Happy Friday choc fans!
Hope you’re all having a great week. I felt compelled to write a Blog to highlight how we support local producers. There’s always such a lot of ‘noise’ about it at this time of year (and rightly so!) For many of us artisan producers – the festive period is our largest income source £ per day of any other time of the year.
As we all know – supporting your local producers and popping your hard earned £ into their pockets in turn keeps your local economy going. It keeps your money local. It’ll keep those gorgeous delis going, those farmers markets and shops going, those craft fairs going – and those lovely independent shops going – which in turn add to the vibe of our community.
We adore it when customers post about us on social media and #shoplocal it so today I thought I’d do a few shout outs to some of the many local producers we directly support by buying from them and using their products in ours. I also want to give a shout out to some other local events and people worth following with local links. The producers have all had a part of play in our Limited-Edition Christmas Range for 2024 too.
Feel The Love Friday, this is! Grab a cuppa and let’s get to it…
Ludlow Distillery
– Shaun
For our Christmas Range 2024 – we wanted to source a locally made Sloe Gin and Shaun at Ludlow Distillery came up with the goods for sure. Derek at Moonshine and Fuggles kindly gave Richard a sampler and he was sold! Compared to others he had been trying he could certainly tell the difference with this one. This was special.
You can still taste how special it is now Richard has turned it into a Sloe Gin and Cranberry chocolate truffle, which features in our Christmas Boxes.
Why not sloe down a little bit with our classic hedgerow hip flask tipple? The delicious flavour of sloes combined with a classic Ludlow dry gin, distilled especially to allow the fruit flavours to sing, just a touch of spice too. Perfect neat whilst enjoying the great outdoors, or a dash in your favourite sparkling tipple to make a ‘shire’ Kir Royale. Store in a cool dark place; enjoy before it runs out!
Buy your own bottle to enjoy this festive season by clicking here:
Moonshine and Fuggles
– Maria and Derek
We have been lucky enough to work with Derek since 2022 and we have seen him create his own selection of tipples. We have then turned some of those into delicious chocolates! Derek is our go to for anything booze related and we use his rum and gin in our everyday ranges all the time now.
M&F Rum Project – Honeycomb Rum – This beautiful blend of Rums distilled at The West Midlands Distillery and in the Caribbean. Flavoured with additional Honeycomb, it’s like liquid crunchy with a nice spice balance.
Click link below to buy:
While you’re browsing his online shop or in person in his Ironbridge shop – you can also purchase our Limited Edition Christmas Boxes!
Click link below to buy:
Minimise in the Shrewsbury Market Hall
– Pip Tudor and Ben Richards
This is somewhere very special, and Richards go to for any herbs and spices he may need when concocting new flavours or making new batches of firm favourites. The knowledge Pip and Ben offer is fantastic and the whole ethos of Minimise feeds the soul.
Our Mission is to Minimise the needless waste in our day to day lives, and bring the benefits of tasty, plastic-free, locally sourced food to everyone.
We believe that good food is one of the most important things in life and want to help it be as accessible to everyone as possible.
We recognise that as important as food is, we as a society have become too reliant on big chains, needless plastic that ends up filling our beaches and oceans, and unsustainably sourced items.
We intend to source our food as locally as possible, whilst making sure the things that come from further afield are supplied in the most environmentally friendly way possible.
DRAWN – Festive Makers Market – Shrewsbury Flaxmill Maltings
Always a treat to browse the stalls at a DRAWN market. This brings together some of the best makers in the area – in one go. I just love that we live somewhere where this kinda event even happens! It makes my soul happy. THIS WEEKEND – 16th and 17th Nov 2024 sees their Festive Makers Market at the Shrewsbury Flaxmill Maltings. Wrap up warm and take a wander.
Discover unique gifts from local artists and makers, enjoy delicious holiday treats, and soak in the merry atmosphere. Whether you’re looking for the perfect present or just want to get into the Christmas spirit, this event is the place to be.
Jim Hawkins
I’m sure most of you will know Jim. But he is just one of those great people. Who does great things. Who gives a voice to so many people and their stories. Give his Podcast ‘Hello You’ a follow, a like, a listen? Thank you.
Click to listen on Apple Podcasts
His latest one is about the Beaver Moon – but not JUST about that – Jim goes on wonderful tangents too – so you never know what’s going to come up in each Podcast – and that is the sheer joy of them.
….Beaver Moon.
The what?
The Beaver Moon is a time related to survival in many cultures. It marks the turn towards winter, breaking free from old habits to start something new. In traditional North American cultures, it is a moment to consider hard work and readiness to face difficult times, related to beavers preparing for winter.
I’m very aware of the Beaver Moon at the moment. It’s definitely shining on me right now.
So, there are some things to try, some places to visit and a fantastic Podcast to enjoy! Happy Friday and wishing you the very best of weekends.
Laura xx
Lefevre Chocolate 