Edinburgh-based Company Bakery rose to the occasion at the Scottish Bread Championships, with its New York Rye Sourdough named as Supreme Champion.
The results were announced at the inaugural Scottish Real Bread Festival held at Bowhouse, Fife (Saturday 25 February 2023) with Cabinet Secretary for Rural Affairs & the Islands Mairi Gougeon MSP presenting the awards.
The Reserve Champion accolade went to Beremeal Boule by The Culinary Kiwi Bird from Insch, Aberdeenshire.
The event received a record number of entries, with 36 bakers submitting 138 entries – more than double previous years – from Perthshire, Moray, Lothians, Deeside, Glasgow, Argyll, Trossachs, Sutherland, Ross & Cromarty, and Fife.
Such was the standard of entries that the judges awarded 24 gold medals across eight categories with a number of silver and bronze medals also presented.
The judging panel comprised: Anna Chworow, Neil Forbes, Elizabeth Drummond Young, Lindsay Jaacks, Walter Mowatt, Neel Paul, Wendy Russell and Chris Young.
More than 800 visitors attended the festival, taking part in bread-related discussions and activities, workshops and tastings. Chris Young from the Real Bread Campaign was keynote speaker.
The Scottish Food Guide’s Wendy Barrie was a key organiser of the event. She commented: “I’ve been delighted with the support, footfall and enthusiasm for the festival, particularly given it was our first ever bread festival.
“I look forward to building and evolving the Championship and Festival for 2024. Grateful thanks to all involved and the able band of volunteers.”
