The flower of Scottish foods

Jun 19 2009 By Emma Deadman

Emma Deadman makes the most of some high-quality produce on a five-star journey north of the border.

I love food. For the purpose of this article, I’ve tried to think of foods I hate, but quite honestly, I can’t think of any.

Moreover, I love food if I know where it has come from. Home-grown, organic, local – you name it, I’ll buy it or make it.

And it’s not just because it’s ‘trendy’ to eat like this, it’s because it just tastes so, so much better.

This is an ethos shared by Pete Gottgens, owner and chef of the Ardeonaig Hotel on the banks on Scotland’s Loch Tay.

South African Pete snapped up the hotel in 2003 and, since then, it has undergone a massive transformation, turning it into a luxury retreat with a difference.

It’s a mixture of the two cultures (South Africa and Scotland), from the accommodation – Rondawels overlooking the loch, to the food – Highland beef for main, Mielie Meal for dessert.

At just over 90 minutes’ drive from either Glasgow or Edinburgh, you could be in another world in the same time as your daily commute.

Pete and his team strive to source their ingredients from the best available local produce. In fact, he now owns 150 sheep, which graze on the heather of hills nearby. The beginnings of a cattle herd and home-grown vegetables are also under way, as is the most northerly vineyard in the United Kingdom. In fact, around 90 per cent of the food served at the Ardeonaig comes from Scotland.

Eating food like this speaks for itself – great ingredients make for a great final dish, albeit with the help of a great team in the kitchens.

The chefs have nothing to hide – a sliding glass door allows diners to walk in and observe them at work, while you can even book a table to sit in the kitchen and eat your meal there.

Alternatively, you can opt for the cellar dining room, where the walls are lined with hundreds of bottles of South Africa’s finest. It’s a fantastic setting for Pete’s ‘signature menu’, and the meal we ate here was above and beyond anything I’ve ever tasted before.

And when you’ve been wined and dined, you can just head upstairs or jump aboard a golf buggy to take you to the unique Rondawels (circular, individual rooms dotted in the grounds).

While it’s always lovely to just eat what’s put in front of you, sometimes it’s nice to head off and hunt for your own.

Scotland is perfect for this – mushrooms, fruits, berries, game, fish – it’s all out there for the taking.

For a spot of fishing, the Kinnaird estate is perfect. Just a half-hour ride from the hotel, this 7,000-acre estate is a haven of outdoor pursuits – croquet, partridge shoots, deer stalking.

We tried a spot of fishing on the River Tay, in the hope of catching something tasty for our lunch. Our excellent ghillie took our group of beginners to all the best places and gave us a fine starter lesson. It’s a good job the outdoor butler from Kinnaird stopped by to deliver a gourmet hamper, though – our two-hour jaunt produced nothing!

Undefeated, our next stop was to meet Fiona ­Houston and Xa Milne for an afternoon of foraging. Having written a book, Seaweed and Eat It, Fiona and Xa now run bespoke foraging tours for visitors to Scotland.

The Perthshire forests are home to a multitude of ‘free foods’, all you have to do is get out there and find them! After a woodland walk to hunt for wild mushrooms, we took a bundle of our findings back to the Kinnaird hotel for Fiona and Xa to look through.

These ladies know exactly what to look for and it’s a good job, as 75 per cent of what we picked was poisonous!

A word of warning; don’t just pick and eat anything without first researching it. While many fruits, berries and fungi are edible, there are an awful lot that aren’t; if you’re in doubt, then don’t eat it.

This area of Scotland is one of the most picturesque places on earth and what better way to see it than to climb to the top of a mountain?

Well, mountain is a slight exaggeration, but the ramble up Callander Crags certainly clears away the cobwebs.

The walk gives beautiful views over Ben Ledi and Loch Voil over to Stirling. The Bracklinn Falls, near to the beginning of the walk, is a great spot to stop for a picnic.

The four-mile trek certainly helped us to work up an appetite for our return to the town of Callander.

Although small, the town has the benefit of a fantastic mini-chain of places to eat.

MHORFish is part of an empire run by brothers and sister Tom, Dick and Melanie Lewis and it includes a fishmongers and cafe, luxury hotel, bakery and tearoom, as well as plenty of other ‘hands-on’ activities.

Again with the emphasis on fresh and local produce, one of the latest things to do in the town is enjoy a cooking demonstration in a fantastically equipped room above the fishmongers.

We were the first people to try out the facilities and took part in a seafood demonstration with Tom and expert Maxine Clark.

The aim is to encourage more people to cook with fish and to demonstrate that it’s quick, easy and nutritious.

The hands-on experience includes oyster-shucking, scaling, gutting and preparing fish for the oven and, my speciality, making the perfect lemon wedge! The half-day course, which includes morning coffee with pastries, lunch and wine, costs just £75 while other demonstrations include ‘Chicken and Egg’ and ‘Bread, Butter and Jam’.

On our circular drive back towards the airport, we stopped off at The Creggans Inn in Strachur.

Overlooking Loch Fyne, this traditional country inn is part of the Scottish Seafood Trail. Its’ meandering route enables seafoodies to sample, share and enjoy seafood and shellfish from a wide variety of waterfront establishments.

Simply prepared to bring out all the natural flavours is the best way to prepare fish and dining at The Creggans is no exception.

The hotel is perfectly located to explore much of Scotland’s west coast and the hearty breakfast will set you up for the day ahead.

That suited me fine, as I needed to line my stomach for my final stop-off in Scotland – the Glengoyne Distillery in Dumgoyne.

Tours begin with a dram of Glengoyne 10-year-old single malt, then it’s off for an entertaining and ­informative stroll around the distillery.

For those in the know, a Master Blender session, costing £30, includes a invite into the ‘sample room, where you get to try out even more whisky before creating your own blend to bottle and take home.

It was only a short trip, but just the few days there taught me to appreciate where my food and drink comes from even more; next time I’m in the supermarket, I’ll be swapping foreign imports for Scottish produce every time.

Travel Facts
Emma Deadman travelled to Scotland with www.visitscotland.com
* www.eatscotland.com  features over 600 restaurants across Scotland; food festivals and trails and information on regional flavours.
* Ardeonaig Hotel - www.ardeonaighotel.co.uk
* The Creggans Inn - www.creggans-inn.co.uk
* Kinnaird Estate - www.kinnairdestate.com
* Forage Rangers - www.foragerangers.com
* Mhor Fish - http://mhor.net/fish
* Glengoyne Distillery - www.glengoyne.com