On this tour you will meet County Down’s finest award winning artisan producers – hear their story, taste their produce and eat and drink your way around the Ards Peninsula….so bring a very healthy appetite and leave the car behind! On this tour you will get to sample up to 15 local products from the region…

Tour Intinery:

9.30am – Pick up in Belfast (St Anne’s Cathedral*)

10am to 10.45am – Breakfast and griddled bread baking demo by Freddie Strickland

Our first stop of the day will see us visit Indie Fude in the beautiful surroundings of The Courtyard, Comber. Here we will meet master baker, Freddie Strickland, and hear all about traditional griddle bread making and sample some of Freddie’s fabulous breads such as soda bread, wheaten bread and potato bread…and of course great bread needs great butter, and Freddie will treat you to the best, his personal favourite, Abernethy Butter! You will also get to meet and chat with a local raw milk producer and a free range egg farmer, tasting their local goodies. It’s breakfast time so local tea and coffee wil be provided.

11.15am to 11.45am – A visit to award winning Glastry Farm ice cream dairy

Our next stop takes us right into the County Down countryside, to the home of Will Taylor and his award winnning herd of fresian cows, producing the finest ice cream in the world at Glastry Farm. Here we will meet the cows, watch the milking process and most importantly taste Will’s deliciously creamy ice cream!

12noon to 1pm – A tasting of gin & whiskey in Kirkubbin

Third stop is the stunning Echlinville Distillery in Kircubbin, opened in 2013 it has produced widely acclaimed spirits such as Dunville’s Single Malt Irish Whiskey, JawBox Gin and Echlinville Pot Still Gin, all of which will be available to sample and hear once you have had a walk-around tour of the stunning distillery itself.

1.15pm – Scenic ferry crossing at Portaferry

1.30pm to 2.15pm – A seafood lunch at The Cuan in Strangford

Once we have crossed over from Portaferry to Strangford on the short and scenic ferry ride, we will have lunch in the charming surroundings of The Cuan, a traditional pub famed for its seafood menu and warm hospitality (and not to mention Game of Thrones menu and themed door!). Here we will not only sample some of The Cuan’s infamous local seafood chowder and Guinness wheaten bread, but we will hear all about where this beautiful seafood has come…

2.45pm to 3.30pm – A dexter Black Beef BBQ tasting at the NT Rowallen Estate in Saintfield

After our trip to Strangford we take a journey into the lush countryside of Co Down, to the fabulous National Trust Rowallen Estate where farmer Andy Meeke rears his prize winning native Dexter Black Beef cattle on its luscious green grass. During the stop we will not only bask in the beautiful surroundings and have the opportunity to meet Andy’s dexter herd, we will have the chance to taste some of the beautiful black beef during a BBQ on the Rowallane Band Stand!

3.45pm to 4.30pm – Beer, cheese & chocolate tasting and shopping at Indie Fude deli in Comber

Nearly there, our last stop of the day…where we go to Indie Fude in Comber, a treasure trove of a deli which only stocks local produce, hows about that! Here you will not only get to shop, but you will also get your just desserts…a little bit of local Young Buck cheese and some fabulous chocolates by the in-store chocolatier, La Coquine…what a treat! There will also be a tasting of local ales by Bullhouse Brewery (Ards)

5pm Arrive back in Belfast (St Anne’s Cathedral)

* Note: feel free to join/conclude the tour at Indie Fude (5a High St, Comber)

Book your tickets for this tasty event here.