with a carefully selected wine pairing and we were eager to experience the evening. John is a local lad and after graduating from High Peak College in Buxton, started his professional career in the USA. He returned to England and worked in several Michelin starred establishments before taking up a position for 8 years in South Africa at a premium winery with a highly acclaimed restaurant. He and his wife returned to the UK and took up appointments at the New Bath Hotel and Spa. The hotel’s Artistry restaurant occupies the south east corner of the grade 11 listed building and is the setting for their 6 course tasting menu. Decorated in a light contemporary style and retaining many of its original features this spacious, elegant room has the ability to both relax and make you feel like someone special. The view from the restaurant’s large bay window is of the magnificent High Tor. The poet Byron was fascinated with this landscape’s rugged, harsh beauty and F C Mutton, the author of the 1939 Penguin County Guide to Derbyshire, suggests that High Tor in Matlock Bath might well be the “loveliest crag in the whole of England”. After being treated to a couple of delicate hors d’oeuvres, beautifully described by our waitress for the evening; Andrea, our wine guide, related some brief tasting notes about the glass of Chateau d’Aydie fresh, dry white wine we were drinking and a few facts about the producer. This was how the evening was to progress. Each course was accompanied by a different wine and with each wine we were given suggestions of what tastes to expect and how it had been chosen to accompany the various dishes. Andrea also related a potted history of some of the wine producers. Before the first course, which was duck, we nibbled on a warm bread roll with creamy, thyme butter. The first plate consisted of a pressing of duck liver parfait and home cured goose ham. These are strong, rich, earthy flavours and the Chateau d’Aydie dry white was the perfect accompaniment. Before the second plate we were presented with ‘a bit of fun’ an amuse bouche of thick, creamy vichyssoise topped with a thin slice of fried potato and lurking, hidden at the bottom of the dish a soft boiled quails egg. The next dish was pan roast langoustine, a ballotine of rabbit, nettle purée and a shard of salsify all brought together with a reduced white wine sauce. These are all delicate flavours and the 2016 Bogle Vineyards Viognier was an ideal pairing; floral, tropical with a hint of vanilla. The third dish was tortellini filled with a pesto sauce that erupted in your mouth. It was dressed with a roasted pine nut crumb and topped with parmesan crisps. With the pasta we sipped a Mount Pleasant Lovedale Semillon from Hunter Valley, New South Wales: fresh tasting with ripe citrus flavours. Once more the cutlery changed and into another stylish, hand blown crystal glass was poured a bright ruby full bodied red wine: Humberto Canale – Seleccion de la Familla Cabernet Franc. The dark red fruit flavours of this wine had been selected to accompany the tender venison loin; with a hint of barbeque charring, a selection of vibrant greens, coffee and celeriac purée and a chocolate scented jus. The cheese course came in the form of a Mull of Kintyre cheese soufflé, rhubarb 3 ways; one a chutney and, scattered over it, a walnut crumble. A new world, slightly oaked, dark red Pinot Noir complemented the distinctive cheese and rhubarb flavours. Before the citrus, as the final course is called, we enjoyed pre-dessert amuse bouche. This time the wine was a complete change of pace: a Passito di Noto; a sweet, white Sicilian wine made from one of the oldest vines in the world: Moscato Bianco. The wine was the perfect foil for the sharp flavours of the white chocolate and lemon cheesecake and the sorbet, crumb and gel made from blood orange, calamansi and limes. Two and a half hours after taking our seats in the Artistry we completed the tasting with 2 delicate petit fours: a pistachio and dark chocolate and concentrated red berry jelly. John has designed a menu to reflect his love for the area, its fine produce and his classical training with influences from his experiences and travels. The six-course tasting menu is relaxed, yet well thought out; it provides variety, fun and an education. These are balanced dishes of flavour and texture with wine pairing that leave me speechless with admiration. This is a great tasting menu, you won’t be stuffed, just pleasantly full and take away the memory of an evening of fine food, wine and theatre. 00
Restaurant Review – The Peacock at Rowsley
As we crossed the threshold I blushed a little as I suddenly recalled that my last visit to The Peacock at Rowsley, some years ago admittedly, was with a previous boyfriend who had impeccable taste and was the owner of a small hotel on Jersey. This visit was on a very wet April evening with my lovely husband, and, as we were shown into the bar where a fire roared in the grate, I felt the same sense of history in this beautiful old hotel. Situated on the A6 through Rowsley, The Peacock Hotel is a grade II listed former manor house built in 1652, and as part of the Haddon Estate it is presently owned by Lord and Lady Edward Manners. Dan Smith, a Michelin trained chef, has for the last 10 years with his team earned The Peacock a place in the top 10% of restaurants in the country with 3 AA Rosettes. Assistant manager Katie welcomed us and showed us into the bar which is like stepping back in time with its heavily leaded stone mullion windows and uneven flagged floors. Serving both a bar and à la carte menu, we enjoyed a pre-dinner drink while we made our menu choices and began to unwind after a challenging day. Here too we were served an ‘amuse bouché’ of roast butternut squash and blue cheese dressed with truffle oil, this was rich and intense in flavour with a side of beef tartare and pickled cucumber which really awoke the taste buds. Shown into the dining room by Oliver, the food and beverage manager, we were seated under the watchful eyes of Lord Robert Manners (the portrait of course), who was killed April 12 1782. As the room filled there was friendly chatter among some of the resident guests making a very convivial atmosphere. My starter of hand picked crab was mixed with delicate pink beetroot cured salmon with a little heat added by the horseradish, a classic accompaniment. My husbands’ spinach ravioli was soft and silky, filled with the soft yolk of an egg, with sweet little peas it sat on a butter and chive sauce. From a well-balanced selection of main dishes I chose the Goosnargh chicken, run through with wild garlic and with a crisp skin, it was beautifully moist. Circled by buttery leeks and morels it was served with a side of an individual chicken pie piped with soft potato. The soft texture of the morels against the chicken was delicious. The flavour of my husbands beef fillet and the rich beef cheek made him smile, it just fell apart. It was served with charred artichoke, spring cabbage and miso. A light and fresh citrus Greek yogurt and sorbet was served pre dessert as a palette cleanser. As well as a dessert menu there was also my choice, a ‘Tart of the day’ which was a lemon tart with a light, thin, buttery pastry shell and beautifully sharp lemon filling it had a thin brittle caramel top. The rhubarb and fromage frais dessert served for my husband was both a work of art visually and had a great balance of texture and flavours, I just couldn’t resist sneaking a taste. We took our coffee and delicate, handmade petits fours in the lounge, a quiet and relaxing area. We had enjoyed a really outstanding meal, beautifully prepared by a true artist, with flavours balanced with skill and care, using only the finest ingredients. The staff were both attentive but discreet, most of them having worked here for the last ten years creating a seamless team and well deserved fine reputation. Our evening was truly memorable in every respect, and it is abundantly obvious why The Peacock at Rowsley sits comfortably amongst our finest hotels. For reservations contact 01629 733518 or email reception@thepeacockatrowsley.com 00
Restaurant Review – Santo’s Higham Farm
When was the last time you visited Santo’s at Higham Farm? I expect for many of you reading this it has been a little while, but please take a fresh look as Santo’s continues its heavy investment into refurbishing this beautifully positioned hotel. The latest Santo’s investment is in the kitchens bringing them right up to date with a refurbishment in excess of £130,000 with state of the art equipment, all adding to the efficiency and enabling the chef to spend time to beautifully create new and exciting dishes. Ray, the head chef, has known Santo for 26 years. As a 16 year old he worked with Santo and when Santo came to Higham Farm he asked Ray to join him. Through the years Ray progressed to the position of head chef. Ray left Higham to gain more knowledge and returned two years ago. Some of the current staff Ray has in his brigade have been at Santo’s over 15 years. The emphasis is very much on fresh local produce, with meat from local award winning butcher Owen Taylor and the vegetables sourced locally. Their aim is to produce everything in their own kitchen, from their beautiful selection of home made fresh breads baked daily, right down to churning their own butter! The cheese bread and wholemeal Stilton were a particular hit. Santo’s aim to cater for everyone. The early bird Monday Pizza menu is perfect for a night out with the family – with pizzas from £6.00, and the Sports Bar menu offers more traditional bar food. We were there to sample the new A la Carte Spring menu. This was put together over the last few weeks with input from all the chefs, and was tasted by the waiting staff to tweak the combinations and flavours. Already they are starting on their Summer menu to come up with new ideas and flavours! We went along to sample all the new spring menu and to be fair every dish was fantastic! For starter my personal favourite was ricotta ravioli, filled with simple basil, pepper and ricotta. It was served in a spring vegetable consommé, and drizzled with Scotch bonnet chilli oil which gave it a very subtle kick without being over powering. The fois gras is also a must, served with a truffle brioche with a caramelised top which gave it a little crunch and sweetness; Morel mushrooms and gooseberry relish accompanied this. My partner sampled the mackerel, which came with stripes of pickled cucumber and a touch of horseradish snow that was more like a sorbet that added an inspirational touch fusing the cucumber and mackerel together . The main course that stood out for me was the smoked corn fed chicken breast with confit potato, black garlic purée with roasted garlic, Iceberg lettuce and a butter sauce. The vegetarian option is also a little different – sautéed gem lettuce and arancini, one arancini is filled with asparagus and the other with crispy hen’s egg yolk served with feta cheese and confit tomatoes. A clear winner in my partners opinion was the 12 hour spiced belly pork with saag aloo, tikka foam and served with mini black pepper poppadums, put simply a deconstructed pork curry. The belly pork just melted away, and with flavours of Asia it was a great combination and one my partner highly recommends. If possible make room for a dessert. The lemon meringue with all butter puff pastry and lemon curd is a perfect sweet but sharp dessert with to finish your meal. The aerated chocolate and popcorn ice cream with salted caramel and peanut brittle honeycomb is fantastic too if you have a sweet tooth. Each dish is exquisitely presented – showing the care and detail they put into each component. If Santo and Roma, the hotel manager, were out to impress, then I can honestly say they’ve succeeded. The food excelled, the staff were trained to silver service level; friendly and helpful. Santo’s at Higham Farm is truly on the ‘foodies’ map , whether you’re looking for a meal to help you through the working week, some where to take the family, a quiet meal for two or a special occasion celebration. With ample parking and reasonable prices, their new spring menu fired our imagination and we know it will yours too. 00
Derbyshire Antiques & Collectibles – Propelling Pencils
At various times over my boyhood, I received a propelling pencil for birthday or Christmas, which, of course, duly got lost at school or somehow broken. Most were plastic bodies and some had different coloured leads. My grandfather had a silver one boasting a dip-pen nib with a propelling pencil hidden beneath the nib’s curve, which could be moved out whilst the nib retracted. Mama, who was a serious bridge player, had a set of four with the suits in colour on the silver bodies and little coloured silky tassels, which lived in a powder blue box and came out when she and her friends sat down to play, along with the gin. Perhaps I should have kept mine, for most propelling pencils or mechanical pencils are collectible and some highly collectible. The modern pencil was born in 16th-century England, where, in Cumbria, a major deposit of graphite was found. The earliest pencils had square solid graphite cores. In 1795, a Frenchman named Nicholas Jacques Conté mixed powdered graphite with clay so that the material could be formed into rods that would be hardened by firing. This allowed pencil makers to vary the quality of the mark made by the rod—the greater the percentage of graphite to clay, the softer the rod and the darker the mark. It also enabled a new type of pencil to be invented in 1822. This was a ‘mechanical’ pencil, the co-creation of English inventors Sampson Mordan and Gabriel Riddle. Mechanical pencils, aided by the user, had a small rod which pushed the graphite rod down a tube of conforming diameter usually with a twist action mechanism via helical drive to the pencil’s point, and held them there. When done writing, the mechanism could be twisted the reverse way. Between 1822 to 1874, more than 160 patents were registered pertaining to a variety of improvements to such pencils. The first spring-loaded mechanical pencil was patented in 1877 and the twist-feed mechanism was developed in 1895. Some of these pencils are simple, some are fancy, with lead-storage compartments, erasers hidden inside the finial, or even finial-mounted engraved jewels; there was something for every income level. But until the early 20th century, they were generally all just plain, propelling pencils. They may be found in a bewildering variety of media: gold, silver, ivory, tortoiseshell, and there are numerous novelties, from guns, parasols, axes, creatures (great and small) and so on. The first major development was the propel-repel pencil. Whereas the previous incarnation of the pencil had the lead freely sliding in and out of a closely-fitted tube, a new innovation approached the problem a little differently. The end of the lead firmly fitted into a socket, and the socket—attached to a shuttle—moved up and down the length of the barrel. Unfortunately, when used up, the lead tended to break off, right at the socket. Then the only solution was to ream out the socket, or discard the pencil and buy a fresh one. Further development was required. This came in the 1930s. Rather than simply wedging the lead into a socket, a propelling rod was placed inside the socket; one which travels only far enough to push remnants of the lead out of the socket, doing so only when the mechanism is at the furthest point of travel along the barrel. This design was truly revolutionary, and is still in use in fine mechanical pencils today. It became eloquently known as the propel-repel-expel pencil. Needless to say, there are numerous variations and combinations of all three varieties. The slide- and screw-mechanism pencils from the early part of the 19th century are highly prized, as are the combination pen-pencils (like Grandpa’s) from later that century. Some had a pencil on one end and a pen on the other. Throughout the nineteenth century and into the 20th, Sampson Mordan and Co. remained the pre-eminent manufacturer in the UK. Miniature mechanical pencils were also popular. They were typically decorated with celluloid or enamel cases. Some telescoped, others were built into pocketknives. In the early 20th century, you could get everything from tricolour pencils to ones with calendars on their cases (these were usually made by Mordan, too). By the 20th century, even high-end retailers like Tiffany and Cartier were commissioning examples, often designed in Art Nouveau or Art-Deco styles. Collectible brands of 20th century pencils include Yard-O-Led (which boasted twelve 3in leads in the barrel, patented in 1934) and Wahl-Eversharp (founded by C R Keenan 1915, but taken over by Wahl 1918), which cased their pencils in metal and hard rubber, while Sheaffer and Waterman used hard colourful Bakelite. Of course, advertisers liked to put their logos and slogans on mechanical pencils too, especially during the 1930s and 1940s and these, even if quite cheaply made, are all the more collectible for it. Victorian pencils are so varied and attractive that many collectors refuse to stray into the following era in their collecting. At Bamford’s we recently sold a lot of three gilt metal ones – one chased, the others engine-turned, one with a seal top and one with a ring on the end for attachment to a châtelaine or similar for marking dance cards – for £22 against an estimate of £15-20. Base metal and non-exotic material ones are not expensive but can be very attractive and, of course, retain their utility as long as you want them to! These can also have amusing refinements, such as a Stanhope – a peephole at the top with a view of some beauty spot, or a portrait of a notable – or a seal end with an engraved armorial, enabling one to track down the original owner. Even in base metal the engine turning or chase-carving can be of respectable quality, and yet £20 will often buy you one at auction, although non-precious metal examples do tend to be sold in groups. Some are not only precious metal, but wonderfully attractive like the Mordan piglet pencil sold recently for £1,695
