DISPATCHES FROM THE FARMRSS

2011 delicious Produce Awards Results

Thursday, August 18, 2011
Hello Everyone! Well we're back 'on deck' after our annual leave, which is one reason why I haven't written for a while. Winter is currently the only time we can leave the farm to take time off, as not much is happening during our long wet, cold and often grey winters. For example today is approx. 10 deg.C, we've had 30mm plus of rain in the past 24 and the recent 'special' feature was wind gusts of 37km/hour or so! When some warmth and sunshine starts returning, things can grow...


A snapshot of our local weather today!

Never-the -less, the garlic is sitting out there enjoying the cold and waiting for spring to 'pop', when it can start 'bulking up' and forming its cloves. We are getting organised with our new seeds e.t.c. for the coming season's vegie crops and starting to make early on-farm preparations towards seed raising our new vegie plants and other timely early season jobs such as weeding the garlic and herb plants. We're anticipating spring might come early this year going by the buds and blossoms around the place but it's no where near spring weather here right now.



The winners were announced for the ABC delicious Produce Awards a few weeks ago on July 25 in Sydney. Unfortunately 'no cigar' for our garlic this year but some of our producer friends won 'gongs' which we are very pleased about. These Gold Medallists include Fernleigh Farm Free-range for their chorizo, Sher Wagu for their beef and Holy Goats for their La Luna soft goats cheese. Holy Goat were also inducted into the Produce Awards 'Hall of Fame' and Fiona Chambers from Fernleigh Farms won the 'Heritage Award' for her tireless work in raising and promoting rare breed animals. Congratulations to these folks and all the other winners for 2011. Apparently it was a record number of nominations this year since the awards began, which is wonderful news for quality Australian produce and sustainable agriculture.

Watch this space for new season farm news from us to come...
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Finalists ABC delicious Produce Awards 2011 - Garlic!

Tuesday, July 12, 2011
Finalists for the upcoming 2011 ABC delicious Magazine Produce Awards have recently been announced...



We are really proud to have been selected as finalists for our rocambole garlic in the "From The Earth" category, for the 2nd year running and from a record number of entries from all over Australia. Despite the rather harsh growing season most fresh food producers have just battled through or are still struggling with the aftermath of, our little nation has still come up with a record number of entrants for this years' awards - really fantastic!


2010 Rocambole Garlic harvest 'samples'


2011 Rocambole Garlic currently growing/winter dormency...

We have been invited to the Awards Night at Guillaume At Bennelong (@ Syd. Opera House) in my 'old stomping ground' Sydney, later this month. Our attendance is very 'up in the air' this time but we'd love to be there if we are able to in the end.



Read all about it in the current July ABC delicious Magazine OUT NOW! ( buy from ABC stores (shops & online), newsagents &/or subscribe from the News Magazine site online) 

We are really happy for several of our Vic. friends who have also been chosen as finalists: Kylie and Paul's scrumptious Wurrook Superfine Prime Lamb (beautiful Sunday roast last weekend thanks folks!), Fiona and Nick Chambers' Fernleigh Free-Range Pork for this years' chorizo, Vicky and Nick's Sher Wagyu Beef, Allan and Lizette's Warrialda Belted Galloway Beef, Anne-Marie and Carla's Holy Goat La Luna (soft goat's cheese) and Penninsula Fresh Organic's heirloom veg. Congratulations everyone and best wishes towards winning the major 'gong'!

We truly feel for a couple of other friends who missed out on the chance to be nominated for this year's awards due to the extensive effects of the super wet season on their farms and wish them every success for the upcoming season and future recognition for your great produce and hard work.



The 2011 National Judges: Alla Wolf-Tasker (The Lake Hosue Vic), Matt Moran (Aria Restaurant, NSW/Qld), Cheong Liew (The Botanical, Vic), Philip Johnson (E'cco Bistro, Qld) and Maggie Beer (SA)

Don't miss the August issue of ABC delicious Magazine when the WINNERS of this delicious Produce Awards 2011 will be announced...
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delicious Garlic!

Friday, April 29, 2011
The May edition of ABC delicious Magazine is due out. 



Go to page 38 to see who chef Matt Wilkinson, co-owner of  Melbourne's Pope Joan,  has selected as his 2011 Produce Awards 'Pick of the Crop' for May...



...it's Angelica Organic Farm garlic!

For this nice little plug, Matt made a sumptuous bagna cauda dip using our rocambole garlic.  



Thank you Matt for your appreciative words.

We are honoured to be in the running again and find it especially pleasing after the challenging season we've had.


Our much loved 17 y.o. cat, Charlotte, in the 'adopted' wood basket...best spot near the fire, MIAOW!!

Charlotte says "Buy Angelica Organic Farm garlic. It's yummy and good for you and my mum and dad work hard to grow it well for you!"


2011 Angelica Organic Farm Garlic Braids at the Xmas Slow Food FM.

Best of luck to all this year's nominees. May our following produce seasons be blessed by the fair weather gods and subsequently abundant and tasty as can be!
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From The Earth...mmm Delicious Produce Awards 2010!

Thursday, July 22, 2010
We have some great news to share with you all...



On Monday night at Circa, The Prince in St Kilda, Melbourne, the winners for the 2010 delicious Produce Awards were announced and we are proud to say that we won a GOLD MEDAL for our beloved GARLIC in the "From The Earth" category. The delightful and creative Matt Wilkinson, head chef at Circa and his team put on a sumptuous cocktail party spread with as many of the Award entrants' produce as they could source this time of year and it was truly lovely. 



There was the 'who's who' of  top chefs, including the awards' judges. Some we spotted and/or got to speak with were Maggie Beer (Barossa food legend and a hero of ours!), Matt Moran (ARIA), Neil Perry (Rockpool), Sean Preslin (Saki), Cheong Liew (The Grange, Adelaide Hilton), Stephanie Alexander (Stephanie's & the school Kitchen Garden Scheme) and our own Alla Wolf-Tasker (The Lake House). I said to Tim, "I wonder what Sydney-siders are dining out on tonight? Many of their best chefs are here!" 

The magnificent Matt Preston hosted the awards presentation in his usual sartorial splendour and great humour. He was very generous in posing for a photo with us and chatting about our work and it was so nice to finally meet him. He is in our esteem a very talented food critic and personally I adore cravats! I have to mention that Matt actually looked damn finer than he has come up in our photo below...sorry Matt...our phone camera is very unkind (the digital camera jammed earlier in the evening).




All the other winners and medalists for the various categories and awards are listed at the attached ABC delicious magazine website. Several of this years finalists and winners are from around our region, which is really lovely to be a part of...Fernleigh Farms, Wurrook Super Fine Prime Lamb, Holy Goat Cheese, Meredith Dairy, Mt Alexander Fruit Gardens, Daylesford Organics, Sher Wagyu, Warialda Belted Galloway Beef, as well as several other great Victorian producers.



We extend our sincere congratulations to all finalists and the winners and we feel honoured to be amongst such a great bunch of passionate, sustainable producers. We really appreciate how hard everyone works and what kinds of risk factors can be associated with farming and food production, so cheers to all the hard work and big hearts and for the generosity and support a few of you in particular have shown towards us since we started our long held dream of organic farming.

We are also thrilled that the Collingwood Children's Farm Farmers' Market won the 'Outstanding Farmers' Market' award (for all Australia!). Established in 2002, this community-owned market brings more than 70 Victorian producers (such as us) to inner-city Melbourne on the 2nd Saturday of each month and was one of the first farmers' markets to be accredited for stallholder authenticity. It was really wonderful to see Miranda Sharp our market co-ordinator accepting this award, as we truly appreciate the commitment and many hours (years!) of work she has put in towards making this market and others a success and an experience consumers can rely on for quality and integrity as well as an enjoyable environment. Go girl and go CCFM!



As I was discussing with a colleague and friend earlier today, one of the best things for us about winning this award, is that both me and Tim have been 'obsessed' with really good food or ingredients in one way or another (i.e. different aspects at different times) since our teens and although winning awards is by no means our 'why' for becoming organic food producers, it IS very nice to be recognised for being premium produce growers (esp. GARLIC of all things for us and being a 'small holding' farm enterprise). We have dreamed for decades in a number of ways, about becoming premium, artisanal producers, prior to starting Angelica Organic Farm 5 years ago, like our heros in France and Italy, like Maggie Beer and many others here, who have inspired us for such a long time. To be also doing it by biological/organic means is very dear to us. During my early 20s, whilst I was working in Sydney restaurants, I read a book called 'The Chef's Table: an Australian gourmet in the great restaurants of France' by Aussie chef Barbara Ross. In her book Barbara journals her working holiday around France, for which she organised in advance with a number of top restaurants (often Michelin Star or 'hatted' restaurants), volunteer cooking positions, so she could learn from and experience the best chefs and produce France had to offer. The anecdotes about the regional produce and growers and the respect with which the chefs utilised it just made my heart 'sing' and has inspired me forever more. Watch out France when we get over there!!

Thanks to everyone who has supported, encouraged, taught, respected and believed in us - family, friends, colleagues, competitors, customers, local business groups such as DMP and the local community in general. It is cherished and of great help as we 'rock on' into the future with our little farm, lovingly growing our natural produce.



This is just the 'tip of the iceberg' from us folks...we've got a lot more 'in the tank' to come and we can only get better at what we do!


One of the beautiful displays at Circa for the awards.




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Finalists!

Friday, April 16, 2010
We can hardly believe it dear readers, but we have been selected as finalists for the 2010 delicious Produce Awards
(Fomerly known as the Vogue Entertaining & Travel Produce Awards).


Some of our babies getting packed for their trip.

Last week we sent off our garlic samples to Sydney for the judges, who were making their judgement on Monday (April 12). We are in the 'From the earth' category.

This years judges are: Maggie Beer, Matt Moran, Philip Johnson, Cheong Liew, Alla Wolf-Tasker and Neil Perry - eeek!

 


It's quite exciting for us. So by next season, there's a chance you'll be eating award winning organic gorgeous gourmet garlic! Not sure when the winners will be announced, but we'll let you know if we're one of them huh?


The 2009-2010 crop unwrapped!
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Delicious Media and where's the sun gone!

Friday, September 18, 2009
Have you seen this months edition of the ABC Delicious Magazine? There's an article in it called Victoria's Spa Country which is a well written, beautifully photographed and generous piece about our region, featuring the ever flourishing 'dynamic dining scenes' of Daylesford, Hepburn Springs and Kyneton particularly. Some of the great restaurants/cafes and provedores Angelica Organic Farm supply rate nice mentions if you want to take a squiz, including Daylesford fixtures Frangos & Frangos restaurant and their cafe Koukla, the vanguard The Lake House, The Perfect Drop wine bar and scrumptious eatery, Cliffy's Emporium the delightful 'old shop' provedore and cafe and Slow Living in Kyneton, a charming rustic-chic organic wholefoods store and cafe.

Above: ABC Delicious Article September 2009

The fact is, the Victorian Central Highlands spa country is home to 80% of Australia's mineral water springs and has long  been a polestar for premium food and healing waters. Our indigenous traditional owners, the Jaara Jaara people prospered here prior to colonisation and are believed to have been drawn here for the prized waters and the rich source of foods.
Slow Living- ABC Delicious September 2009
Above: Slow Living- ABC Delicious September 2009

I'll take you back to the farm next post. As I write this it's bucketing down rain again and the aformentioned arrival of spring seems to have recoiled as Mother Nature delivers us another moist and foggy, wintery day! The thing is we tend to get lots of toing and froing between winter and spring/summer weather here from this time of year even through to January some years. We have had to re-light the wood heater many a Christmas. Nothing like variety!

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