Ciara's Country Flavours: things are getting salty for beef lovers

In 2015, when Irish Country Living went to Moira in Co Down to visit the Meat Merchant, Peter Hannan, we had one question at the tip of our tongues. Where could we get his Himalayan salted beef?

The story behind this product is fascinating. Determined to dry-age beef for the ultimate taste, Peter’s years of research found that he wasn’t going to beat that of the Himalayan salt mines – it contains 82 trace elements and minerals that no other salt has.

The problem was that the Himalayas aren’t exactly that accessible from Co Down and building his own salt chambers was no mean feat. Not only that, but when Peter did start building, each brick he wanted to use was 4.5kg in weight and he needed 6,000 of them. Furthermore, they had to be taken 1,200m out of the mine in a wheelbarrow and then to the port.

And this was just for his first salt chamber. As soon as things were up and running and the beef was at its peak, renowned London chef and restaurateur Mark Hix ordered the lot. Speaking to Irish Country Living, Peter said: “When it was all built, Mark arrived over just before he opened his famous Tramshed restaurant in London and he said to me: ‘How much can this salt chamber hold?’ I told him 320 loins of beef. His reply was: ‘I’ll take them all.’

“I then had to start thinking about a second chamber, it was a great start. The process is science and a bit of alchemy, but the effect on flavour is exceptional. People think it’s about extracting moisture, but that’s not all. In fact, it’s about ionising the air in the room to produce a perfect balance in the atmosphere. The salt also purifies the air. Going into the chamber is like taking a walk on the beach.”

A fantastic story for a unique product, but with the beef being shipped to Michelin-starred restaurants across Europe, there wasn’t too much stock left for consumers to get their hands on. All that has changed in recent weeks, with the announcement that Peter Hannan and Pat Whelan of James Whelan Butchers have joined forces.

Speaking to Irish Country Living about the venture, Pat says: “Peter and I have known each other for years and we both have a great respect and appreciation for Irish meat. It’s been an exciting journey watching him develop his world-class technique of maturation and also seeing the consistency of the product over the years. We’ve had many exciting discussions about it and now the timing couldn’t be better to put the product on James Whelan shelves for Irish meat-lovers.”

Pat says they have both been supportive of each other’s work for a long time: “Peter stocks quite a few of my products, including our beef drippings, so it’s great to have his products on our shelf. This is just the start of the journey. We are looking forward to announcing new products in 2019.”

Although Pat remained tight lipped, we have a suspicion that a salt-aged lamb could be available to Irish meat-lovers.

How will Brexit affect Irish farmhouse cheese and our Christmas love of stilton? Kevin Sheridan of Sheridan Cheesemongers reflects.

“Recently I attended a Brexit briefing, hosted by the Irish Farmers Journal and afterwards I was considering the fate of Irish cheddar on the UK market. My ruminations led me to the sudden realisation that trade, and indeed cheese trade, is a two-way story. And so the thought developed; could this be the last Christmas for stilton in Ireland?! For decades Christmas and stilton have been inseparable, and in the mind of a cheesemonger nearly indiscernible, for what is Christmas without stilton?

“At Sheridans, stilton means Colston Bassett, a relatively small famers’ co-operative in Nottinghamshire that was started in 1913 for the specific purpose of making stilton. Colston Bassett prides itself in the quality of its cheeses and makes every effort to keep all aspects of production in the traditional method – demonstrable in the fact that the co-op has had only three cheese makers since 1913. The Colston Bassett stilton itself is creamy, fruity, well balanced, and we have no reservations that this is one of the world’s greatest cheese.

“Stilton is a year-round staple in Sheridans, but it’s at Christmas that we see sales that seemingly defy gravity. This year we estimate we will sell at least 3,000kg of stilton, most of which will be in the last two weeks before Christmas. The holiday, while religious in nature, also has a long history of food-based traditions and sometime in that lineage stilton took its place.

“The history of how stilton became a Christmas staple is unclear, but most likely had to do with milk production and maturing times, with a great volume and quality supply of milk in autumn, producing cheeses perfect for the Christmas market.

“So if a hard Brexit comes and barriers arise to trade in both directions across the Irish Sea, it is very possible that stilton will disappear from the Irish Christmas market. If there is no stilton, do the Christmas cheese festivities end? We’d like to think not. Over the years we have been extoling the virtues of wonderful Irish farmhouse blues – in particular our mature Cashel Blue and Crozier Blue. And not to forget, Young Buck and Boyne Valley Blue, both recent additions to the Irish blue family that are further developing the Irish cheese culture.

“Every year we have been growing our Irish blue sales and this Christmas we expect, for the first time, our Irish blue cheese sales will equal our stilton sales. We have worked hard to promote Irish blues not only because they are Irish, but in particular because they are such wonderful cheeses.

“With Brexit on the horizon this could well be the last stilton Christmas at Sheridans. And while that may sound disconcerting, maybe it’s ok, because the world turns, things change and customs shift to bear new traditions. With change comes opportunity, and maybe that means it’s time for Irish blue cheese to take centre stage on our Christmas tables.”