Innehållsförteckning för January 2018 från The Field

SALMON CHAMPION REMEMBERED The life and work of Orri Vigfússon, who died in July aged 74, is being celebrated at Fishmonger’s Hall in London on 23 January. Vigfusson campaigned tirelessly to save the wild Atlantic salmon and was the founder and chairman of the North Atlantic Salmon Fund (NASF). Anyone wishing to attend should contact Edwina Ord-Hume at support@frontierstrvl.co.uk DICK POTTS LEGACY FUND Innovative farmland ecology projects set up by farmers, keepers or young ecologists are being sought by the Dick Potts Legacy Fund. Projects should “be well thought out and address a recognised problem in conservation”, said the GWCT’s Dr Julie Ewald. Applicants for the first round of grants should send in an overview of their project, in less that 2,500 words, by 19 January to dickpottsfund@gwct.org.uk NEW MASTER…

MOST VIEWED Top traditional kit In the October issue, we asked if kit should follow trend or tradition (the latter, Fielders agreed). Our gumboots and gilet round-ups proved controversial: “Spend your money on a good bed and good shoes, because if you’re not in one you’re in the other,” advised one Fielder. Le Chameau and Muck Boot devotees tussled and not all don Schöffel. “It takes one Jack Pyke and two Schöffels to stop a Sherman,” joked one follower. #THEFIELDMAGAZINE One pot pheasant Keep those game suppers coming. Fielders have been sharing cooking tips while we suggest the best recipes. One suggested wrapping roast pheasant in Parma ham and the Deputy Editor’s batch of pheasant “revithia” (October issue), was met with envy. We were delighted to see an old favourite…

THE third Field Hip-flask Championships resulted in a generous number of concoctions arriving at HQ from our readers, excellent sorts who know the best bevvie is home brewed. Nick Radclyffe from Foxdenton joined Editor Jonathan Young to sort the luscious from the lethal, while Deputy Editor Alexandra Henton helped rank the finalists. All were slurped for scoring. The unanimous “off-piste” winner was a traditional entrant, moved for its festive flavour. Ray Crace’s spicy greengage gin impressed with a “very beautiful colour”, however, the addition of cinnamon and clove saw the judges replace “spicy” with “Christmas” to make it eligible for off-piste. And, indeed, the 2016 brew was concocted “for the Christmas shoot hip flask”. For the traditional category, we expected a sea of sloe gin but received more creative interpretations.…

“When the bag reached double figures there was a popping of Cokes, unzipping of Kit Kats” LIKE most of my nears and dears, I love a bit of rough. One of my happiest “grouse” days opened with a right-and-left at corvids, followed by a 15-mile yomp during which we shot 9½ brace of Lagopus scoticus but also hares, snipe, hill partridges and an extremely cross pheasant. Lunch was a ham bap and a Twix, eaten in the lee of a stone wall with a league of ling and peat below us. Later in the season, when the song thrush trills his lullaby at 4.30pm, three of us hold our annual Norfolk maraud with wind and moon planning everything except the Cromer oysters and sausage rolls at half time. Last time…

 In the course of a lifetime’s fishing, inevitably, there are many gloriously incidents that have contributed to one’s appreciation of the vagaries of human nature. One would need a book to relate them all but the following episodes linger especially in the memory. “‘When he appears, ask his permission to fish and quickly stuff £10 into his top pocket’” THE GRIMERSTA There hadn’t been any rain for weeks. My old friend, Hugh Falkus, and I had arrived at The Grimersta on the Wednesday evening and looked in horror at the river, which was a meagre trickle. However, we were lucky because that night it poured down and continued to do so for two days, during which the river was unfishable and the colour of a newly ploughed field. The salmon,…

In 1965, you could have purchased a Rolls-Royce Silver Shadow for its introductory price of £6,557. Also available that year was an Aston Martin DB5 Saloon for £4,175 or a Jaguar E-Type Fixed Head Coupe for £1,896. It should come as no surprise that the Rolls-Royce cost most. It was widely regarded as the finest motor car in the world. Fast forward more than half a century and a very different picture emerges. An excellent, original Aston Martin DB5 will now set you back approaching £1 million, due to its starring role in the Bond films. A factory restored 1965 E-Type Jaguar Coupe was recently offered by the Jaguar Reborn initiative for £285,000. An excellent, original Rolls-Royce Silver Shadow or the Bentley T-Series version (the same car save for the…

This pair of snowy owls by John James Audubon, painted in the far north of America, displays his customary minute attention to detail. Trained by the painter Jacques-Louis David and already passionately interested in natural history, Audubon fled conscription into Napoleon’s armies and settled in the United States. There he led a wandering life as a hunter, ornithologist and painter. Edited extract from Animal: A Beastly Compendium by Rémi Mathis and Valérie Sueur-Hermel. Published by Bloomsbury Visual Arts. RRP: £30. Treasures from the prints and photographs department at the Bibliotheque Nationale de France…

2014 NEROFINO ROSSO VIGNETI DELLE DOLOMITI (£9.50, Wine Society) From the Italian Dolomites: structured, with zip and dark fruit juiciness. 2016 LANZERAC SAUVIGNON BLANC (£12, Quaff) Toby’s choice: Saffa Sauvignon that walks the tightrope between Old World and New. 2015 ROCCHE COSTAMAGNA BARBERA D’ALBA (£13.75, Private Cellar) A gloriously concentrated, soft, smooth ’n’ silky red from Italy’s Piedmont. 2013 MONTELECCIO IGT CASTELLO DI ARGIANO SESTI (£14, Goedhuis & Co) A ridiculously drinkable, 100% Sangiovese from the Sesti family in Brunello. 2014 POGGERINO CHIANTI CLASSICO (£17.50, Lea & Sandeman) Stupendous stuff, the wine Charles Lea drinks at home. 2014 DOMAINE RICHEAUME “CUVÉE TRADITION” (£19.50, Yapp Bros) Jason Yapp’s sun-kissed, black-fruited, organic, herbal, Provençal favourite.…

INKSPIRED Now is the time to write thank-you notes for Christmas presents, house parties and Boxing Day shoots, so when better to divert oneself with the fascinating, ink-stained world of calligraphy? As someone who buys specific ink for festive missives, changes ink colour throughout the year depending on the season and carries a fountain pen at all times, I can’t expect the biro-wielding masses to be thrilled by Betty Soldi’s elaborate and instructive book. However, for those who relish writing a well-penned note, Soldi’s vibrant, how-to manual will offer an insight into your own writing and encourage creativity with the pen, too. Nine chapters introduce Soldi and her skills, teach the budding calligrapher and nurture the more creative. Anything that puts pen in hand is to be seized upon in…

“The Media Queen insisted that my life, though full of sheep, was soulless and devoid of warmth without dogs and music” THERE has been a change of tone for 2018 in the Howard household. Just before Christmas we had an existential crisis, which culminated in the Media Queen having to give away her beloved Spotty dogs. The cause of this calamity was that one of her neighbour’s sheep perished at the hands, or, to be more specific, the teeth of the Spots. A great shame, as despite their murderous tendencies they were attractive and loving, albeit psychotic, dogs. This led to a considerable amount of soul searching, recrimination and angst, particularly in my direction. My life at Naworth, she insisted, though full of sheep, was currently soulless and devoid of…

3-5 Oxford Farming Conference Oxford University. Theme: “Embracing Change”. To book tickets, go to: www.ofc.org.uk 4-7 The Mayfair Antiques & Fine Art Fair The London Marriott Hotel, Grosvenor Square, London W1. www.mayfairfair.com 7 Larkhill Racing Club Point-to-Point Larkhill, Wiltshire. Tel: 07789544498. 7 West Percy Hunt Point-to-Point Ratcheugh Farm, Alnwick, Northumberland. First race 12.30pm. Tel: 07748986394; www.alnwickraces.co.uk 8-9 Cocker Spaniel Championship Sandringham Estate, Norfolk. Tel 020 7518 1059; www.thekennelclub.org.uk 10-14 London Boat Show, ExCel, London E16. Tel: 0844 776 7766; www.londonboatshow.com 11-20 River Helmsdale Opening Ceremony Opening on 11th then 10 days’ free fishing. Permits issued from the Belgrave Hotel, Helmsdale. Tel 01431 821242. 15 Tay Opening Ceremony The Kenmore Hotel, Kenmore, Perthshire. Tel 01887 830205; www.kenmorehotel.com 20 Barbury International Racing Club Point-to-Point, Barbury Racecourse, Marlborough, Wiltshire. First race 11.30am. Tel:…

MORE VARIETY I read a report on an exciting day’s pheasant shooting by a skilled team of experienced shots, where it was reported that, during at least one drive, the ratio was 11:1 (Adding meteors to a mixed bag at Duncombe Park, October issue). No doubt the guns had suitable equipment but even so I consider that such figures must lead to a large number of birds being “pricked”. I therefore wonder if the current fashion of ever higher birds is going too far? Hasn’t the time come for organisers to aim to produce a wider variety of birds rather than just concentrating on extra height? George West, Stratford-on-Avon, Warwickshire SCOTTISH SPORT AT RISK In the spring of 1992, the North Lochinver estate, covering 21,300 acres and running from Achmelvich…

 HAVE you ever stood at the edge of a lake trying to pluck up the courage to jump in? Looking at the inky water, toes temptingly close, knees twitching, thinking, “I want to get in. I want to flip and wiggle about in there like a slippery merperson, splashing with wild, fishy abandon. I want to, I really do, but if I jump in that lake I’m going to freeze my damn nads off and really here just on the edge of the lake looking at the lovely inky water is quite nice and dry.” So you shuffle away, put your clothes back on and tell yourself you are pleased you’re nice and dry but, inwardly, you curse yourself for being a grade A wuss. “Excellent! If you’re going to…

Westminster Abbey is the great “parish church of the nation” and next year the Dean and Chapter will unveil new exhibition galleries – The Queen’s Diamond Jubilee Galleries – in the ancient eastern “triforium”, a sequence of spaces 70 feet above ground level. The five-year project will have cost just under £23 million and represents one of the most ambitious transformations of a building of such iconic status in modern times. The last such major intervention to the mostly 13th-century Abbey was finished in 1745, when Nicholas Hawksmoor completed the two western towers, so subtly handled that many people think they are medieval. The generous Gothic volumes of the triforium – dramatically spliced through with stout timbers introduced by Christopher Wren to support his reworking of the old Gothic pitched…

HOT FOOD BETWEEN DRIVES Q In the November issue, a reader asked for advice on keeping pies hot for guns and guests on shoot days. Here are a couple of further suggestions from fellow readers. MA/CW, by email A How about investing in Army-style hot boxes, which were used by quartermasters to deliver hot scran to recruits while in remote parts of the training area on exercise? The food always remained hot, apparently something of a miracle in Army catering circles. Type “Army hot boxes” into a browser online to find suppliers. Alternatively, The Wonderbag is a highly insulated slow cooker that works with the heat of the food and will cook or keep food hot for up to 12 hours. One reader has used this for various stews, which…

1 CAMO WINTER STOLE TROY LONDON Lambswool (75%) and angora (25%) mix in burnt red or navy camo print to ward off winter chills. Made in Scotland. • Price £235 • Tel 020 3457 8549 • www.troylondon.com 2 PRINCE’S COUNTRYSIDE FUND BR2 JACKET MUSTO Waterproof and breathable double-layer fabric protects against downpours, with drawstring waist and detachable hood. In green or navy. A 5% royalty from each sale goes to the Fund. • Price £225 • Tel 01268 495824 • www.musto.com 3 “1918” CHRONOMETER BREMONT Limited-edition automatic chronometer featuring material from four RAF aircraft that flew in the First and Second World Wars. The am/pm indicator shows historic battle scenes. • Price from £8,495 (stainless steel) • Tel 08450 940690 • www.bremont.com 4 WYVILL TWEED DRESS COAT PURDEY Dark heather muted tweed check provides elegant, mid-calf-length warmth during winter…

THERE is a whiff of nostalgia in the choice of property types this month – a few classical Georgian beauties and houses with woodland to channel your inner Christopher Robin. We all love a bit of Regency symmetry, the pediments of the Queen Anne period or timber beams groaning as if Henry VIII himself was sitting on them. But if those talking up housing’s very own “industrial revolution” are to be believed, tomorrow’s homes will come from a factory, having been built by a robot, and these modular machines will chainsaw their way through woodland as pressure to build forces a loosening of the Green Belt. Modern housebuilders often try to hijack heritage with their marketing. There’s nothing like calling your homes on the outskirts of Basingstoke mock-Tudor or neo-Georgian…

At this time of year, cooks around the country are buying up bitter Seville oranges during their short season in our stores and reaching for family recipes to make marmalade. How did this iconic British food come to be part of our national life, whether for breakfast toast or in childhood stories of Paddington Bear with his marmalade sandwiches? And what is its future as well as its past? Like tea, this traditional preserve reveals us to be a trading nation that has long imported ideas and ingredients from around the globe to brighten diets and cheer the soul. Seville oranges, the most famous ingredient of marmalade, are still grown today in Southern Spain specifically for the British market. The fragrant waft of the orange blossom fills the streets and…

RIGHT, I’m going to come clean, hold my hands up; on 26 October I had a sudden rush of blood to the head – and, given that’s three clichés in one sentence, you can begin to imagine the guilt levels I am experiencing – and came home with a complete suit of Japanese Edo 17th/18th-century armour, as one does on a dreary Thursday in late October when no one has thought to ask you shooting and you are itching for a bit of sport – a sugar rush of living dangerously – especially on returning home. Ever tried hiding a full suit of gold-lacquered armour from your beloved? Even in your office? Take it from me, don’t even try. Oh, and while I am in a confessional mood, also packed…

WHAT if you were forced to drink the wines of just one country? There I was, sharing a glass or so of scrumptious Franciacorta with my chum Laura Taylor of Private Cellar, the independent wine merchant. I adore Franciacorta, a traditional-method sparkler produced along the southern banks of Lake Iseo in Lombardy, between Bergamo and Brescia. As we hoovered up the bubbles, we agreed that if there’s one sparkling wine snapping at the heels of champagne, then this is it. Well, this and English fizz, the best examples of which are world beaters these days and no mistake. The key is that it’s warmer in Franciacorta than Champagne, which means riper grapes. Cooling breezes off Lake Iseo and the surrounding mountains give freshness and perfume and the grapes boast higher…