Fields of gold
Brian Eyers revives a lost tradition, growing the world’s most expensive spice on slopes above the sea in Cornwall’s Roseland Peninsula
Somewhere in a field in Cornwall, an industry not seen in the county since the 19th century is being revived. In Rosevine, two miles north of Portscatho, Brian Eyers surveys his windblown acreage. “We are modern-day crocurs,” he says, using the historic name for crocus growers.
Brian, aged 60, and his wife Margaret, 57, began growing saffron in April 2015, having identified it as a niche crop. “I was going to be a small producer so I needed to do something that was a bit different,” says Brian, who moved to Cornwall from Surrey aged 19. He worked in the gardens and commercial department at the Tregothnan estate near Truro for 32 years, until his sudden redundancy in 2014.
The couple, who have five grown-up children and a foster son, lived on the estate and were
“Between 180 and 200 flowers are needed to produce just one gram of saffron”
forced to find a new home as well as new employment for Brian. But an opportunity arose when they stumbled across a bungalow available for rent in Rosevine, a six-minute walk through the fields from the sea, with the option of 11 acres of land at the back.
“We knew the area well and we loved it,” says Margaret, who was born in Lanivet, near Bodmin, and works part-time taking milk recordings at farms, as well as looking after the couple’s five young grandchildren and assisting with the saffron business. “We used to fish and swim at Porthcurnick Beach and we have always liked Portscatho.”
The couple took on about half an acre to start with and Brian quickly set about preparing the ground for growing. “It was a lot of work; we had to fence it, plough it and rake it, and I collected and added lots of seaweed to get the soil in good condition.” Cornwall’s high level of rainfall means conditions aren’t ideal for producing saffron, despite historic records of saffron fields near Bude, Fowey, Feock and Gerrans. The last recorded saffron field in Cornwall, in Penryn, was sold at the end of the 19th century. But Brian has used his expertise to counter the Cornish elements. “It’s actually very well-drained soil here and I have been able to enhance that.”
CROCUSES, CORNWALL AND CAKE
Saffron, famous for being literally worth its weight in gold, comes from the plant Crocus sativus, which is indigenous to south-west Asia. Saffron is the dried stigma of the crocus, its vivid crimson threads contrasting dramatically with the lilac petals.
Today, it is commonly used to flavour classic Mediterranean dishes, such as Spanish paella and French bouillabaisse. But for centuries – some believe as early as 400 BC – it has been a staple of Cornish cookery, too, in the form of saffron cake and buns. In the 1800s, the buns (also known as ‘tea treat buns’) came to form a cornerstone of the Sunday School outings organised by the Methodist chapel in villages across Cornwall. Some say this classic bake – still widely sold across the county – probably reflects Cornwall’s long trading history of exchanging copper and tin for goods
including exotic, aromatic saffron, first with the ancient Phoenicians and later with the Spanish. This trade led English farmers to grow saffron themselves, resulting in an industry that boomed during the 16th and 17th centuries (see ‘Saffron’s history’, p64).
BUILDING TO A BUMPER HARVEST
Brian began by planting 5,000 bulbs (known as corms), which didn’t prosper, but he knew from experience that the bulbs were at fault. “They weren’t big enough, but having carried out lots of research, I was confident enough to take a gamble.” He bought another 1,000 bulbs, this time direct from a supplier based in the Netherlands.
Brian’s hunch proved right. “The difference was phenomenal. We got as many flowers from 1,000 bulbs as we did from 5,000.” In 2016, the couple planted 6,000 more bulbs and this year, having doubled the size of the plot, a further 5,000. The bulbs divide in the ground just as daffodils do and Brian estimates there are now about 35,000 blooms. “As they get bigger they also produce more flowers.”
But it takes a lot of flowers to produce saffron on a commercial scale, even as a small producer. Between 180 and 200 flowers are needed to produce just one gram of saffron, which is how the couple’s Cornish Saffron Company packages and sells its product, retailing at £40. It might be equal to the price of gold, but the labour-intensive production process, which is all carried out by hand due to the delicate nature of the product, explains the price tag. Bulbs are planted in late July, a process Margaret says took three days this year, even with the help of daughter-in-law, Rebecca, whom they employ occasionally.
The crocuses flower in early October and Brian, Margaret and Rebecca pick the flowers as soon as they bloom. Brian will then sit at the dining-room table to pluck out each stigma with tweezers held in his steady gloved hands.
“This part is crucial and can really impact on the quality of the saffron,” he explains. “At the base of the stigma, where it joins the flower, it is white for about a quarter of an inch and you need to pluck above this, otherwise you get less for your money.”
Once the stigmas have been removed, they are laid on Perspex trays and dried in a dehydrator for four or five hours. After that, the saffron is put into airtight jars and left in a dark cupboard for a month to mature, preventing any risk of bleaching from light exposure. From December onwards, the saffron goes on sale.
A SIP OF SAFFRON
The couple sell to high-end restaurants and hotels, such as the nearby Driftwood Hotel, which boasts a Michelin-star restaurant. “Provenance is so important these days and chefs want a real Cornish product that is locally grown,” says Brian.
Another happy customer is Tarquin Leadbetter, founder of Southwestern Distillery in Wadebridge in Cornwall, which produces Tarquin’s Gin. “I had been thinking about ways to enhance the value of the crop because, although it’s expensive, you don’t make a lot of money on it due to the labour required,” says Brian, who contacted Tarquin to moot the idea of a saffron-infused gin.
The meeting proved fruitful and Tarquin bought nearly all of Brian’s saffron crop to launch a new product. In February 2017, 2,000 bottles of Tarquin’s Cornish Crocus Gin were produced, and had almost sold out within a month. “It’s lovely in summer and winter, and the saffron adds a real depth of flavour,” says Brian. “I like it just with tonic, but some pubs serve it with a slice of pink grapefruit.”
This year, Tarquin has requested twice as much saffron and his Cornish Crocus Gin will go on sale in time for Valentine’s Day.
Brian and Margaret hope they will be able to employ an apprentice in future, as the business expands to supply more hotels and restaurants. “It would be such a shame not to transfer Brian’s immense knowledge and skill base to someone, and to ensure the saffron industry continues,” says Margaret.