Dairy products ‘put Guernsey on the map’

The products received a two- star rating in The Guild of Fine Food’s Great Taste Awards 2021.

More than 5,000 products across the world were entered for the awards, with the chance of getting a one-, two- or three-star award. Just 10% get the two-star award, while about 25% of entries get one star.

Guernsey Dairy’s quality and compliance manager Alex Tielles entered some of the dairy’s products to see how they would be judged against market leading brands and artisanal products. She was overwhelmed by the results and judges’ feedback.

‘We received two-star (out of three) accolades for our low-fat milk, organic milk and salted butter and one star for our full cream milk and skimmed milk,’ she said.

‘These results are fantastic and puts Guernsey on the map for producing some of the highest quality dairy products made using local milk from our world-famous Guernsey cows. Judges’ comments like “perfection” and “delicious” are a credit to everyone involved in the local dairy industry.’

Dairy managing director Andrew Tabel was pleased with the positive feedback.

‘This is a remarkable achievement in particular to the complexities of the production process within a facility that has reached the end of its useful service life.’

This is the first time the dairy has entered. The awards mean local dairy products can display the black and gold Great Taste logo on award-winning products.

The judges described Guernsey low-fat milk as having a surprisingly rich, delicate flavour, considering its pale colour.

‘On tasting, it is beautifully clean and light,’ they said.

‘We really enjoyed the flavour and we can we see it being very versatile in all cooking and drinks. Although this is low fat, it still has lots of body and dairy flavour.’

Guernsey organic low-fat milk was described as having sweet, warm, animal-tinged flavour, which was a delight to sample.

‘We thought we were sampling a full-fat milk, showing that it’s possible to retain the flavour while reducing the fat content,’ the judges said.

‘It had a pleasingly rich, complex flavour that we felt showed that the milk had been respected and not over-processed.’

The salted butter was said to have a touch of grassiness on the palate.

‘This is butter that needs nothing with it apart from a bit of good bread – if that,’ they said.

‘A deliciously light and vibrant yellow butter, which has been well churned.’

Guernsey full cream milk was said to have an airy feel about it.

‘This is delicious milk, clean, but with sweet creamy notes and a really satisfying mouth feel,’ the judges said.

‘The unhomogenised flecks of cream give it added appeal on the palate.’

Guernsey skimmed milk was said to look lovely and thick, and have a chunky taste.

‘It is fresh and palate cleansing and we felt that it would stand up well in beverages that normally require a fattier milk,’ the judges said.

‘A sweet milk that we felt was not over heated or over processed, having great flavour for a skimmed milk.’