Innholdsfortegnelse for October 2022 i The Field

WITH rising costs and lack of supply fast putting the price per bird beyond many people, it’s been suggested that this season will prompt a rethink of released game shooting. A greater emphasis on wild birds and a move to quality over quantity have been mentioned. Yet, few go so far as to suggest using the current opportunity to put our own house in order. Self-regulation is essential and Aim to Sustain (A2S), with the GWCT as its scientific adviser, is developing the concept, but no one should wait to be told. However successful A2S is at promoting shooting, it will always be held back if there are still bad apples in our community. There is a moral obligation not just to do our best, but to help weed out…

Moorland must be managed if we are to meet the Government’s environmental goals, according to the GWCT. A new scientific review by the organisation concluded that many of the daily activities carried out on grouse moors produce a wide range of public goods, including increasing biodiversity and saving threatened species, mitigating climate change and reducing the risk of wildfire. The study examined work carried out on managed moorland – such as controlled burns, rewetting of peat bogs and predation management – and was analysed in relation to society’s wants and needs, as expressed by goals in the Government’s 25-year Environment Plan. The conclusion was that moorland ecosystems managed for grouse shooting deliver a net gain for society under the specifications outlined by Defra. The likely benefits of alternative land uses,…

BARFRESTONE COURT FARM BARFRESTONE, KENT This is a Grade II-listed 18th-century farmhouse and mostly ring-fenced working farm, with a range of traditional farm buildings around a central courtyard that have potential for conversion, subject to planning. There is a separate working farmyard, and the arable and pastureland extends to around 100 acres. The property is for sale as a whole or in five lots and is 11 miles from Canterbury. Agent: Finn’s Tel: 01304 612147 Guide price: £2.6 million for the whole DUNSBOROUGH PARK RIPLEY, WOKING, SURREY The Park was originally part of nearby Newark Priory. The Grade II-listed Dunsborough House stands in 117 acres of pasture and tree-studded parkland, including oak trees, some of which are over 600 years old. There is also woodland, skirted by the River Wey.…

It is not the oldest fishing club, as many believe. To most people’s great surprise, that honour goes to an American fly-fishing society, the Schuylkill (pronounced ‘skookul’) Fishing Company of Pennsylvania. The club, set up largely by a group of primarily Welsh immigrants in 1732, still flourishes, though its emphasis today is said to be more on fine dining than fishing. But there is no such compromise for the Houghton Fishing Club, which owns the choicest fishing on the River Test, where the water is said to be as clear as gin and twice as expensive. The world’s most famous angling society, it holds around 14 miles of the chalkstream around Stockbridge and celebrates its 200th anniversary this year. Its focus, however, is still entirely on tempting Test trout. And…

Find the perfect cartridge bag and gun slip this season and you’ll have landed yourself a pair of heirloom pieces ready to be passed on to the next sporting generation; trusty companions by your side when you are firing on all cylinders or slinking home with them hung over your shoulder. Here’s our pick of the best to stand the test of time: those with the supplest leather, most satisfying catches and clips, straps that won’t let you down, hidden pockets to make your day on the peg run like clockwork – or those with a little flair to raise a smile on the dreariest of winter days.…

Roll out the four pieces of puff pastry to 2mm thick, 18cm long and 15cm in width and rest in the fridge. Make 4 thin pancakes and place in the fridge. Dice the chicken breast and put in a Robot-Coupe with 2 eggs and any lean hare trimmings. Add 2 tablespoons of Armagnac and blend until smooth, slowly adding the olive oil. Turn out into a stainless-steel bowl and mix in the drained raisins and pistachios. Season with salt and pepper. Roll out cling film on a work surface and put a thin pancake on top. Using a palette knife, spread out some of the blended stuffing evenly on top of the pancake about 2mm thick. Put the hare loin on top and wrap up the package in cling film…

THIS month’s test gun is splendidly different – a Manor & Co 10-bore side-by-side weighing in at 9½lb even with its relatively short 26in barrels. I’ve used the word ‘beast’ to apply to some 12-bores in the past, and it certainly applies here. When you bring the relatively compact, 31/2in-chambered and steelshot-proofed gun up to the shoulder, it requires surprising effort – more than its actual weight (no greater than some 32in 12-bore competition guns) might suggest. The shapes are excellent, though. The large Holland & Holland-style diamond grip is especially good. The balance is on the hinge pin, although this gun might well benefit from longer barrels with a more forward balance. The Manor 10 has been built in Spain within the AyA factory to the specification of Gerald…

With its distinctive flavour, numerous health benefits and ethical and environmental credentials, wild British venison is truly an ingredient to love. Rich and complex, it is delicious served simply, but also works with an exciting variety of bolder flavours as shown in this month’s recipes. The venison Madras is inspired by a British creation that uses the flavours of Chennai, formerly Madras. Slow cooking the meat allows the vibrant spicy notes to develop and combine. My Turkish-style venison steaks are a play on the iskender kebab and balance the earthiness of the meat with tangy yoghurt and melted butter. Packed full of blackberries and eggs, the meatloaf is a fun way to use mince. If you are new to meatloaves, think of them as a cross between a giant meatball…

I MAKE no apologies for featuring two Dacias in quick succession. It’s true that the company rang up and suggested two test cars at once, but we won’t mention that. Instead, let’s point out that the Duster is becoming the leading light in a rapidly diminishing sector of the car market: the sensibly priced mid-sized 4x4. The others have mostly vanished, moving dramatically upmarket with prices now to match, or have been withdrawn from sale. The Duster plods on, as it has for almost a decade. Ten years in which it has escaped major reshapes and redesigns, just tweaks along the way – unlike, say, a Qashqai or a Santa Fe. But what about the USP: the Duster’s no-nonsense specification and price to match? Inevitably, things have become a tad…

The Country Food Trust (CFT) team had a fantastic weekend at The Game Fair, raising a total of £7,500 to go towards the trust’s vital work in providing quality protein-based food that it donates to charities to feed people in food poverty. SJ Hunt, chief executive of the CFT, said: “We were delighted with the support from the public and the donations from fellow exhibitors. We are grateful to The Game Fair for being their chosen charity and the opportunity it gave us to showcase our meals that we donate to help feed people in need.”…

“HE’S beautifully bred.” How often in racing are those words spoken? And what does it actually mean? A wellbred horse typically boasts an excellent pedigree, having been sired by a proven stallion out of an equally impressive mare. Ex-racehorses often embark on a stud career. It’s subsequently hoped that their ability on the track is inherited by their progeny. Whether it be a trademark long stride or an insatiable will to win, time and again we see the characteristics of a stallion or a broodmare carried over by their offspring. As a result, horses at stud can demand huge fees for the privilege of their genetic composition. Naturally, performance in black-type races – particularly Group Ones – is crucial for a horse’s stud career. Aside from the five British Classics,…

QUADZILLA QZ150 2X4 Keep it simple, keep it cheap. Road legal straight out of the box, and comes with just 2wd and one forward range. ■ Engine 147cc petrol ■ Driveline 1f/1r CVT ■ Weight 190kg ■ Towing (braked) 150kg ■ Ground clearance 150mm ■ Price (inc VAT) £2,399 ■ Website quadzillaquads.com CAN-AM OUTLANDER MAX 6X6 Just ignore those killjoys who say you don’t need a six-wheel ATV and invest in one of these monsters from the Canadian maker. ■ Engine 976cc V-twin petrol, 80hp ■ Driveline 2f/1r CVT, 4wd and 6wd ■ Weight 574kg ■ Towing (braked) 907kg ■ Ground clearance 279mm ■ Price (ex VAT) £16,715 ■ Website can-am.brp.com KYMCO MXU 700I EPS A left field choice from this Taiwanese company that split from Honda many years ago.…

Partridge pie Place the partridge legs, carrots, garlic cloves, shallots, bay leaves and thyme in an oven-proof dish and cover in the duck fat. Cook at 110°C/gas mark ¼ for 3 hours or until soft. Remove from the oven. Shred the partridge, purée the carrots and garlic and place in a mixing bowl. Strain the duck fat and keep in the fridge. Add the remaining ingredients to the bowl, mix well and season to taste. Encase in an all-butter puff pastry case and brush with an egg wash. Set in the fridge and trim. Remove from fridge and bake at 190°C/gas mark 5 for about 12 minutes. Golden raisins and kimchi purée ▸ Add the raisins to a pan with the apple juice, cider and cider vinegar and gently cook…

Dracula thoroughly deserves to be the best-known work in the canon of vampire literature, but there are several other tales that are well worth investigating. Christabel isn’t a novel, but a narrative poem written by Samuel Taylor Coleridge. This was never finished, but can lay claim to being one of the most influential pieces in the canon. The eponymous heroine is seduced by a mysterious, supernatural being called Geraldine, who denies prayers, causes smouldering flames to reignite, and sleeping dogs to howl. When they spend the night together, Christabel notices a horrible mark when she undresses. John William Polidori was Lord Byron’s doctor. While the poet was famously described as “mad, bad and dangerous to know” by his former lover, Lady Caroline Lamb, there was little suggestion that he preyed…

NOW that the grass has turned brown and the flowers are wilting, I have finally got around to thinking about ‘gardens’ as a topic for this column. Doubtless like most of you, I love looking out on manicured lawns and beautiful flower beds but – probably unlike most of you – I have zero interest in gardening. Not for me that zen state of mind that so many chums tell me they enter as they pootle up and down on their sit-on mowers, safely removed from all those lists of things their nearest and dearest have lined up for them when they return to the house. Time better spent writing, says I, or, far better still, by the river, irritating fish. “The little Fergie 35 is still ‘out there’ and…

LOUISA GAMES TABLE ALEXANDRA LLEWELLYN A bespoke games table with Alexandra Llewellyn’s magnificent style will keep the TV off even as the nights draw in. Handmade in Britain, the Louisa table converts from a discreetly elegant console table to a baize surface for cards, to a chessboard, to backgammon. Choose from a range of jewel-like pieces and semi-precious counters and make it personal with initials. Price: from £32,000 Email: info@alexandrallewellyn.com alexandrallewellyn.com COMPTON WALLPAPER CORNUBIA, BEN PENTREATH FOR MORRIS & CO This archive print was originally designed by John Henry Dearle in 1895 for Compton Hall in Wolverhampton. It has been given a joyful new lease of life by Pentreath’s characteristic knack for colour. The indigo, daffodil yellow, poppy red and sunset orange bridge seasons and styles. “Maybe intentional, maybe accidental,…

SIX OF THE BEST SUPERMARKET WINES SAINSBURY’S MOSCATEL DE VALENCIA (£5.35, Sainsbury’s) I never tire of recommending this delectably sweet, grapey, orangey, lightly fortified gem. Enjoy well chilled. 2019 SPECIALLY SELECTED CRÉMANT DU JURA (£8.49, Aldi) Crisp, honeyed, 100% Chardonnay traditional-method fizz. Who needs champagne? 2021 MORRISONS THE BEST ALSACE GEWÜRZTRAMINER (£9, Morrisons) A spicy and lychee-laden Gewürz that starts sweet and finishes dry and delights all the way. 2019 NOTRE DAME DES ANGES COLLIOURE (£10.99, Lidl) From Roussillon, a dense, richly flavoured red with herbs, spice and berry fruit. A steal. 2020 STELLENRUST STELLENBOSCH MANOR BARREL-FERMENTED CHENIN BLANC (£14, Tesco) With confit lemon, cream, honey and brioche in the mix, this is a beauty. 2018 CVNE RIOJA RESERVA (£15.80, Waitrose). With warming, juicy ripe red fruit, this is textbook…

A quick email exchange has cast doubt over claims made in The Observer newspaper that The Ritz has taken grouse off its menu “in a victory for environmental campaigners”. The Countryside Alliance has received confirmation from The Ritz directly, which stated: “Yorkshire grouse is on the menu in The Ritz restaurant and has been since 12 August.” The article, which was printed in The Observer and published online on 20 August, claimed that “those hoping to eat the tiny gamebird in the gilded Ritz dining room in London will be out of luck this year, as the world-famous hotel has quietly removed it from the menu after an outcry from environmental campaigners”. It was widely shared across social media, with League Against Cruel Sports chief Andy Knott among those applauding…

Anglers look set to return to the Attenborough Nature Reserve following talks between fishing groups and the Nottinghamshire Wildlife Trust (NWT). Earlier this year, it was reported that the Nottingham Anglers Association had had its licence withdrawn after negotiations with the trust broke down. Renowned angler and Countryside Alliance spokesman Charles Jardine hit out at the time, saying: “It is essential that no unnecessary restrictions are brought in which could impede the ability of people to take part in this important activity. Doing so could prove a determent to river-based conservation work, rather than aid it.” Now, after discussions with groups, including the Angling Trust, anglers could return by June 2023. The exact details of where and how fishing can take place are yet to be decided. Tim Bonner, chief…

STAR BUY Set in the South Downs National Park, this Hampshire estate includes an eight-bedroom country house, four let cottages, a period barn and 569 acres. There is also a range of Victorian agricultural buildings, with planning permission for conversion into four residential properties. One of the farm buildings has been used for weddings and events, another as a large shoot room. The farmland is predominantly arable, with pockets of woodland and pasture. The main house, dating back to the mid-Victorian era, was extended in the 1950s. There is a kitchen garden with a south-facing wall, while the main garden sweeps round the house. The property also has a swimming pool and tennis court, both of which need to be restored. Agent: Savills Tel: 01962 857441 Guide price: £12.5 million…

+ Receive The Field’s bumper Christmas issue† + Home delivery Three easy ways to subscribe ▸ Online thefieldsubs.co.uk/A87C ▸ Telephone 0330 333 1113 Quote code A87C Lines open Monday to Friday, 8:30am-7pm and Saturdays 10am-3pm (excluding Bank Holidays) ▸ Post Complete the FREEPOST coupon (right) THE DIRECT DEBIT GUARANTEE This guarantee is offered by all banks and building societies that accept instructions to pay direct debits. If there are any changes to the amount, date or frequency of your direct debit, Magazines Direct will notify you three working days in advance of your account being debited or as otherwise agreed. If you request Magazines Direct to collect a payment, confirmation of the amount and date will be given to you at the time of the request. If an error is made…

Without doubt, I have an inner peacock and quite often things catch my eye and become part of my dressing-up box; the Liberty silk dressing gown from an Oxford second-hand shop or the velvet smoking hat and jacket that drew much mickey-taking from my children. And next on my list is the Norfolk jacket. This shooting classic is different, harking back to an era of mutton-chop whiskers, hammerguns, duelling with bad guys on staircases and so on. It has a whiff of grandeur to it, too. But this was not what first attracted me to the Norfolk jacket. The single feature that caught my attention was in fact a space where the breast pocket would be. I shoot from my left shoulder, you see, and as fellow lefties will know,…

It seems hard to believe that there was a time when the countryside ran without either an ATV or a UTV. But it’s true. Not many years ago, no one had heard of such a thing. The countryside didn’t run terribly well, of course, as the vehicle of choice for keepers and farmers was usually a beaten-up Land Rover – and these were the days when the Land Rover range consisted of a ‘Land Rover’ and nothing else. In my childhood on this farm, back when the estate was privately owned, there was a keeper whose daily route round the farm and woods could be followed using the ruts he left in his barely roadworthy 109. There were a couple of things we didn’t realise as we sat and watched…

Gadgets and gizmos have long been a source of great excitement to the sporting man or boy. Whether it is a covetous look at a friend’s brand-new toy or a raw desire to channel James Bond wielding his latest set of dart-ejecting pens from Q, we have rounded up the best boys’ toys for the true fieldsports enthusiast to make any neighbouring sportsman green with envy. DRIVING TO THE PEG OVERFINCH HERITAGE FIELD EDITION RANGE ROVER The Overfinch Heritage Field Edition Range Rover is inspired by British country pursuits. The base vehicle is a 1993 Range Rover LSE, revamped to showcase a tan leather interior with knurled brightwork. The leather refurbishment elevates the original seats with a modern, luxurious feel. This edition features a handcrafted gun and drinks cabinet. Featuring…

Richard Gladwin loves squirrel. “If you haven’t tried it, you should,” he says, declaring it delicious spatchcocked and barbecued but even better skinned, cured, confit and used as a filling for a delicate tortellini poached with wild mushrooms, cobnuts and nettle pesto. We might think of it as traditional fare but game and wild food – in all its guises – is having a moment. From Skye to Soho, it is being hailed by a new generation of foodies and restaurateurs, while game’s established champions now have even more reason to shout about its merits. Gladwin, with his two brothers, has six London-based restaurants, each celebrating the English countryside, with “local and wild” as their tagline. The brothers grew up on a West Sussex farm and thrive on being part…

At the mere mention of vampires, one’s mind invariably leaps first to Dracula, and then to tawdry 20th-century softcore cinema, where bloodsucking, sex and poor prosthetics have been remorselessly mined for cheap thrills for decades. While Dracula and vampires may be synonymous in popular imagination, the Count was far from being the original vampire. Quite the contrary: Dracula was perhaps the apotheosis of literary vampires. But the folkloric history of vampires goes much further back than Bram Stoker’s masterpiece – for millennia in fact: beyond 19th-century Gothic literature; beyond 18th-century vampire hysteria; beyond the revenant folklore of the Middle Ages; right back to the mythologies of almost all ancient civilisations. Vampiric creatures were present in almost every ancient mythology throughout Europe, the Americas, Africa and Asia (with Japan being one…

BEFORE Samuel Colt’s revolution in handgun design in the 1840s, revolving guns were uncommon but by no means non-existent. Indeed some date as far back as the early 17th century. The collection of the Royal Armouries holds a pair of revolvers that serve as an excellent example of the pre-Colt style. Dating to 1835, shortly before Colt’s first venture with the Paterson, these pistols lack the ratchet-and-arm cylinder mechanism that proved central to later designs. Instead they must be fully cocked, at which point the cylinder may be pushed rearward under spring pressure and rotated by hand. A removable decorative plate in front of the cylinder prevents loaded bullets and powder from falling out. This magnificent pair of revolvers comes from the hands of Henri Le Page, the third of…

THERE are some reasons to turn left when you get to Glasgow, and eschew the well-trodden A9 north. Keep driving west, skirt Loch Fyne and keep the coast in sight, up and over the old bridge at Inveraray, and you finally reach a corner of Argyllshire that can lay claim to being one of the most ancient in the country. Kirnan Estate, which sits in Kilmichael Glassary by Kilmartin Glen, is enough to turn the best-pleased slightly green-eyed. Originally a Victorian shooting lodge, this 400-acre Scottish estate boasts its own stretch of the River Add, two hill lochs, walked-up shooting and stalking, a stone’s throw from the rugged Argyll coastline and five minutes from Dunadd, where ancient Scottish kings were crowned. It is brimming with sport and history, and suffused…