With Christmas fast approaching, many are already stocking up and making plans with friends & family, despite the continued uncertainty surrounding restrictions which may be in place.
All indications show that many are going to be looking for a glimpse of normality and pushing the boat out for a Christmas to remember for all the right reasons. And that, without doubt, includes enjoying festive food & drink.
Our Christmas 2020 Brochure is out now and pre-orders will be taken until Friday 13th November, so there’s still time to get your order in. We’ll be delivering right up to Christmas Eve, so you can be sure that you’ll be able to get hold of all you need when it comes to festive feasting right up to the big day.
We’ve picked out a few of our favourites & best sellers both for Retail & Deli and Foodservice, all of which can be found in our Christmas 2020 Brochure.
Coombe Farm Clotted Cream & Brandy – Made using delicious Devon cream, this is the ultimate Christmas indulgence! Perfect dolloped on mince pies or Christmas pudding, there’s also Gingerbread flavour cream and Irish Whiskey cream, which when displayed as a trio are sure to appeal to all tastes.
Bay Tree Kilner Jars – Available in a choice of four delicious flavours, Bay Tree’s kilner jars are the perfect size to see you right through the festive season. There’s no need to decant from the jar, as the kilners will give a beautiful homemade look as part of the Christmas spread. Classic Cranberry is a must have and we can’t get enough of the Spicy Tomato & Caramelised Onion – delicious with cheeses, alongside cold meats or simply as a dip.
Global Harvest Set Fruit Conserve – Cheese is most definitely a year-round thing for us here at Curd & Cure, but for something a little special on the cheese board, Global Harvest’s set fruit conserves pair perfectly with a wide selection of cheeses and with their smart, modern branding will hold a great shelf presence too.
Stilton & Blue cheese – Christmas just wouldn’t be Christmas without a good blue cheese (or three!). Long Clawson Stilton & Colston Bassett are always firm favourites, along with Cropwell Bishop who have been cheesemakers for over 160 years. If you’re looking for something a little different, then Tiddly Blue, exclusively made for Curd & Cure is a semi-soft unspiked blue, which has been rind washed in Duddas Tun Kentish cider to produce a mild, slightly sweet unveined blue. All are available in a selection of sizes and formats, from retail ready pre-packs to whole cheeses.
Truckles & gift boxes – Great both for the cheese board and as a gift, we’ve extended our range of waxed truckles this year to include over 60 different flavours. This includes Cheshire Cheese Co and Snowdonia with their traditional round truckles, Croome Cuisine with their large half moons (including Christmas cake flavour) and new for this year Wensleydale Creamery with both traditional and novelty truckles including Rudolf, Santa, a snowman and a gingerbread man as well as Mince Pie, Orange & Champagne and Winter Warmer. Plus, not forgetting our extensive range from Gigha fruit – all fruit shaped in a range of delicious flavours. For those wishing for a more traditional option, Snowdonia’s Black Bomber is always an excellent choice – a modern classic in smart black wax, this cheese marries a delicious rich flavour with a smooth creaminess. You’ll also not go wrong with the famous Wookey Hole Cave Aged Cheddar which is available in a 1.8kg truckle box as well as a 454g wrapped wedge.
Continental cheeses – Although there has been a lot of buzz around British cheeses this year, and rightly so, we can’t ignore the fact that there are also many excellent cheeses made around the world. Vacherin Mont d’Or is now ‘in season’ with a choice of individual 560g cheeses (excellent served ripe & gooey straight from their box) or a larger 3kg format, great for the deli counter and may be cubed and used as a fondue in a food service setting. Our Brie De Meaux boxed 700g quarters give an authentic & attractive way to present this traditional, artisan cheese, also available as whole 3kg rounds. Petite Camembert are great for the cheese counter and these are also popular for foodservice, providing an individual sized portion which is ideal for baking. A new addition for 2020 are Jacquin Goat’s logs, the most beautifully presented cheeses rolled in a choice of flowers & honey (a real showstopper!), cranberries, nuts or summer truffle.
Truffle cheeses – a flavour which has arrived with a bang this year, we have a varied selection of British & continental cheese with truffle, all bringing their individual style & twist to the mix. For a classic winter warmer, Savoie Raclette with truffle is delicious served in the traditional way over potatoes and pickles, with the truffle giving an added depth of flavour. Our Gouda with truffle uses Italian truffles combined with herbs to create a cheese which has a distinctive flavour – serve straight from the fridge, or even better, melted and fantastic for taking a mac n cheese to the next level! Moving back to our local producers, Alsop & Walkers truffle brie has proved especially popular already – truffled cream is sandwiched between their natural tasting brie, to take your cheese boards to new heights. For those who prefer a sheep’s cheese, then High Weald Dairy’s truffle ewe is a must try. With two layers of black summer truffle running through to give a decadent semi-soft ewe’s milk cheese.
Local & British cheeses – as ever, we continue to work directly with and champion artisan cheesemakers across the region, with plenty of ideas & options for cheese from Kent & Sussex, as well as further afield, to create a varied deli offering or an original and tasty cheeseboard. Kent makers include Cheesemakers of Canterbury, Kingcott Dairy, Ellie’s Dairy, Winterdale Cheesemakers and Blackwoods Cheeses, whilst further afield there’s The Book & Bucket Cheese Company, Quicke’s, Singleton’s, Cote Hill, Whitelake and many more.
Fen Farm Bungay Butter – a raw cultured butter made using milk from grass-fed Montbeliarde & Freisan cows, now available in a choice of two formats – boxed or rolled – great for farm shops but also excellent for those in foodservice looking for an artisan option in the place of making your own butter.
Capreolus Charcuterie Sharing Platters – A trend which is certainly here to stay, this handy pack provides a selection of award-winning meats, all ready to serve. Excellent on the chiller shelves for customers entertaining small groups and also a good solution for foodservice, where individual packs may be used for one platter serving, without the need to open & part use multiple packs of different meats. Pair with a selection of cheeses or simply serve alongside fresh crusty bread as a light starter or snacking option.
Pâtés – presented in painted ceramic Chinese rice bowls, Detry pâtés give the impression of being homemade with none of the effort. Ready to serve and available in a choice of Ardennes, Brussels, Brussels with Cranberries, Duck or Farm House Garlic.
Savoury biscuits & crackers – an often overlooked essential, the choice of cracker to accompany a cheeseboard or sharing platter is an important element to consider. Alongside our range of year-round crackers from Artisan Biscuits and the Zingiberi Bakery, ready for Christmas we have launched an extensive range of Sourdogh Crispbreads from the renowned Peter’s Yard. For foodservice, the original large crispbreads are great to use as a carrier for pre-prepared cheeses or other toppers, such as smoked salmon, pâtés or smashed avocado, or serve as part of a board or platter. There’s also a choice of four flavours as smaller individual crackers – each pairing well with a different style of cheese – and for those looking for gifting ideas, there’s a selection box containing three varieties or their smart tin filled with plenty of original crispbreads.
Sweet biscuits – for those with more of a sweet tooth, Elegant & English’s biscuits feature famous flavour pairings in all-butter biscuits, including Strawberries & Cream, Baked Apple & Custard, Lemon & Ginger and Raspberries & Dark Chocolate.
Gifts & stocking fillers – with the possibility of many spending Christmas apart, or sharing Christmas virtually, demand is going to be high for food & drink hampers and foodie gifts to share the tastes and smells of Christmas, even from a distance. We’ve curated our Christmas range this year to give a selection of products which will work together to give a varied but complementary selection for hampers, gift boxes and foodie gifts. There are also lots of ideas for stocking fillers, impulse buys and simple gifts – Kentish Oils presentation cases give an easy to pick up gift presented in an eye catching gift box, whilst Flower & Whites new Meringue ‘Pops’ bring plenty of festive fun.
As always, our team is on hand to help and advise on a range which is best suited for you in the run up to Christmas, whether creating a tempting festive display for retail, putting together a cheese counter that offers the very best from the UK and beyond, or putting the finishing touches to your festive menu or eat-at-home dishes.
Our full Christmas range may be viewed via our online brochure and if you would like a full price list & order form please get in touch on 01580 212949 or email christmas@curdandcure.co.uk
