It’s not often that I can get my hands on the tantalising wild venison hand cured salami from the amazing Gubbeen Farmhouse, expertly made by the hands of Fingal Ferguson in the sleepy West Cork village of Schull (pronounced Skull). I remember the first time I came across it.

 It was about 8 years ago, and I was just settling into life in West Cork and becoming connected with my inner game keeper.  I was all about the Venison!  The only time I had the pleasure of eating it before was during a holiday in the Highlands of Scotland. We stayed in a country house B&B and the lady of the house was the most amazing cook.  We dined there overnight on a feast of the best wild Scottish produce in a tarted clad dining room, waited on by a man wearing a sporran (among other things).  Taxidermy abound with things stuffed in display cases and stag heads on the wall.   I always think of Scotland through that oculus, even though I have a different experience each time I visit.  Those meals in that dining room to me is Scotland in a snapshot.

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