This week marks a milestone for Black Mountains Smokery, who have been supplying their award-winning smoked foods and gourmet hampers from the heart of the Brecon Beacons for 20 years, one of the area’s growing number of foodie attractions that will pull in visitors during this Year of Adventure.
The Crickhowell-based firm supplies a sustainable range of traditional smoked salmon, fish, meats, duck, poultry and cheeses – all cured and smoked in the footsteps of the traditional craft using the skills of the finest smokers.
The Smokery is the passion of Jo and Jonathan Carthew, who followed their ‘hiraeth’ back to the Beacons 20 years ago from Botswana. Jo said: “We can’t quite believe where the time has gone. The business opened in a week of blizzards and our first little van was nearly written off that week finding itself impaled on a stile on the commute home! We remain as proud as ever of our award winning produce and enjoy our expanding hamper business which involves working with so many lovely like-minded producers. We would like to thank all our loyal customers and suppliers, many of whom who have supported us throughout all these years.”
Weekly Smokery tours and tastings will begin in March, and a new shop showroom has opened for visitors. For further information see www.smoked-foods.co.uk.
Culinary adventures are just some of the many adventures to be had in the Beacons throughout this Year of Adventure. Visitors are being encouraged to share their experiences using the hashtags #AnturBannau and #EpicBeacons. The national Year of Adventure is Visit Wales’ initiative to attract more visitors to the country with a focus on the variety of adventures in store, and a challenge for tourists to #FindYourEpic.
The national campaign is the latest move to make Wales a leading global destination for adventure tourism as part of the Welsh Government’s Year of Adventure 2016. The tourism industry in Wales saw record growth in 2014 and reports from 2015 are showing further growth.
Jonathan Carthew added: “We are really proud to be part of what is now a vibrant and passionate local food community in the Brecon Beacons. From producers to plate, this area is home to a wealth of fabulous food, as well as several of the best food festivals in the land.”
The Year of Adventure has got off to a great start with Wales and its attractions listed by an unprecedented number of global media outlets - from Rough Guide to Lonely Planet to Forbes - as a must-see place to visit in 2016. The national campaign is using the hash tags #FindYourEpic #GwladGwlad and #WalesAdventure #AnturCymru to encourage visitors to share their experiences online.
Welsh Government has supported the Brecon Beacons through the Visit Wales Regional Tourism Engagement Fund (RTEF). This fund was established to help destinations across Wales to promote and develop the tourism offer, encouraging more people to visit Wales.