Austen Davies meeting HRH Prince Charles

Right from the start we undertook to compromise on nothing; Cumberland Sausage was to be produced the Old County Original way - the whole pig (all the meat, that is!), seasoning, and … well, nothing else actually, other than a natural casing in which to pack it.

We produce bacon to what we call the “1000 year old cure”; we dry-cure, air-dry, and then lightly oak smoke it to finish. The process takes many weeks to complete but the end result is stunning! (and, as I was to find out, it was good enough for the Vikings!) Read more about Our Methods

During the Foot and Mouth period, I had time to reflect, research and to get the old creative juices flowing a bit. I started looking at bacon curing. 'Old fashioned' cures gave way to an exciting discovery. Thanks to the massive resource available courtesy of the Internet I found myself studying Viking food preservation methods.

Our Nordic forefathers were great travellers and traders with access to many exotic foods and spices - and, of course being able to preserve food throughout the long unforgiving northern winters was vital. They cured pork with a mixture of salt and sugar before

Austen Davies chatting with Rick Stein on "Rick Stein's Food Heroes"

drying and smoking it. (Drying and smoking tended to happen simultaneously as bacon flitches were generally stored in a chimney recess.) 'Real Bacon' to a 1000-year-old recipe emerged from the murk. Add to that black pudding that is actually made from fresh pig’s blood (rather than the imported, powdered variety) to an ancient recipe we dug up in the Borders and you have the basis of what we are trying to achieve - proper food from proper animals!

It was also around this same time that I rediscovered a dish that seems to have its' origins in northern France; a version of 'faggots' or 'savoury ducks' - essentially the pig equivalent of a haggis, and absolutely exploding with flavour. A little bit of experimentation and 'The Incredible Cumberland Dux', our colloquial version of a 19th century recipe for faggots, were born. This (not so) humble rustic offering was the reason I was named North West Fine Foods' 'Producer of the Year 2004' in the Black and Offal Pudding category.

"Come on in, and enjoy food the way it used to taste!"...........Austen Davies