Scotch Beef Centrepiece for Spirit of Speyside

Quality Meat Scotland, the Scottish red meat promotion body, is sponsoring the beef at tonight’s (Friday 1st May) opening dinner for the Spirit of Speyside Whisky Festival, one of the flagship events of this year’s Homecoming celebrations.

Over 350 guests at the sell out evening in Dufftown will enjoy a dinner of Scotch Beef sourced from Aberdeenshire farms and supplied by Scotch Premier, the Inverurie based meat company. The First Minister Alex Salmond will make the key note speech.

QMS Chairman Donald Biggar said: “Spirit of Speyside is an opportunity to showcase everything that is good about Scotland and it is fitting that Scotch Beef will be the centrepiece of the meal at the opening dinner.

“It is also appropriate that the Scotch Beef being served has been sourced from local farms in Aberdeenshire and processed by an Inverurie company as part of the Scottish red meat industry’s unique Assurance schemes, promising quality and provenance throughout the chain from gate to plate.”

One of Scotland’s leading young chefs, Chris Morrison of the Mansfield Hotel, Elgin has been handed the challenge of ensuring the gala dinner in The Balvennie Maltings lives up to all expectations.

Twenty eight year old Chris was selected for the honour after a winning performance in a “cook off” competition featuring up and coming chefs from the north east of Scotland.

He’ll lead a team of five chefs preparing his trademark dish Roast Sirloin of Scotch Beef coated in Draff, a by product of the whisky distillation process.

Chris said: “Preparations in the kitchen are well underway and although I’m a bit nervous given the size of the event I’m really looking forward to showcasing the excellent food and drink that we have in Speyside.

“The Scotch Beef that I’ll be cooking for the dinner looks absolutely spot on. It’s been hung for 21 days and you can tell the quality and how well it will eat just by looking at it. Everyone who has been involved in getting it to this stage has done an excellent job.”

As well as the Scotch Beef main course, guests will enjoy a Haggis, Neeps and Tatties starter and a dessert of Chocolate Mousse Orange Tuille with Orange Jelly and Mint Crème Fraiche.