Sausage maker strikes gold!

A SIDLEY sausage maker is celebrating a string of successes.

Family butcher Gerald Matthews and the staff of his shop at the junction of Turkey Road and Southlands Road had never entered the British Meat-sponsored South East England Excellence in Meat Production awards before.

But when Gerald took the firm's bangers to Leatherhead in Surrey last Wednesday he came back laden with awards.

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"We got two golds, two silvers and a bronze - an award for every category we entered.

"We got a gold for our traditional pork sausages. We got a gold for our wild boar and venison.

"We got a silver for our cracked pepper and leak and a silver for our chilli, lime and pork and a bronze for our creamy peppered beef..."

Gerald's late father spent 55 years in the trade. Gerald followed him into the business 35 years ago.

The firm's sausages are made on the premises.

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"The traditional pork has been a recipe we have used since time immemorial. We have done the wild boar and venison for two or three years but the others are all new."

Judges in the competition examine both the raw and the cooked product.

Each entry starts with 100 points. The firm's traditional pork retained 96 points out of 100 after judging and the wild boar and venison 95.

Mr Matthews said: "We feel tremendous about it. We have always aimed to make a good sausage. All the ingredients are freshly made.

"We we were chuffed to bits. There were 240 entrants.

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"We like to make up a recipe and try it on our customers. They sell very well indeed.

"We do a round-robin, keeping one batch on for two or three weeks and then changing it so there's always something new and a bit different."

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