The Cornish Company, Pasty And Cider Treat Hamper Review
DISCLOSURE -THIS ITEM WAS GIFTED TO THE REVIEWER FOR THE PURPOSES OF WRITING THE REVIEW. ALL THOUGHTS AND OPINIONS ARE THE REVIEWER’S OWN.
Reviewed by Colin Hewitt
Full disclosure: I’m a born and bred Devonian reviewing Cornish produce. I solemnly swear that I will conduct this review with utter professionalism and not allow almost 65 years of proclivity and bias to cloud my judgement.
In my youth, in the late ‘70s, as a school summer holiday job, I worked in a small seaside dairy. One of my tasks was packing and packaging clotted cream. People all over the country would receive this by post as a gift, or simply as a memory of their seaside holiday. In those days, the cream would be packed into metal tins. 2oz, 4oz or 8oz, two bits of greaseproof paper, lid on, Sellotape the lid, fix the postage label, bosh – done (fifty years later, the muscle memory is still there). The cost of postage eventually put an end to this activity. Now, thanks to The Cornish Company, we have an entire selection of hampers and delicious goodies from the South West, to be enjoyed at any time of the year.
Take some time to look at their website https://thecornishcompany.com/. You will see an amazing array of cream teas, Cornish food and drink, a variety of hampers, gift cards, and much more. A couple caught my eye. First, the 1kg pasty; the stuff of dreams for a boy from the South West. Second, for those with a savory rather than sweet tooth, the Cheese Scone Hamper, featuring the often overlooked member of the scone family, the wonderful cheese scone.
Most importantly, the website lists the dietary and allergy advice for all the produce it sells.
The Cornish Company was founded by Tom and James (adventurous and mischievous, respectively), whose mission was to ‘create a mass movement of pasty-loving fanatics’.
When offered, I jumped at the chance to review an item of theirs and gratefully received the ‘Pasty & Cider Treat Hamper’. This contained:
2 Medium Cornish Pasties.
4 Plain Scones (or scones if you prefer – I’m not going there!).
113g Rodda’s Cornish Clotted Cream.
4 x 28g Jars of Strawberry Jam.
4 x Individual Cornish Smugglers Brew Black Tea Bags.
A small packet of Original Cornish Fairings Biscuits (which, by coincidence, I also sold in my time working in the dairy).
A small packet of Clotted Cream Shortbread Biscuits.
2 Bottles of Cider (1 x Rattler Original 5.5%, 1 x Cornish Orchards Gold 5%).
A Personalised Gift Card Message.
When it arrived (the next day, via DHL, after arranging delivery) I could see that it was cleverly packaged. The hamper maximises space using minimal, fully recyclable cardboard, and I’m pleased to say that there isn’t a staple in sight.
Now to the crucial bit: every item in the hamper was delicious.
The pasties (we warmed them up in the oven as instructed) were gorgeous with just the right amount of peppery seasoning. The pastry was light and wasn’t in the slightest bit greasy – a definite hit.
When considering the clotted cream tea, I’m not getting into the whole cream or jam first debate. Do whatever floats your boat (apart from mixing the two and then spreading it onto the scones; this is likely to upset everyone in the South West and beyond). Eating this on a cold spring afternoon really cheered us up.
Fortunately for me, because my wife doesn’t like it, I got to drink both of the ciders, which were light and refreshing and made me look forward to those warming summer evenings. My wife tried a few sips and appreciated that they tasted totally different to the over-fizzy varieties she’s tried before.
This really was Cornish sunshine in a box; it only lacked the call of seagulls and the emotive sound of the sea gently rolling against sand.
This, and any product from the website, would make an ideal and unusual present. I’ll certainly be using the Cornish Company for birthdays, Christmas or simply ‘Just Because’ gifts (there might even be a personal ‘just because’ 1kg pasty, finding its way to me soon).
Rating: An easily achieved 5/5 (in fact, if I could award higher, I would).
Rating: 5/5
RRP: £32.00 (with free P&P)
This product can be purchased here https://thecornishcompany.com/