A Week on the Estate: Swathed Oilseed, Pristine Hall & Cool Visit

Closer to home, when life gives Jacqui Rhodes raspberries, she makes fresh and delicious jam. We can’t wait to see what she does with the Walled Garden’s bumper crop of walnuts when they ripen.

After a lot of hard work from skilled local trades, it’s a joy to see South Ormsby Hall’s interior looking pristine again. The east-facing frontage of South Ormsby Hall dates to the 1750s and was designed in the Palladian style by influential 18th-century architect James Paine. Last year, rot was found on beam ends in the ceiling structure and we embarked on a complex series of repairs which included jacking up the structure, re-attaching beams, adding steel supports, re-securing plasterwork and fully re-decorating several rooms along with other finishing touches. We’re proud to have done our part to preserve this wonderful structure for future generations.

We were thrilled to host the Cool Milk team last week. Pete guided them around South Ormsby Estate in its summer finery and Tristan showed off his award-winning artisan distillery. The free gin samples went down terribly well.

Cool Milk is the UK’s foremost supplier of milk to schools and is dedicated to helping nurseries, schools, parents and local authorities make the most of free and subsidised milk. Cool Milk works hard to realise the health benefits and social opportunities that flow from school and nursery milk. Keep up the excellent work, team!

Finally, last week we asked our country-wise readers to coin a suitable name for South Ormsby Estate’s very first cheese made from Lincoln Red milk. We’ve had an enthusiastic response and a bevy of excellent suggestions. If you’re still working on your ideas, you’ve got until midnight on Friday 15^th July to submit them. You’ll find the relevant post – with rules, ideas and all comments to date – pinned to the top of our Facebook page HERE.

Next week, Mark Vines will get his thinking cap on and try to pick his favourite two suggestions, after which we’ll hold a run-off on Facebook. The winning suggestion will grace our cheese when it goes on sale in spring 2023, and its creator will get a tour of the Massingberd-Mundy Creamery with veteran chef Mark Vines, to include a tasting session and a round of our very first cheese to take home. Good luck!

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