Our review panel like to think they know a thing or two about jam. Several of them make their own every summer and, not wishing to brag, wonder if there is anything out there that could equal or even top their homemade pots of love.
Step forward Boddington’s Berries. A large box of jars arrived at the Fabulous Farm Shops HQ with a smorgasbord of offerings. Strawberry, raspberry, blackberry jams, marmalade, red onion relish, apple chutney and strawberry vinegar. Mouths started to water.
We take our product reviews seriously here at HQ. A frenetic bout of photography was followed by some earnest sourcing of tasting accompaniments. Our wonderful local bakery, Lavender Blue (www.lavenderbluebakery.co.uk) was happy to supply us with some scrumptious scones, of the savoury variety to accompany the chutneys and some delicious plain ones for jams (more on that later!) and the excellent Trewithen Dairy www.trewithendairy.co.uk/shop) couriered us some clotted cream. We could only allow genuine Cornish clotted cream to grace the top of Cornish jam.
Just on the outskirts of the beautiful fishing village of Mevagissey, Boddington’s Berries have been growing strawberries for over 75 years and making preserves for the last 20. This part of England has the perfect climate for sweet, plump strawberries as the fruit ripens gradually, allowing the sugar content to increase as much as possible.
But… the proof is in the pudding, as they say, so we settled in to an afternoon of tasting. A reverential hush descended on the room as we warmed the scones, applied the strawberry jam (jam before cream, of course, this IS Cornish jam and cream) and dolloped on the cream. Eyes rolled in heads, crumbs fell, small noises of pleasure escaped from various corners of the room. Heaven had come to earth.
The scones were incredible, seriously delicious, and the cream was thick and dreamy and the jam, oh the jam! This was strawberriness personified. This was summer in your mouth. This was fruity sweetness at its most alluring.
The smell of the jam took me back to my childhood and picking strawberries at our local farm with juicy fingers and itchy legs and the glorious juice of the stollen berries bursting into your mouth. It has a good body to it as you sink the spoon into the jar but gloopy enough to drop with gravity onto your toast.
The feedback was unanimous. Incredible strawberry jam!
“A taste of summer on a cold February mid-week evening – I can almost hear the birds singing, and ‘almost’ feel the sun on my face!”
“It is loaded with strawberries. “
“Consume within 1 month of opening it says. Who are they kidding? This will be finished within a couple of days. I’m spooning it straight from the jar into my mouth”
The jam-makers amongst the review panel were particularly vocal. And several had even scribbled down “I’D BUY THIS” which was all they really needed to say. It is homemade, made in small batches with no preservatives, just sugar and lemon juice added to the many, many berries. And it tastes just like that. Home-made but without the palaver. No-one was surprised when it was revealed that it has won awards (Taste of the West gold winner 2022). It certainly gets the Fabulous Farm Shops seal of approval!
Loosening our belt buckles, we moved on. Could the raspberry jam and blackberry jam be this good?
Both have an exceptionally high fruit content and are made in the traditional way with no added setting agents. The raspberry jam is simply berries and sugar. The blackberry jam has the addition of lemon juice. And let me tell you, both are delicious.
The raspberry jam is pure fruity fabulousness, tasting the way a raspberry does when it is picked straight from the cane and popped into your mouth, a slight tang but then the sugar – a wonderful viscous burst of joy!
It conjured up visions of staying in a beautiful B&B by the seaside, coming down from a blissful night’s sleep to a table in a bay window, with white cotton table cloths and a toast rack…and Boddington’s Berries raspberry jam, decanted in a little cut glass jam pot. But I digress…
Hard to believe but the blackberry jam was my favourite, just inching ahead by a nose. Perhaps that’s because I’m the one who loses herself in the hedgerows in Autumn, fingers purple and smudged, reaching for those plump, dark fruits amongst the brambles. There was a definite hint of the lemon juice to the flavour, which I loved, and the colour of the jam as I spooned it onto my bread and butter was jewel-like and regal.
“Divine”
“It’s going in my basket”
“Freaking amazing”
…were amongst the scribbled comments from other panel members. Another winner!
Could we take much more? Fearless reviewers, we plunged on. This time into a pot of marmalade. Described as “fine to medium shred” and again made only with the purest ingredients and no suspicious additives. This is simply oranges, sugar and lemon juice.
The colour is magnificent. Think stained glass window with the sun shining through or golden syrup topping vanilla ice-cream. And the taste is tangy and sweet all rolled into one delicious, tongue-twisting mouthful. It’s quite runny – you have to have your wits about you when getting it onto your bread and butter – but that makes you get it into your mouth quicker. The marmalade I currently have in my fridge is set so hard, I almost need a chisel in the mornings, so this made a welcome change.
“reminded me of my grandma – she’d have put this in her cakes”
“mmmmmmmmmmmmm”
“not usually a marmalade fan but I actually really enjoyed this”
…were some of the sticky scribbled notes I received to collate. Another success!
Time for some savoury treats. The cheese scones from Lavender Blue were warmed and cut (light and fluffy with a delicious texture), a selection of cheddar was sliced and we cleansed our palettes with water before settling in for some chutneys.
The apple chutney was first up. The jar tells us it’s light and fruity and not overly spiced and bingo! – that’s exactly right. It has a subtle hint of spices which complements its accompaniments rather than over-powering them like so many chutneys.
“I could have just kept spooning the apple chutney long after the scone had gone!”
One panel member often finds relish too sweet but found this one a perfect pitch of spice and sweetness. Another often finds relish too scented but, again, this one hit the spot. The Goldilocks of chutneys…just right!
The red onion relish did it for me. I loaded it on in a most un-ladylike manner and became quite gluttonous for a few minutes there. No-one was allowed to talk to me whilst I savoured the experience and it was tough to leave the jar at HQ and not snaffle it up my sleeve or “accidently” drop it into my bag.
Others agreed with me.
“does just what it says on the label – Delicious and Versatile”
“I dream of it spread over cheese, cold meats, bubble and squeak, sausages (mmmmm with sausages), and even on toast, pork pies, sausage rolls the list goes on.”
“Beautifully spiced and not at all vinegary, a wonderful accompaniment”
..and that’s from the lady who makes her own.
Boddington’s Berries – we salute you. You have done things with berries that most of us only dream of and preserved things in jars that our grandmothers would have been proud of. Thank you for sharing these delicious pots with us and with the general public.
If you have room on your farm shop shelves, then stock these beauties…and if you don’t, then make room! You won’t regret it.
Get in touch with Boddington’s Berries online at
www.boddingtonsberries.co.uk
www.boddingtonsberries.co.uk/trade-enquiries
If you have a product you would like us to review, please contact
theAteam@fabulousfarmshops.co.uk
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