BLAS NA HEIREANN 2025 - THE IRISH FOOD AWARDS

Finalists and winners had the opportunity to showcase their products at the Blas Village and the popular Eat Ireland in a Day market, both of which returned to Dingle alongside the annual Backyard at Blas panel discussions, in partnership with Bank of Ireland. The weekend offered producers a chance to connect with buyers, industry experts, media, fellow producers, and food lovers, while also celebrating the people, and the talents, that make Irish food so special. IMAGE 4 (panel discussion) somwhere around here
Blas?na hÉireann has seen another strong year from across all categories, with over?3,000?entries judged and many new producers entering the awards for the first time. Products from every county in Ireland were entered to win bronze, silver or gold awards in over?180?food and drink categories. As the competition intensifies each year, earning the prestigious Blas badge is a major accomplishment, signifying that the shortlisted finalists and eventual winners represent the pinnacle of excellence in Irish food and drink.

Supreme Champion 2025, Bon Chocolatiers?was founded during lockdown in 2020 by?a young couple who met at college when training to become chefs. After graduating, Georgia Quealy and Daniel Linehan worked with some of the country's top chefs, including Garrett Byrne at Campagne and John Coffey of Thyme in Athlone. A shared?passion for patisserie and chocolate then saw them doing courses with world-renowned chocolatiers, resulting in their joint venture which quickly gained recognition for its original and luxuriously delicious chocolates. From ethically sourced French, Swiss and Ghanaian chocolate to Irish butter and cream, foraged local berries, Wicklow mint and Oriel sea salt, the very best ingredients are key to everything that Georgia and Daniel do at Bon Chocolatiers. Their sumptuous creations are available online, delivered direct from their chocolate kitchen in Tullamore, as well as from Fallon & Byrne, and are also supplied to some carefully selected restaurants and hotels.

Cashel Blue was a groundbreaking Irish farmhouse cheese when it was first produced in 1984 by Louis & Jane Grubb, and over 40 years later and in the hands of the second generation, the Grubb family of the 200-acre Beechmount Farm in Tipperary,?Cashel Farmhouse Cheesemakers?are this year's?Best Artisan Producer. With an ambition to create a farmhouse cheese that "truly represents the outstanding quality of Tipperary grass-fed milk", the multi-award-winning original blue cheese has been joined since by Crozier Blue, the only sheep's milk blue cheese in the country, by Cashel Blue Organic, and by Shepherd's Store, a semi-hard sheep's milk cheese. All have the same sense of terroir that was the inspiration for these groundbreaking cheeses from the outset, and are regular award-winners in Irish and international competitions. In 2004, Louis and Jane's daughter, Sarah, and her husband Sergio Furno, became responsible for the maturing of the cheese, and are now co-owners of the business, continuing the story for the future, and the next generations who will farm and make cheese at Beechmount Farm.

Artie Cifford "Our Supreme Champion and Best Artisan Producer cover the full flavour spectrum," said Blas na hÉireann Chairperson, Artie Clifford, "from salty, savoury, famous blue cheese made for over 40 years, now by the second generation of the same family, to the delicate, handmade sweetness of artistic chocolates created by a young couple, setting out on their adventure in business together. 41 years ago, Louis and Jane Grubb of Cashel Farmhouse Cheesemakers were that young couple, taking a risk, trying something new, and in the process, creating a wonderful, groundbreaking cheese that has fans all over the world. Georgia and Daniel of Bon Chocolatiers may be at the beginning of their career in chocolate, but having examples like the Grubbs is certainly an inspiration for producers at every stage of their business journey. Blas na hÉireann is delighted to award Supreme Champion 2025 to Bon Chocolatiers and Best Artisan Producer 2025 to Cashel Farmhouse Cheesemakers — two producers creating exceptional products."

Fuirther information about Blas na hÉireann, The Irish Food Awards: https://www.irishfoodawards.com/