TAKE ME TO THE BUTCHER'S COUNTER             I FEEL LIKE AN ADVENTURE WITH BEEF

Hardiesmill Beef all comes from pedigree Aberdeen Angus cattle raised on grass and grass-silage in the Scottish Borders.  The cattle are raised on two adjoining farms, Hardiesmill and Sweethope. We have to happy cattle as stress makes the beef tough and causes that piece of grizzle (the check) you often find in the sirloin.  We use Scotch approved suppliers, hauliers and abatoir,  and our beef is all hung for 3-4 weeks before being seam cut by our in-house Master Butcher, Lee.  The result: the largest range of steaks in Scotland (11) and the huge honour of being invited to provide the beef for the Finals of the Bocuse d'Or World Cuisine Contest  in Lyon in 2009!  Obviously it's impossible to control nature, but we've found that we can get the greatest degree of consistancy possible in the eating quality of our beef by locking down on three sets of variable: breeding, feeding and handling.  Hence us only using one exclusive breed and no crosses (most Aberdeen Angus is crossed with another breed in order to meet European aesthetic measurables (gradings)). It's also why we stick to a diet of grass and don't use huge quantities of high-protein barley or corn (which increase the water content of the meat and changes the taste to front-of -tongue), and why great care is taken in the handling of the meat from conception through to delivery into your kitchen.  We take provenance seriously, right down to the cut!