Blake Hill Preserves, specialist producer of chutneys, preserves and marmalades in Grafton, Vermont, announced that its “Cranberry & Orange” chutney is a 2015 Good Food Awards Winner. Blake Hill is the 1st producer to have a chutney win in consecutive years, and its “Moroccan Plum & Fennel” chutney was also the 1st chutney to win the Good Food Awards last year. The nation’s Good Food Awards sets the standard for “”taste, authenticity and social responsibility.”
Blake Hill was one of the top scoring entries from over 1,462 products subject to a blind tasting by some of the country’s leading chefs, food writers and retailers, and also exceeded the Good Food Awards’ stringent “authentic and responsible” food production standards, making Blake Hill “a true leader in its field, epitomizing taste, authenticity and responsible production” says Sarah Weiner, co-founder of the Good Food Awards.
Vicky Allard, Blake Hill’s co-founder and executive chef says: “We feel truly honored to have Blake Hill’s Cranberry & Orange chutney be a Good Food Awards 2015 Winner, especially after winning last year too for our Moroccan Plum & Fennel chutney. We make one of the highest fruit content chutneys on the market today, using over 8.5oz of fruit to make each 9.4oz jar of Blake Hill chutney, creating a very clean, fruit-forward flavor that I think the judges are really enjoying. We use only the finest ingredients, locally sourced when in season, and love to create unique, perfectly balanced spice blends to highlight the flavors of the fruit, resulting in a truly delicious chutney that can be enjoyed from breakfast to dinner.”
Blake Hill’s fruit-forward chutneys, preserves and marmalades are also a big hit with fellow cheesemongers, fast becoming a top-selling brand for some of the very best in their region. Vicky says: “Chutneys are a very traditional cheese pairing in England where I grew up, and we started making Blake Hill’s range of chutneys, preserves and marmalades because we could not find any quality offerings at our local store. The world class quality of our local artisanal cheeses deserve a fresh tasting, delightfully fruity pairing made with only the finest, pure ingredients. We do not even add commercial pectin to any Blake Hill product, instead relying on our third generation preserve making expertize and the quality of our ingredients to create a perfect natural texture.
Blake Hill’s exceptional sales growth encourages them to continue their time honored traditions of artisanal preserve making even while production continues to grow. Says Vicky: “We may be considered a little “obsessive”, however there is nothing more rewarding than seeing glistening jars of just-cooked chutneys, preserves and marmalades in Blake Hill’s Cooling Room and we are very thankful for the wonderful feedback from our customers.”
While 2014 was an outstanding year for Blake Hill, becoming the 1st preserve maker to be honored with 3 Good Food Awards in the same year and also the 1st US producer to win GOLD from over 2,000 international entries at the Worldwide Marmalade Awards in England, 2015 promises to be equally exciting. With a brand new range of “Extra Fruit / Reduced Sugar” preserves and conserves and a new medium-cut marmalade range being launched this month and other exciting developments in the works, 2015 should be another phenomenal year for this innovative young preserve making company!
January 9 2015 – San Francisco, CA – Blake Hill Preserves