Blas na hÉireann 2019 finalists announced ahead of October's final judging in Dingle

Blas na hÉireann 2019 finalists announced ahead of final judging in Dingle in October  and there are 62 producers shortlisted from Cork.

Take time out to tour the stunning peninsula, including Slea Head (above)

Arte Clifford (Blas)

 Blas na hÉireann, the Irish food awards, have reached the penultimate stage of this year’s awards, with the announcement of the finalists who will go through to the final round of judging in Dingle this October, with 350 producers from across Ireland reaching this coveted stage.

The Blas na hÉireann awards are the biggest blind tasting of produce in the country, and the criteria on which the product is judged as well as the judging system itself, which was developed by Blas with the Food Science Dept of UCC and the University of Copenhagen that is now recognised as an industry gold standard worldwide.

During the first round of judging which took place over the course of four weeks in June and July, over 2,500 entries were judged in UCC & TU Dublin, bringing the total number of finalists in each category down to just five.

Each of these producer finalists will have their products tasted, compared, savoured and judged at the final of Blas na Éireann 2019 in Dingle on Thursday 3rd October. This is the 12th year of the biggest competition for quality Irish produce on the island, and the Blas na Éireann 2019 final will produce worthy winners of awards that have become an important part of the commercial success of so many exceptional Irish products.

The finalists shortlisted from Kerry across a range of different categories are Kinsale Mead Co., West Cork Garlic, 9 White Deer Brewery Ltd., Bainne Codladh Ltd., Baked 4 U, Ballyvolane House Spirits Company Ltd., Bandon Vale Cheese Ltd., Barrie's Pate, Bluebell Falls, Bó Rua Farm, Caherbeg Free Range Pork Ltd., Centra - Inspired by Centra Made in store salads, Clona Dairies, Clonakilty Food Company, Cooke's At The Gallery, Coolmore Foods, Elbow Lane Brewhouse Ltd., Fitzgeralds Butchers, Follain, Gloun Cross Dairies, Good Food Processing Ltd., Gourmet Pantry Kinsale, Happy Days, Artisan Ice Cream, Hassetts Bakery & Confectioners Ltd., Henry Denny & Sons (IRE) Ltd., Hodgins Sausages, Irish Yogurts Clonakilty, Keohane Seafoods, Kepak Cork, Kinsale Bay Food Company, Longueville House Beverages, Macroom Buffalo Cheese Products Ltd., Maggie's Homemade Jam, MamaBear Foods Ltd., Mellas Fudge, Milleens Cheese, Milsean, Nohoval Drinks Company, North Cork Co Op, North Cork Creameries, Ó Crualaoi Feoil Teo, O'Flynn's Gourmet Sausage Company, O'Leary Family Butchers, On The Pig's Back - La Charcuterie Irlandaise Ltd., Praline Pastry Shop, Quish's Kitchen, Saturday Pizzas, Secret Recipe, Serendipity Smokehouse, Shannon Vale Foods, Skeaghanore Duck, Spice O' Life Ltd., St. Patricks Distillery Ltd., The Fresh Fish Deli, Tom Durcan Meats Ltd., Trace Of Cakes, Liz's Grain Free Bread, Uflourish Foods, Union Hall Smoked Fish, Velo Coffee Roasters, West Cork Distillers, West Cork Eggs Ltd.

A former Supreme Champion

 Backyard at Blas

Returning to this year’s Blas na hÉireann in Dingle is the hugely successful Backyard at Blas, an innovative meeting space designed to bring fellow producers together in a relaxed and informal way to meet, mingle and share experience and insights into running a business, and to offer support to those starting out. First supported by Bank of Ireland in 2017 and again last year, the talks series has proved so popular with attendees that Bank of Ireland have just signed a new deal for Backyard at Blas 2019.

This September, Blas na hÉireann are going on the road with a special roadshow to help finalists get ready for the weekend in Dingle. They have been kindly welcomed by their partner Bank of Ireland to host special events across the country in their Bank of Ireland Workbench venues. These events will help finalists with details on the weekend of final judging, tips on how best to prepare from a press and buyer point of view, local information for travel, help on timings and how best to prepare your product for delivery and judging.

The roadshow will be in Cork on Tuesday 3^rd September at 2pm in the Bank Of Ireland Workbench, 70 Patrick Street, Cork.

Over 2,500  products were entered into this year’s competition to win Gold, Silver or Bronze Blas na hÉireann awards in over 140 food and drink categories, as well as key awards like Supreme Champion and Best Artisan Producer, so there will be good food and drink guaranteed in Dingle this October.

press release