Great Taste Awards 09 Supreme Champion Revealed

Patrick Moore, a former chef who runs More? The Artisan Bakery in Staveley, near Kendal, came within a whisker of winning the Supreme Champion trophy in last year’s awards with his More? Muddee,  brownie with a thin, crisp crust and moist rich centre. But at the final judging at Fortnum & Mason on 7th September, he secured 2009’s top slot with a gluten-free version of the same recipe.

The chefs, cookery writers and celebrity foodies on this year’s final judging panel included TV chef Antony Worrall Thompson, restaurateur Mark Hix and former Masterchef winner, Thomasina Miers. A surprise addition to the panel was Radio 2 DJ Chris Evans. On the day the BBC revealed he would be taking over Terry Wogan’s breakfast show from next January. He raced to Fortnums after his Drivetime show to take part in final judging and the deliberations were broadcast live on TV screens to an audience of over 400 food producers and buyers as they sampled some of 2009’s Great Taste Awards three-star gold-winners on display in Fortnum’s famous food hall.

The best products – most of which are available in British delis and farm shops – are awarded one, two or three gold stars, with regional and national awards also being presented. September saw the final judging of the “best of the best” at Fortnum & Mason, which also sponsored the Supreme Champion trophy.

Patrick Moore said the prestigious award for his gluten-free Muddees proved that it was not necessary to compromise quality to meet special dietary needs. “I think intolerance sufferers are short-changed,” he said. “It’s almost as though, because a food carries a gluten-free claim, it’s acceptable for it to be lower quality and ridiculously expensive. I don’t think that’s right. So I was only interested in doing it if people couldn’t tell the difference between the gluten-free version and my original brownie.”

Chairman of judges, Simon Burdess, Fortnums’ trading director, also announced a special commendation for Irish artisan fish smoker Woodcock Smokery’s wild smoked salmon. Owner, Sally Barnes, collected the Supreme Champion title in 2006, but was nearly put out of business by the closure soon after of Ireland’s wild salmon fishery. Barnes has rebuilt the business on wild-caught Scottish salmon and came within a few votes of winning her second Supreme Champion title this year.