A Northumberland marmalade maker’s sweet spreads have been judged to be fit for the queen- they’ll go on sale in the Royal Family’s London grocer Fortnum & Mason.
Marmalade maker Lynne Allan, who runs the Old Dairy at Ford in Northumberland, scooped gold with her Lady Waterford Preserves at this year’s World’s Original Marmalade Awards.
The awards, which are held every year at Dalemain near Penrith in Cumbria, attract thousands of entrants, both amateur and artisan.
Mrs Allan, who has won gold in previous years, created a Seville and Tomato Marmalade with Spices which so impressed Fortnum & Mason, which sponsors the awards, that she has now been asked to supply it to its London store, where it will go on sale in their food hall.
And in a nod to Paddington Bear, Fortnum’s has had its chefs create a special sandwich around her winning marmalade, combining it with goat’s cheese and rocket for its fresh food counter.
Mrs Allan’s award-winning ways began in 2012 when she first entered the competition and won a silver award.
Then in 2017 she struck gold - quite literally - becoming one of only a handful of gold award winners in the Artisan section of the marmalade competition,with her Venetian Gold Marmalade containing 24 carat edible gold.
The gold came from Venice and was supplied by Mario Berta Battiloro, a small family firm of gold beaters and the only one in Venice producing gold leaf by hand, using various hammers to beat it into shape.
Most Read
She and husband Keith came up with the idea after spending a few months working at the Gritti Palace Hotel Cookery School, teaching guests the finer points of British scone making.
Mrs Allan said: “I think it’s fair to say that marmalade has changed my life.
“I never stop making it and thanks to this latest gold award, and Fortnum’s being so keen to stock it and use it in one of their sandwiches it’s another step on our marmalade journey.
“I’ve always made marmalade for the family but when you win something it spurs you on to see if you can take it further.”
All of the couple's marmalades and jams are made at the Old Dairy where they have created a concept store full of antiques, a coffee shop, bistro with pop-up suppers and and an outdoor champagne bar with the views over Glendale to the Cheviot Hills.