Venue: The Commercial, 1 Carr Lane, Slaithwaite, West Yorkshire. HD7 5AN
Facebook Page: The Commercial
Date: 28th May 2018
Pie: Pork Pie
Temperature as eaten: Hot
Rating: 9.8
There’s a bit of history here, as The Commercial pub in Slaithwaite (pronounced Slawit) is where the germination of the seed of what was to become the British Pie Association took place in this very establishment. As is usual with all the best ideas, a few like minded individuals were partaking in a little light refreshment while carrying out our own personal re-run of the famed “Real Ale Trail” which featured on BBC Oz and James Drink to Britain. It’s quite a well known outing since the journey by rail from Dewsbury to Stalybridge of James May and Oz Clarke was televised back in 2011. It’s a great journey if you like Real Ale but you have to pick your day well as it can be a little miserable if it’s raining which it does occasionally in this area of the UK. But if you pick the right day and the sun is shining the sceanery as you travel by train between the stops is at time quite breathtaking. The pub itself is in the centre of the village and has a wide selection of hand pulled beers including ales from a local brewery Empire Brewing which are really quite good and go well with a pie.
Anyway, I’m not here to talk about Real Ale, the BBC or James and Oz, I’m here to review pies.
The pie in question today is a Pork Pie that is sold in The Commercial but is sourced from a local supplier that being Bolster Moor Farm Shop. I’m not going to review the farm shop as I’m definitely going to be paying them a specific visit in the not to distant future to sample some more of their award winning pies.
We arriving in the pub there were eight Pork Pies left in the hot cabinet at the back of the bar. There was a bit of a scramble to get to the bar first by the group I was visiting with to make sure a Pie & Pint was secured and fortunately for me it was, and the hot cabinet was switched off a few minutes after we arrived, we had cleared them out and only the odd crumb remained.
The pie was…. superb. They are not huge pies, four or five average bites and you are done, but by ‘eck those four or five bites are mouthwatering and leave you wanting more, they are that good. They look the part too. The pastry is a rich, deep gold in colour and perfectly cooked through. To bite the pastry has a little crunch, just the right amount, and just the right thickness. Inside the pie there is just the right amount of jelly/pie juice which keeps the filling moist but doesn’t make the inside of the pie pastry mushy or cloying at all. The pork filling is top quality, lightly seasoned, with a little pepperiness that gives just the slightest amount of savoury bite that even without the juice would keep the mouth watering.
In summary it really is an award winning Pork Pie and for good reason. I’d recommend it to anyone looking for a top quality, top looking, top tasting Pork Pie. I honestly don’t think as yet that I’ve tasted a better pork pie. Some have come close and I’m sure that some will come closer. I live in anticipation of the day that I find a better pork pie. Some already say it is the best, others not. What I do know, is that it really is an award winning Pork Pie and for good reason.
So I now need to plan a trip to Bolster Moor Farm Shop to see what else is on offer and to continue to sample and review Pork Pies from around the UK. Who knows I may have to come back and amend the score, but in the mean time I’ve given myself a little wriggle room 😉
HF.
#thecommercial #bolstermoorfarmshop #realaletrail #empirebrewing @thecommercialslawitslaithwaitegroup @bolstermoorfarm @empirebrewinguk
