I will Lovett if we eat them. Love it!

Chicken, Gammon and Leek and Thyme crust pie and Lamb, Rosemary and Garlic Potato and Honey pie from Lovett Pies

It has to be said we can get a bit passionate about our pies – even if we do sometimes struggle to match Keegan at his best! And it’s great to find local pie producers who are passionate about their pies too. Lovett Pies in Bath are a fine example of top artisan pie making and you can read more a more detailed introduction to them in our initial review of their pies. And with strong recommendations following the Lovett pies Pierateer SJL had already rated, and a couple of them frozen and saved for a joint review between Pierateers SJL and RAS, it was time to give the final two flavours a rating.

The pies of choice were the Chicken, Gammon and Leek and Thyme crust and the Lamb, Rosemary and Garlic Potato and Honey. It must be noted that having been frozen this did seem to adversely affect the flavour slightly, with the content being a bit drier compared to the other pies that Pierateer SJL ate both hot and cold. However with that considered in the scoring, these pies were still very much appreciated. You could tell the handcrafted nature of these pies and that a lot of thought had been put into the flavouring and quality of ingredients.

Chicken, Gammon and Leek and Thyme crust

The Lovett pies follow a fine tradition of being filled with plenty of meat and this chicken, gammon and leek pie was no exception. It was very meaty and there was a good mix. The content was reasonably moist and the stuffing had an interesting flavour to it which complimented the meat filling. The more unusual addition of a thyme crust added additional flavouring to compliment the pastry, with the thyme layer sitting just below the top pastry lid.

The pastry was quite crisp and held together well, flaking nicely but keeping the shape of the pie. While not the biggest pie for £3.50, it was certainly full of meat and the Thyme certainly added to the flavouring. Well worth having again.

Chicken, Gammon and Leek and Thyme crust pie
Score: 5.43/7

Lamb, Rosemary and Garlic Potato and Honey

Once again what immediately struck Pierateer RAS – rating Lovett pies for the first time – was the great capacity for a small pie. This meant that what it lacked in size it certainly made up for in filling, with a very strong capacity to the pie. The lamb was really lovely, very light and tender and delightful to eat. However while the capacity was strong, there was a fair bit of potato present and it felt like this was padding the pie out slightly.

We Pierateers do like our meat pies to be really meaty, so whilst the potato, rosemary and honey added to the pie and made it taste a bit more unique, these ingredients would need to make a bigger impact in terms of being more flavoursome to really warrant their place in this pie. The pastry was nice and flaky, but with not much gravy in the pie it also felt a bit dry in places. A good pie but could be tweaked slightly to make it even more highly rated.

Lamb, Rosemary and Garlic Potato and Honey pie
Score: 5.36/7

So with two more Lovett pies earning the “Pierate Recommended” status, we can certainly say that we would Lovett if we eat more of them. And we will certainly keep our eyes peeled for any new, creative flavours they produce.

RAS and SJL