Saturday 29 July 2017

UK Piefest 2017 - Live!

UK Piefest Flyer
Pierate and UK Piefest flyers

Four months after our last trip to Melton Mowbray for the British Pie Awards 2017 Pierateer Rob is heading back to the heart of pork pie country - Melton Mowbray! This time though he's not about to join around 100 judges to rate well over 800 pies from across Britain and beyond. Instead he's one of the guest speakers at UK Piefest, doing a talk on "How to Rate a Pie".


Anyone who knows us well will already know we rate our pies on the 7 Cs of pie rating - our method of reviewing that we have used to rate over 625 pies on Pierate. In fact, we think we've easily reviewed more pies than anyone else, meaning there are very few pie experts with more ex-pie-rience than us when it comes to judging the pie-fect pie! So we look forward to sharing more about the 7 Cs and how we rate pies at the Pie Festival.

You can read about everything you need to know prior to UK Piefest in our dedicated article, and check back here during the day for live blog posts below and on Twitter as we look to share the pielights of UK Piefest 2017 - Live!

Melton Mowbray UK Piefest
Melton Mowbray will host UK Piefest

This isn't the first time we've been to Melton Mowbray! In fact, we've been numerous times to judge and help at the British Pie Awards. Find out more in our BPA articles here:


Media in 2017  |  Judges in 2016  |  Judges in 2015  |  Judges in 2014  |  Helpers in 2013



8.00 It's an early start for Pierateer Rob but he is now on his way to Melton Mowbray for UK Piefest 2017! Having done this journey a number of times now, we know the signal on the trains is a bit intermittent at best, so we'll keep you posted when we can but normal service will resume when we arrive in Melton Mowbray around 10:30am!

Pierateer Rob is due to do his talk on "How To Rate A Pie" in the Pie Theatre at 11:30am.

8.50 Did you know Pierateer Rob was on BBC Radio yesterday talking pie?! He was interviewed by Martin on BBC Leicester about how to rate a pie, his favourite flavours and his view on the classic Melton Mowbray pork pie! Catch up on it by going to http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/p057ql6j and the show on 28/7/17 from 42 to 49 minutes in!

9.50 So Twitter is starting to buzz with excitement as there's only a few more minutes til the gates open at UK Piefest! Just a reminder you can now only buy tickets on the gate (not online) but it's still only £4! #Bargin

10.15 Just leaving Leicester train station - next stop Melton Mowbray!!!

10.35 So I've arrived in Melton Mowbray (my first time coming for anything other than the British Pie Awards!) Now to not be distracted by pie shops and head to the Cattle Market!!

10.55 Organiser Matthew has kindly given me a tour of UK Piefest and of course focused on the pie stalls! (Other foods are available...)


11.20 Already spotted Brockleby's pies and Great North Pie Co pie stands at UK Piefest! And Neil from Great North Pie Co (a British Pie Awards Supreme Champion winner) is lending me a pie to talk about in my talk! Cheers Neil!

The "Pie Theatre" Rob is speaking in!

11.30 Time for my talk on How to Rate a Pie!

12.00 Well that was fun! Always nice to see the stewards having to put out extra seats due to all the people who want to listen! Thanks to those in a crowd who participated and for listening in. My biggest live pie talk to date with about 80-100 people in the audience!

12.25 Currently listening in to Stephen Hallam from Dickinson and Morris pie shop talking about how to hand raise a Melton Mowbray pork pie!

12.30 Stephen has now got 3 amateur bakers up on stage to give hand raising a pie a go! The next generation of pork pie bakers!!

13.00 Next up in the Pie Theatre is 2013 Great British Bake Off winner Frances Quinn! Looking forward to hearing her top pie tips! Meanwhile there's still lots of people piling in!

13.15 Frances Quinn is sharing how to make blueberry cloud-shaped pies in the Pie Theatre right now, including anecdotes from the Bake Off tent!

Frances Quinn making a pie

13:45 Frances Quinn has been chatting to people at the end of her demo. I asked her about the Picnic pie she made in the 2013 final, which she said she's never repeated since the final! Never too late to try Frances!

14.10 We've been hearing a bit more about the Bake Off tent, including how the crew always ended up taking bits home, how hot it was in the tent and how they had to submit all their plans right through to the final when they applied.

14.30 With half an hour til heading to get my train home I've been chatting to a few pie company owners, including Neil from Great North Pie Co and Ian from Rutland Pies. Looking forward to sampling them when I get home!!

15.00 Sadly time to bid farewell to Melton Mowbray but have enjoyed my day out here! If you have not got plans for tomorrow I do recommend you head down. Most of it is inside or under cover and there's great pies and pie talks on offer! Over and out!


RAS

Pierate is a pie review website charting a course to find the ultimate pie. For all the pies we have reviewed have a look at our Pie Rankings or find pies of a particular flavour under Pies: Categorised.

Make sure you 
and let us know your thoughts!
continue reading "UK Piefest 2017 - Live!"

Friday 28 July 2017

Re-rating the Mr Kipling fruit pie box

Mr Kipling Apple, Apple and Blackcurrant and Cherry Pies


Whether it be a British Pie Week “eat as many pies as you can Pieathon”, a roadtrip or a casual Pierateer get together, there always seems to be a reason to pick up a box of 6 handheld Mr Kipling pies to help us on our way. They have become synonymous with Pierate gatherings – the consistent little pie hole filler that allows us to have pie for breakfast, lunch, pudding or supper (and it has been known dinner too, when Pierateer Rob ate just apple pies for the day in 2013!)

And one of the leading pie manufacturers in the small handheld pie market are the legendary cake and pie makers Mr Kipling. They claim on their boxes to be the nation’s favourite apple pies and to be honest, for years now we have relied on the consistent goodness to keep us filled with pie on many a roadtrip and outing or simply as an easy breakfast or dessert pie option.

But it has come to our attention that these reviews are quite old now, being over 7 years since they were pie rated, so they are in need of a review. With so many other pies having been eaten since these initial reviews (some of the first on the blog) are they still that good? Add to the mix that we’ve never actually reviewed the Cherry pie yet and we thought that better change!

Mr Kipling Fruit Pie Review
Mr Kipling Fruit Pies (l-r: Apple and Blackcurrant, Cherry, Apple)
The question the box poses to us when pie rating is whether the Mr Kipling’s range really is exceedingly good pie? I can assure you – they are!

After all, there’s a reason why they are called the nation’s favourite apple pies (their branding and claim to fame, not mine). And there’s got to be a reason we keep going back to them time and time again! Packed with crisp apple-y goodness, the Mr Kipling Apple Pie ticks all the boxes and ensures it is the premier portable snack sized fruit pie. The apple and blackcurrant pies have a nice sweet mix of apple flavouring balanced with small pieces of blackcurrant (though the seeds can get in your teeth at times!) and the cherry pie is also nice and sweet, though again no fruit pieces to get your teeth into.

Sadly none of these pies have a particularly strong natural fruit content with pieces of fruit in your pie, relying more on a fruity jam like consistency. The capacity of these pies is also quite low – though if you eat one you’d probably agree you don’t want much more sweet filling if you’re going to finish said pie! But then this has been the case in nearly all of the small, portable fruit pies you get from supermarkets and similar companies. However if you want pies with actual pieces of fruit in, it’s best to go for pies from bakeries or farmers markets, which tend to be sold in larger sizes to cram the fruit in!

In summary, whether on a roadtrip, at a cake and pie sale, having just played sport, or at a friend’s leaving meal... the possibilities for cracking out a top tasting Mr Kipling Pie are almost endless! In terms of the small fruit pie market they are one of the best out there, consistently available across many supermarkets and corner shops up and down the country. And there has certainly been no lack of consumption of these pies in the past 10 years or so (easily pre-dating the creation of the Pierate Blog!) I would make a relatively safe guess that between the Pierateers there have been well over 200 Mr Kipling Apple Pies eaten alone (often all 6 in a pack eaten in one group sitting), which make these surely the most eaten pies in Pierate history!

Mr Kipling Apple Pie
Score: 5.82/7
[Colour 6/7; Consistency 6/7; Cheapness 6/7; Chewiness 5.75/7; Condition 6/7; Content 5.75/7; Capacity 5.25/7]

Mr Kipling Apple and Blackcurrant Pie
Score: 5.61/7
[Colour 6/7; Consistency 6/7; Cheapness 6/7; Chewiness 5/7; Condition 6/7; Content 5/7; Capacity 5.25/7]

Mr Kipling Cherry Pie
Score: 5.61/7
[Colour 6/7; Consistency 6/7; Cheapness 6/7; Chewiness 5/7; Condition 6/7; Content 5/7; Capacity 5.25/7]


RAS

Pierate is a pie review website charting a course to find the ultimate pie. For all the pies we have reviewed have a look at our Pie Rankings or find pies of a particular flavour under Pies: Categorised.

Make sure you
and let us know your thoughts!
continue reading "Re-rating the Mr Kipling fruit pie box"

Monday 17 July 2017

Will Brockleby’s rock my world?!

Brockleby’s Wild Deer and Longhorn Steak with Stilton and Ale Pie Reviews


Brockleby's Pie Reviews
Brockleby's Pie Reviews
Three years is a long time in politics – and is equally a long time in pie reviewing! The range of pies sold can vary hugely in that time and some pie businesses even come and go in that time frame. But when a pie company you have tried and rated highly turn up selling their pies pretty much in your back yard - at your local community festival - it’s a bit of a no-brainer to give some more of their pies a go (as well as enjoy an old favourite!)

So with a large Wild Beaver pie already in the bag to share with friends – and before I go any further, no beavers were harmed in the making of that pie! See our previous review for why it gets its provocative title! – it seemed foolish to pass up the op-pie-tunity to rate a few more of their pies. At £4.50 each or 3 for £12, I was sold! The two pies I’m therefore reviewing today are the Wild Deer and Longhorn Steak with Stilton and Ale pies in their decent repertoire.

Graham on the Brockleby's Pie Stall at the Selly Oak Festival

Did you know?! Brockleby’s will be one of the pie makers selling their wares at the second annual UK Piefest in Melton Mowbray on Saturday 29th and Sunday 30th July 2017. Find out more about it and the talk that Pierateer Rob is going to be giving there in our “Everything you need to know about UK Piefest” article! 
UK Piefest Flyer
UK Piefest flyer

Brockleby's Wild Deer Pie
Of note for both pies were that the pastry was a very nice consistency, particularly the lids of both pies – firm enough to hold in the content but not too thick to detract from the taste. They were also both packed to capacity with large meaty chunks and had a decent amount of gravy without it flowing out all over the place! I’d personally suggest slightly smaller chunks of meat which can be more covered in gravy and be a little tenderer in places, as there were a few large chewier pieces of meat that weren’t quite as succulent. However in all the meat was very nice and well filled, so I couldn’t find much to fault them.

In regards to the wild deer pie, it was certainly my preference out of the two. The meat on the whole was very nice, the gravy very rich and flavoursome and it really complimented the shortcrust pastry. It was therefore a deer pie very well done, and at £4.50 the price wasn’t too dear either! (Even better at £4 when buying 3 pies for £12!)

The steak, stilton and ale was a little more disappointing, simply due to the lack of a significant stilton flavour to the pie. I and a few friends who tried a mouthful too did not sense much of a stilton hit at all, so while by all means the steak was quite nice, as a steak and stilton pie it didn’t reach the same high levels as the wild deer pie and steak and beaver ale pie I’d had before. The steak was however nice in the main and the gravy was nice despite the lack of cheese.

Brockleby's Steak with Stilton and Ale Pie

With strong recommendations towards their Salmon pie and Moroccan Lamb pies, we’ve certainly got other chances to rate a few more of their pies – and hopefully I might pick up a sample or two at UK Piefest at the end of July! I’d certainly recommend you check out their stall if you go, as these pies are Pierate Recommended!

Brockleby’s Wild Deer Pie
Score: 5.86/7
[Colour 5.75, Capacity 6.25, Consistency 6, Condition 5.5, Chewiness 5.5, Cheapness 5.5, Content 6.5]


Brockleby’s Longhorn Steak with Stilton and Ale Pie
Score: 5.32/7
[Colour 5.75, Capacity 6, Consistency 5, Condition 5.5, Chewiness 5.5, Cheapness 5, Content 4.5]


RAS

Pierate is a pie review website charting a course to find the ultimate pie. For all the pies we have reviewed have a look at our Pie Rankings or find pies of a particular flavour under Pies: Categorised.

Make sure you 
and let us know your thoughts!
continue reading "Will Brockleby’s rock my world?!"

Saturday 15 July 2017

Everything you need to know about UK Piefest

UK Piefest Flyer
Pierate and UK Piefest flyers
What is UK Piefest?

Set up by the Melton Mowbray Pork Pie Association – who also run the British Pie Awards we attended back in March 2017 – in the self-proclaimed “Capital of Pies” Melton Mowbray, this is one big celebration of pie love! You can taste award winning pies from British Pie Awards winners – and more importantly bag some to take home! – as well as attending talks and demonstrations on how to make the perfect pie from experts like 2013 Great British Bake Off winner Frances Quinn! There will even be a Questions and Answers session with some of the expert pie makers there, as well as cheese, beer, cakes, chocolate, cider and entertainment!

Oh, and we’ll be there too, giving a talk on “How to Rate a Pie!”


When is UK Piefest?

Melton Mowbray UK Piefest
Melton Mowbray will host UK Piefest
UK Piefest is in its second year and is held in the summer, this year on Saturday 29th and Sunday 30th July from 10am-4pm (so not long to wait!)

Where is UK Piefest being held?

Well when you think pork pies, you think Melton Mowbray! So it makes absolute sense that the town is the host of UK Piefest! With a number of local producers selling their wares at the event, you need to follow the smell of freshly cooked pies and get down to Melton Mowbray Cattle Market, Scalford Road, Melton Mowbray, LE13 1JY

UK Piefest Flyer
Frances' Rainbow Picnic Pie - Screenshot from BBC
Who will be there?

Well apart from all the wonderful pie sellers – many of whom are past British Pie Awards winners – the star baker and demo pie maker is none other than Great British Bake Off 2013 winner Frances Quinn, who you may recall did a stunning Rainbow Picnic Pie in the final!

However why we’re quite so excited about UK Piefest is that we have been invited as guest speakers this year, to share our wisdom and ex-pie-rience on “How to Rate a Pie!” Yep, if you don’t know your 7 Cs of pie rating or haven’t heard enough pie eating anecdotes to last a lifetime, join us at 11:30am on Saturday 29th July! (Sadly we can’t make it on the Sunday too.) As well as explaining the 7 Cs of pie rating – what to look for in a top pie – there will be some pie anecdotes including how we ended up being on hit BBC One show “Rip Off Britain”.

Pierateer Rob, who appeared on BBC One's "Rip Off Britain" will be speaking at UK Piefest

What else can I do at UK Piefest?

Well, the pies the limit! At the very least for your £4 entry fee (or £3 if you buy online in advance) you’ll get tasting samples of some of the best pies known to man, the op-pie-tunity to buy some to take home and more pie based tips, info and trivia than you can fill in a fully encased pie crust!

When did it all start?

This will be the second UK Piefest, with the first last year being such a success story that they couldn’t resist hosting again! In fact, this year it’s being promoted as “The UK’s Greatest Pie Festival”! You can find out more about the history of pies and the pie festival on their website www.ukpiefest.co.uk

How can I find out more about UK Piefest?

Well the best place to look is their website www.ukpiefest.co.uk or give their twitter a follow on @ukpiefest but of course we will be there on Saturday 29th July and give you the low down on both this blog and our twitter @pierateers – so we hope you’ll feel you can join in the ex-pie-rience even if you can’t make it this year! But even better would be to get down to Melton Mowbray for this great celebration of all things pie! We certainly can’t wait to get our hands on even more top pies while we’re there!!



If you have any questions you want answered by Pierateer Rob at UK Piefest, why not leave a comment or drop us a question @pierateers? We’d love to hear from you and answer your questions if we can! Also do let us know if you’re coming too, as we’d love to meet you there!

RAS

Pierate is a pie review website charting a course to find the ultimate pie. For all the pies we have reviewed have a look at our Pie Rankings or find pies of a particular flavour under Pies: Categorised.

Make sure you
and let us know your thoughts!
continue reading "Everything you need to know about UK Piefest"