A Taste of the Isles of Scilly: Discovering Artisan Food and Drink in the Fortunate Isles
Discover Local Food and Drink Producers in the Isles of Scilly
Imagine a place in the British Isles that boasts not only an unusual number of local food and drink producers, but individuals who are all very much in touch with the natural environment which surrounds them. It’s a little corner of heaven where you are likely to come across artisan producers down most leafy lanes and around every hedgerow. All of them are making delicious forms of food and drink, and all of it is inspired by the glorious local landscape Mother Nature has provided.
Food served at the famous Scilly Low Tide Pop-up
I spent a couple of days in such a place this week, although I did need the help of a helicopter to get there…
Why the Isles of Scilly Are Called the Fortunate Isles
Sometime after the Victorians started taking seaside holidays an early marketing genius dubbed the Scillonian archipelago The Fortunate Isles, a label which the islands enjoyed for decades. And as I returned aboard the Penzance helicopter this week, it was the title I scribbled at the top of my notes.
The Fortunate Isles indeed. Especially when it comes to food and drink.
The Pender family enjoying a day out spratting
A Culinary Renaissance in the Isles of Scilly
Words I never dreamed I’d be writing in association with the Isles of Scilly 25 years ago when I started visiting the islands for these newspapers. Back then, as many readers will know, the food offer on Scilly was dire. In an archipelago surrounded by some of the richest waters in Europe, you couldn’t even buy fresh fish - it was all imported frozen from the mainland, along with just about everything else.
Which, interestingly, was a very different situation from the time in 1976 when I was lucky enough to spend the summer camping on St Agnes. We were almost entirely self-sufficient, happily limited to food grown on the island or caught in its waters.
The Scillonian pictured in St Marys in 2007
Small-Scale Producers Making Big Waves
Now the wheel has turned again. The Scillies are back and boasting an authentic and delicious food and drink scene - and I write about it both this week and next because the South West area covered by the two newspapers which carry these articles is home to the majority of people who visit the islands each year.
And the opening paragraph is accurate - you really can meet artisan producers down just about every lane and across every hedgerow, and they are making delicious stuff.
Supporting Sustainable Food in Cornwall and the Isles of Scilly
I was invited to visit by Ruth Huxley, of Cornwall Food and Drink and director at the Great Cornish Food Store, which has obtained funding to run an initiative designed at bolstering the food, drink, farming, and fishing industries of both Cornwall and the Isles of Scilly.
“Basically, the programme aims to foster sustainable growth, enhance product quality, and expand market reach for local producers,” said Ruth, who took a group of experts out to Scilly this week so they could see for themselves the remarkable food and drink renaissance, and offer professional guidance and advice.
As one of them said after two days island-hopping and meeting producers… “Their commitment to ‘island flavours’ is impressive and is a fantastic selling point. Their emphasis on local ingredients, as opposed to imports, struck a chord - and their desire to share the true taste of Scilly came across loud and clear.”
Ruth Huxley of Cornwall Food & Drink
Micro-Scale Farms and the Beauty of Local
It has to be emphasised that, as with everything on the islands, all this is carried out on a micro-scale. The largest farm we visited was 14 acres, big for Scilly. But they say small is beautiful - and when it comes to food production, it certainly is. Because everything has to be done very well indeed if you are going to make a living from such small acreages.
Not only that, but you’ll need to be hugely inventive and have the ability to utilise everything and anything you have to hand.
Happy looking cow on St Agnes
Fudge, Flowers, and Flavour on Bryher and St Agnes
At Veronica Farm, for instance, fudge-maker Izzy Tibbs makes use of the honey produced by Bryher bees which buzz around the succulent plants she sells. It has a distinct flavour and aroma.
Izzy Tibbs
On St Agnes, Grace Windridge-Hicks and her husband Aidan are not only growing all manner of plants on Westward Farm to flavour their gin, they’re also picking wild herbs and gorse flowers to create interesting and delicious drinks.
Vineyard Innovation and Circular Cider on St Martins
On St Martins, Holly Robbins and James Faulconbridge use squeezed red grape skins from their wine-making to bolster the colour and flavour of a cider they produce.
Holly Robbins and James Faulconbridge
Back on Bryher, the Pender family who run Island Fish win awards for their sustainable practices all of which showcase the abundance of the surrounding seas. Nothing goes to waste - the amazingly fresh lobsters and crabs are cooked and served plain and simple (which is just how they should be) or are turned into delicious dishes by the family team.
Martin chats with Amanda Pender of Island Fish
Sea Salt, Spirits and Single-Malt Whisky on St Martins
Ingenuity is another notable and essential ingredient of the archipelago’s food and drink scene. Andrew Walder, of SC Dogs Distillery on St Martins, is a prime example. Having developed a remarkable business harvesting sea-salt from the ultra clear waters in Higher Town Bay, Andrew has now developed an impressive distilling operation (in which he distils from scratch) and he is even growing his own barley for future single-malt whisky production.
Andrew Walder, SC Dogs Distillery on St Martins
Scilly Cider: A Model of Self-Sufficiency on St Mary’s
Zoe and Chris Jenkins, of Scilly Cider in St Marys, cultivate their own rootstock, demonstrating a self-sufficiency born of necessity. Indeed, they are spearheading an amazing new cider industry that is fast evolving in three of the five inhabited islands.
Zoe and Chris Jenkins, of Scilly Cider in St Marys
Resourcefulness is a hallmark of island life, as is a strong sense of community. You’ll find producers supporting one another and collaborating on initiatives. Distiller Andrew, for example, makes an impressive apple brandy for Zoe and Chris using their cider as a base.
Zero-Waste Cider and Homegrown Innovation
It is the only thing the Jenkins do not do for themselves. Everything else in their cider operation is carried out in-house… “From growing rootstock to grafting trees - from planting the trees to picking the fruit by hand - from pressing the fruit to the ageing, bottling, pasteurising… It all stays on the farm,” says Zoe. “Even pulp from the press goes back around the trees as a fertiliser, so there’s zero waste.”
Granite cottage on Pender cider farm
Retired marine engineer Chris’s family have been working the St Marys farm for multiple generations. You can tell he’s a person good with his hands because the immaculate cider-making shed, and the farm’s new tasting-centre (which is taking shape as we speak), are basically home-built and are shining examples of their kind. I know many a Westcountry cider-maker who’d turn green with envy.
From Holidaymakers to Heritage: New Roots in Old Soil
Many of the people we met are from old Scillonian families, some are not. Holly and James, for example, bought St. Martin’s Vineyard and Winery (from a local couple who’d set it up in 1996) five years ago while on holiday. They made the instant decision to stop working for a large tractor company and an eco-consultancy, and make the move - a decision they have never regretted. They now run what must be one of the most eco-friendly and sustainable businesses in the region.
St Martins, home of sea salt and wine
Sea Salt to Solar Energy: Genius at Work on the Isles of Scilly
Just up the lane, Andrew Walder is a veritable genius when it comes to self-sufficiency. Like a lot of born-and-bred islanders, he left for a time (to spend 15 years in the Merchant Navy) but returned home brimming with ideas - and the knowledge, energy and skills to turn them into a reality.
The fact that Andrew learned how to distil from scratch, and now holds a licence which allows him to produce his own fabulous brands of rum, is hugely impressive in a world in which most distillers buy-in industrially made spirit that they then flavour with botanicals etc. But the man who brought sea-salt harvesting to the islands has gone one step further and is now preparing to make England’s first single-malt whisky with barley grown in his own fields and malted in-house. He also has a nearly completed new tasting centre and soon the whole lot will be run with the help of solar energy and a unique “sand battery” system.
Scilly’s Smallest Food Producers: Baked Delights from the Garden Gate
Some producers think big (ish), others are content to keep things small. Young mum, Zoe Dan, bakes delicious cakes and pastries, which she sells from a little honesty box at the end of her garden on Bryher. If you’re lucky, you can buy a slice of the local Scilly “tattie-bread” from her “Bake Box”.
Zoe Dan, Isles of Scilly Bake Box
Adapting and Evolving: The Secret to Island Food Success
I was struck by something the dynamic Grace Windridge-Hicks told me… “You have to be really flexible to survive on Scilly. That sounds dramatic, but you are constantly changing. We started off as a potato farm, then we were a flower farm and then Aidan’s mum and dad started distilling local plants and herbs to make soap and other products. Now we do the gin and we’ve got our own very popular amaretto.
“You are constantly evolving and working out what works, and what doesn’t,” said Grace. “As long as you keep your mindset flexible, you will survive.”
Taste of Scilly 2025: A Food and Drink Festival Like No Other
If this article has whetted your appetite for a visit, you might be interested in Scilly’s 11-day annual food and drink celebration in September. Taste of Scilly features local producers and eateries from around the islands and is designed to showcase their wares.
One producer told me: “The festival offers a great way to experience a diverse array of events and activities, from sailing on a yacht spotting wildlife while savouring morning tea and cake, to indulging in sunset lobster nights. There’ll be pop-up dining events where locally crafted tapas are sure to inspire. You can enjoy a picnic on St. Martin’s before kayaking to the Eastern Isles - or embark on tours and tastings that explore beehives and honey, and locally distilled spirits.”
Low tide pop-up
Experience the Unique Low Tide Pop-Up on the Isles of Scilly
And, of course, there’s Scilly’s most unique event - the Low Tide Pop-Up which, because of tidal conditions, can only be staged twice a year. I’ve been twice and can report that the word “unique” is, for once, spot-on. It takes place when spring tides are low enough to allow you to walk dry-shod between the islands of Tresco and Bryher. For just a couple of hours hundreds of people gather on sands which are usually deep beneath the waves to enjoy all manner of seafood and other delights.
👉 Check out https://www.visitislesofscilly.com
