Bellingen Smokehouse has taken out a silver medal for its smoked rainbow trout at the Royal Agricultural Society of NSW’s Fine Food awards.
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No gold was awarded this year so their score of 82.33 was the highest in its class, beating long-established competitors.
It’s the first time business owner Matthew Bolton and his micro-sized smokehouse have entered, and he says he could develop a taste for it.
“It was a nice buzz,” he says. “I think I could become a bit of an awards junkie, actually.”
Matthew describes his smoked trout and salmon as traditionally crafted artisan products created using the best quality, sustainably farmed fish.
“The process for all our fish is a purely traditional one, where the only ingredients are fish, salt and smoke,” he says.
Apart from the rainbow trout, which comes from Victoria, most of his sources are from the coldest climates overseas – New Zealand, Canada and Norway – and so are not eligible for the RAS awards.
“When I started, I never imagined I’d end up sourcing product from the other side of the world, but to produce something special you have to start with something special,” he says.
The ocean trout from Norway is imported by a company recognised as being carbon-neutral and arrives fresh despite the distance.
“Basically they’re harvested on a Sunday and they’re in my smoker on Thursday.”
His products can be found in many local eateries, including Hearthfire Bakery’s salmon tart and in dishes at the Black Bear and the Purple Carrot.
They are also distributed throughout the Mid North Coast, Northern Rivers and New England regions, as well as to places in Sydney.
Matthew, who purchased the business known as Quigley’s Smokehouse about five years ago after moving here to marry his wife Catherine, has had what he calls a compartmentalised career.
He spent eight years as a journalist, then transitioned into teaching maritime studies at TAFE by vigorously pursuing his hobby of sailing square riggers.
Career highlight include skippering Soren Larson, the Danish vessel that was the lead ship in the 1988 First Fleet reenactment, for a two-week run from Bundaberg to Sydney, and taking the Duyfken, a replica of a 1594 Dutch vessel that charted Australian shores in 1606, from Brisbane to Fremantle.
He’s now thinking he’s ready for another change.
“My wife and I did the figures, and I can retire. And what the business really needs is someone to come in with new energy and ride the rest of the wave. So we’ve put it up for sale.”
Matthew said it’s the sort of business that is easy to pick up.
“There’s no qualification required, apart from a basic food safety certificate. But anyone, unless they’ve got a background in smoking fish, would want at least a month’s training, which I’d provide.”