Ludlow Vineyard and Distillery officially has the Tastiest Juice in the West Midlands after winning the grand final yesterday.

The company won the West Midlands Tastiest Juice Competition – cox variety, at the grand final which was held at the flagship AGA store in the Mailbox, Birmingham.

The annual competition is run by HEART of ENGLAND fine foods (HEFF), the regional food group for the West Midlands.  It is run alongside the West Midlands Tastiest Sausage Competition, in association with AGA, in which Wenlock Edge Farm was a finalist in both the Breakfast and Speciality categories.

The Tastiest Breakfast Juice category was won by Mannings of Herefordshire.  The juices in both categories were taste-tested by 15  judges including Tammy Gooding from Smooth Radio.

Mike Hardingham of Ludlow Vineyard and Distillery said: “We are delighted to have won.  We’re so pleased because there was some stiff competition from some bigger juice producers.  It’s the first time we’ve won anything so it’s really great.”

A Shropshire school pupil was also highly commended in the West Midlands Schools Best Banger Competition.  Shannon O’Grady from Brockton Primary School, near Much Wenlock, won the county heat of the competition with her recipe and poster for The Shropshire Sausage which was then made by butchers at Wenlock Edge Farm so it could be tasted and judged at the grand final.  The sausage included pork, herbs, cheese, egg and breadcrumbs.

The West Midlands Tastiest Sausage Competition was devised in 2001 to coincide with Farmhouse Breakfast Week.

Ludlow Vineyard, Wainbridge House, Clee St Margaret, Craven Arms SY7 9DT

Telephone 01584 823356 www.ludlowvineyard.co.uk