AN old family recipe has helped a Dumfries butcher win the prize for the best pork sausages in Scotland.
And there’s been double celebrations for Daniel West, of Mogerleys, as he has also just been crowned the World Haggis champion.
The 30-year-old took over the Friar’s Vennel shop from his uncle, Gordon Little, just two months ago and is already making waves.
He used his grandfather’s 30-year-old recipe to win the Scottish Craft Butchers (SCB) ultimate Diamond Award in the biennial Scottish Pork Sausage Championship.
Daniel said he was “over the moon” when he collected his trophy at the SCB Trade Fair in Perth at the weekend.
“I didn’t expect to hear my name called out,” he said. “I was absolutely shocked – but I’m ecstatic now that it’s sinking in.
“To produce the best pork sausage in Scotland is unbelievable. We turn over hundreds every week and it’s a top seller with our customers. Word is already out that it’s a Scottish Champion, however, with new orders coming in from all over.”
Daniel is a qualified plasterer, as well as having qualified to look after vulnerable children in the care system. But it was his dream to take over the family business and return to his butcher roots ever since he was a little boy.
“I used to work with my uncle and when he told me he was selling up he gave me first refusal,” said Daniel. “It’s a dream come true to take over the business and keep it in the family. And to win a Scottish Championship for something as iconic as the pork sausage is just the icing on the cake.”
Mogerleys has also been named South of Scotland regional winner for their traditional haggis and secured four gold and silver awards for other Make It With Haggis products.
“It’s been quite a week,” said Daniel. “We’re just a small team of six at Mogerleys and these amazing awards from SCB are a real credit to their hard work and innovation.”
SCB executive manager Gordon King said Mogerleys’ championship-winning sausage came up against stiff competition in a field of around 70 entries from all over Scotland.
“It’s one of the most coveted and most fiercely contested championships in the business,” he said. “And we’re thrilled to see it go to Daniel and his team at Dumfries just weeks after him taking on the business.
“The standard of entry was extremely high and Mogerleys excelled in a fiercely competitive field,” added Gordon.
