A Free Foodie Festival

A free food festival, what’s not to love?

Attention foodies. Looking for a weekend activity that won’t cost you? We’ve got just the thing, and only an hour’s drive from Dublin’s fair city. The Wild & Slow Festival returns to Macreddin Village (Brooklodge, County Wicklow) on November 8th and 9th.

Never heard of it? We’ll fill you in. It’s a unique festival that celebrates everything that is good about Irish food. Think fresh, think local, think traditional and think wild. If you decide to take the short trip down, you’ll enjoy the chance to walk among the rows of wooden stalls, tasting homemade treats galore as you go and taking in a foodie workshop or demonstration too.

Join Michelin star chief Derry Clarke for a furred-game tasting masterclass, a Sip on the Wild Side cocktail workshop with highly acclaimed mixologist Oisin Davis, or how about a preserving lesson with one of Ireland’s top chiefs Darina Allen or a seaweed appreciation afternoon with author Sally McKenna. Wild and Slow organiser and Macreddin’s Village very own Evan Doyle, will also be on hand in the masterclasses.

The Irish countryside has a range of tasty and nutritious wild foods that will be showcased at Wild & Slow. Wild berries, fruits, flowers, mushrooms, game, fish and our traditional methods of preserving them, whether pickling, preserving, smoking, or salting and curing – the festival will show you how to bring out the best in these foods. From fish to pheasant, from the deep dark flavour of venison to the sticky sweetness of wild blackberry jam, a contented reliance on nature’s gifts is as slow as it gets!

The two day celebrations will be the result of months of planning and teaching, harvesting and foraging and is sponsored by F?ilte Ireland and Bord Bia. The full schedule of workshops and masterclasses can be found on www.wildandslow.com or by visiting the Slow Food Cabin at Wild & Slow 2014.

Brooklodge are offering a special winterfest Wild & Slow package to coincide with the food festival.

It includes one night B&B for 2 people sharing on the Saturday the 8^th of November 2014, a wild cocktail pre-reception and a unique 7 course Wild Foods dinner including wine for just €320. For more information see: www.brooklodge.com

Wild & Slow 2014: Saturday 8^th & Sunday 9^th of November from 11am – 8pm at The Brooklodge and Macreddin Village, Co. Wicklow.

See you there then?