Taste Panel - Slow Food Edinburgh

8^th October 2008

 

Haggis

Local Haggis

 

Crombie’s of Edinburgh

97-101 Broughton Street,
Edinburgh,
EH1 3RZ, Tel: 0131 557 0111. www.sausages.co.uk

The panel’s favourite on the night. Light, crumbly texture, Crombie’s Haggis has balanced, refined flavours.

 

Macsween of Edinburgh,
Dryden Road,
Bilston Glen, Loanhead
Edinburgh, EH20 9LZ. www.macsween.co.uk

Macsween’s started as butchers shop in 1953, their Haggis is now widely available across the UK. Noticeable bits of oatmeal with a slightly sticky, chewy texture. The Macsween Haggis has a clean, savoury, pleasantly salty flavour.

 

Findlay’s of Portobello, 116 Portobello High Street, EDINBURGH, EH15 1AL. www.findlayofportobello.co.uk

We’ve also tried Haggis from Findlays of Portobello, although not on the same night as the rest of the Haggis so we’re relying on our memories! Crumbly in texture this Haggis is similar to Crombie’s with perhaps a slightly more flavour coming off the offal than with the other Haggis in the tasting.

 

From a little further afield.

 

Jim Royan’s Haggis. Royan of Elgin, 190 High Street, Elgin, Moray, IV30 1BA

As a comparison to local Haggis we also tried one from further afield.

A very meaty, dense haggis, almost sausage or white pudding like in texture. Light in colour.

Could be paired against a more crumbly haggis as a comparison duo or we thought (and confirmed) that it would be great fried up and served up on toast the next morning!

And something a bit different.

 

George Bower’s Pork Haggis, 75 Raeburn Place,
Edinburgh, EH4 1JG

Haggis is normally made with sheep offal so we thought it would be interesting to try this Pork Haggis from the butchers George Bower.

The haggis had quite a sticky sausage or black pudding type texture. It was definitely reminiscent of a sausage but with more complex flavours and textures.

 

Fletcher’s of Auchtermuchty,
Reediehill Deer Farm,
Auchtermuchty,
Fife,
KY14 7HS. www.seriouslygoodvenison.co.uk

Fletchers make a “Venison Haggis Supreme” which mixes venison meat in with the venison offal in the style of a “Royal Haggis.” There is a well reasoned school of thought that venison would have made up the original Haggis as deer are native to Scotland and have been here longer than the sheep used to make “normal” haggis.

The taste and texture of the haggis is a cross between black pudding and haggis but with a strong and distinctly gamey flavour to it this is definitely not a haggis for the feint hearted. If you love strong game flavours and want to try something different it makes an interesting change.

 

Suggested further reading:

The Scot’s Kitchen – it’s traditions and lore. Author: F. Marian McNeill

The Haggis: A Little History. Author: Clarissa Dickson Wright