The finalists for Blas na hÉireann 2021 have been announced, and the countdown is on for the awards weekend, which will take place virtually this Saturday.
Now in their 14th year, the team at Blas na hÉireann have worked harder than ever to make sure the awards went ahead, moving the blind-tasting judging system from the campus in UCC to Dingle to work within Government guidelines and the constraints of social distancing. With the blueprint for this new system developed last year, the team were able to seamlessly ensure the judging was handled with the same care and attention as always – especially important in a year where we have seen a record entry level from producers right across the island.
“We’re delighted to announce the finalists for 2021, and chuffed to see so many new products being entered into Blas na hÉireann this year. Last year was new territory for us, but the team here did tremendous work to make sure the awards went ahead, and the sense of community that we experienced over the virtual awards event was just brilliant,” says Chairperson Artie Clifford.
“We saw a large increase in entries this year and these new producers have really raised the bar across all categories and will allow us to introduce new producers to the buyers and press that we work with, which is really exciting”.
The awards will be announced over the course of the day on October 2nd, via the Blas website irishfooodawards.com and across social media channels. While the Blas family will miss welcoming everyone to Dingle, the team and the wider Blas community will gather virtually and make sure #Blas2021 trends all day!
The Blas team are also working on an exciting line up of online presentations and workshops as part of The Blas Backyard, which is supported by Bank of Ireland and Taste4Success.
The finalists shortlisted from Roscommon across a range of different categories are Oliver Carty, Do Me A Flavour, and the Waldron Family.
