*Blacker Hall Farm Shop*, Calder Grove, West Yorkshire, has a reputation for getting creative with sausages and January marks the launch of the newest variety; pork with locally pressed cider.
Pure North Cider Press, run by Rob North and his family, is one of the most northerly cider presses in England. Usually confined to the South, where cider has been produced for centuries, this Norhtern variety is an alternative to Yorkshire’s favourite; ale! It is growing in popularity throughout Yorkshire and The North, and has been available at Blacker Hall since November.
Cheryl Garthwaite, at Blacker Hall says _”We are usually pretty good at developing new varieties of sausage, the demand for them is high and we sell in the region of a tonne per week, made with pork from our own farm. This one was a little trickier to master and we have had a few attempts at refining the recipe. We are happy with the result; it’s not too over-powering, it has a lovely subtle sweetness balanced with a blend of spices.”_
The cider apples are grown organically, though not yet soil association approved, without the use of pesticides and pressed by hand. This means it is naturally high in antioxidants and free of preservatives.
Cheryl says,
_”Due to the natural way Pure North produce their cider it means that we had a very pure product to work with.”_
The sausage range at Blacker Hall now has more than 25 varieties and they are completely free of MSG and other artificial flavour enhancers. Blacker Hall’s “anniversary sausage” is made with Ossett Brewery treacle stout, and was made to commemorate the 10th birthday of the farm shop back in 2009.