Pub champs crowned in time British Sausage Week

A butcher, brewer and licensee have proved that teamwork is best, after fighting off competition from some of the best butchers in the country to claim the title of best pub sausage.

Glossop-based butcher John Mettrick took the title, awarded by BPEX in association with The Publican ​at the Foodservice Sausage Awards 2010, with his Dark Peak Ale sausage.

Licensee Bob Skupham of the Wheatsheaf in Wellgate, Glossop, will be celebrating British Sausage Week, which starts today (November 1) and runs to November 7, with the banger in pride of place on his menu.

Mettrick, who runs butchers JW Mettrick & Sons, was asked to create the winning banger by Skupham, who wanted to add something different to his offer. The sausage contains Dark Peak porter from the Howard Town Brewery, which is within walking distance of the pub.

Mettrick said: "The combination worked and we are delighted with the results. It's a great selling point for the pub as it's unique to them and great for the brewery too.

"It's only been on the menu a couple of months but the order has already doubled and we've had lots of attention from the local press."

Skupham said: "This is fantastic, especially considering we're such a new pub. We've only been open 16 months after converting it from a Greek taverna, so this is a real feather in our cap." The Welsh Sausage Company was awarded second place at the ceremony, which took place at Butchers Hall in London, with its pork and cracked black pepper sausage.

But it was a vintage year for licensee and former butcher Kevin Berkins of Lancashire pubs the Fence Gate Inn and the Eagle, who walked away from the event with five gongs - including third place in the best pub sausage category with his Italian mozzarella, panacetta, sunblush tomato, oregano and a hint of garlic sausage. He also took the top accolade of Sausage of the Year for his limoncello, lemon thyme and a hint of lemon zest sausage.

"The lemon sausage was the result of a bit of creative thinking," he said. "It's not something we'd previously put on the menu in the pubs, but we're going to have to reconsider that now. We're delighted."

BPEX foodservice trade manager Tony Goodger said: "Sausages are one of the nation's best loved foods and a favourite with chefs and diners alike. It's not hard to see why, thanks to the hundreds of different varieties and flavour combinations available."