It all started with Whortleberry Jam.
When Ruxstons started out as a little shop in a barn on Horner Farm, there was one product which was requested on an almost daily basis, Whortleberry Jam. We had hundreds of tourists wanting to take this piece of Exmoor home with them, and the whortleberry (a wild blueberry) that grows on the moors was perfect. Not being the type of person to disappoint I asked all of the local jam suppliers to send a sample, and we found that Waterhouse Fayre produced the best by far. The Jam was not overly watery whilst keeping the flavour of the mild tasting whortleberries as powerful as possible.
It soon became clear that Waterhouse Fayre could offer far more than just a single jar of Jam. We expanded the range to their complete collection of Jams and Chutney. Currently our best selling Waterhouse Fayre Chutney is the Slow Roasted Garlic, which is truly incredible. The large bulbs of Garlic break down with ease in your mouth whilst giving our a wonderfully delicate yet powerful flavour. They are combined with Red Wine Vinegar and Onions and we can say for sure this is one of their best ever creations. With some cheese and crackers this really makes you give up puddings for your after dinner treat for a good long while.
Waterhouse Fayre was set up in 2004 in South Molton by Ann, so this is a very well established small business. Interestingly Ann started out selling fruit to hotels and guest houses in the surrounding South Molton area but after a few years there was no fruit left as it was all going into Jam she had originally made from the surplus fruit. The family moved down from South Molton, interestingly they were based right next to our beef supplier Matthew Cooke, in Burlescombe near Tiverton. This more central position within Devon gave Ann and her husband Neil chance to grow their business and grow more fruit trees. Now stocked in farm shops, delis and independent supermarkets across the country. They are a great advert for food in the south west and can now be enjoyed on the First Great Western trains from London to Penzance.
Strictly Fruit No Added Sugar Range
Waterhouse Fayre have recently developed a no added sugar range of Jam and named it Strictly Fruit. Strictly Fruit use a sugar substitute called Zùsto which whilst very similar in sweetness to table sugar is derived from corn and chicory fibres. Zùsto has considerably less calories than sugar, accoridng to some studies less than 75% and has a low glycemic index making it sutiable for a lot of diabetic customers. It has similar properties to sugar however so unlike other natural sweetness the texture and taste remain similar. They offer some fantastic flavours such as Strawberry Jam and Orange Marmalade.
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