As the seventh year of the World’s Original Marmalade Festival approaches, spare a thought for the judges who will be tasting and evaluating hundreds of jars of marmalade for the Marmalade Awards.
As a WI Preserves Judge, I have been trained to use a scheme with a maximum of 20 marks. The external standard of the jar has two marks. I look for a clear glass jar, sealed with a new twist top lid or a waxed disc and cellophane cover. The jar should be labelled with the name of the marmalade and the date it was made. The internal standard of the jar has 5 marks for colour. It should be even and characteristic of the fruit. A bright colour throughout the jar without discolouration at the top of the jar. There are 6 marks available for the quality (consistency, texture and quantity). For marmalade, I look for a jellified consistency, not stiff and not runny. Set but spreadable with evenly sliced tender peel. No air bubbles or scum. The peel should be evenly sliced, preferably by hand. If the peel has not been cooked sufficiently before the sugar is added, it will be chewy or tough. The jar should be full with a gap of 3mm from the top. 
When potting marmalade, fill the jar to the brim. As it cools and sets, the marmalade will shrink slightly. Finally, 7 marks are available for flavour and aroma. The contents of the jar are smelt to test the aroma. It should be free of taint or mustiness. The flavour should be a balance of the fruit and sugar used in the recipe.
As well as marking each jar, I also like to provide a comment. This will include what is great about the jar of marmalade and what could be improved. I aim to provide constructive comments which will encourage exhibitors to enter a competition the following year. If time is limited, I like to provide general comments about the class as a whole. At Taunton Flower Show last year I had 179 jars to judge in two hours, which meant individual comments were not possible. Judging is a very humbling experience. I always learn something new from a different recipe or the way the jars are presented and labelled. Entering competitions are fraught with anxiety: what will the judge think of my jar, have I cooked the fruit for long enough, is it set or over-set? Therefore, I regularly enter competitions to maintain my standard and remind myself to consider the feelings of the competitor before I put pen to paper.
How do independent booksellers compete with the on-line giants? One way is to stage creative events with other businesses. Sara Bowers from Steyning Bookshop, organised a Marmalade Meal and Talk event on January 26th at The Sussex Produce Company. All 50 tickets were sold for a gourmet and informative evening. It started with a two course meal of Confit duck leg three fruit marmalade with a fricassee of new potatoes, baby carrots, local leeks and celeriac. The dessert, a delicious bread and butter pudding made with artisan croissants, laced with Seville orange marmalade and served with crème anglaise. After the meal Sara asked me a series of questions about the features of award-winning marmalades, how marmalades are judged in competitions and why men are keen on making marmalade. 
Many of the audience had made marmalade and they asked very searching questions about fruit varieties, how to make Kumquat marmalade and why granulated sugar is my preferred choice of sugar in sweet preserves.
The evening ended with a book signing. The following day at Brighton Station I bought some Ave Maria Sevilles- the best organic Sevilles. When I made marmalade from them a few days later, their pectin properties were fantastic. It seems the later deliveries of this variety in January and February make top quality marmalade.
Last month I went to Wells WI as a speaker for the evening with Robert Walster who designed my book, First Preserves. See our review in thisissomerset and wellspeople.
Members of Wells WI started their 2012 programme with the topics of Self-publishing and Design
and how to make award-winning marmalades. Rob Walster, the designer and photographer of First Preserves described the different stages of publishing a book with an amusing and informative presentation highlighting the differences between a book published by a large publisher and an individual. I talked about writing First Preserves and the sharp learning curves I experienced being a writer and a promoter of the book. The audience were full of questions during the final part of the evening when I made Seville orange marmalade, using the recipe from First Preserves.
Residents in Chiswick are making marmalade to enter into a Marmalade Competition during the Bedford Park Festival in June. In 2011 I helped judge the competition and this year I was invited to give a marmalade masterclass. 
This was held in the beautiful hall of St Michael and All Angels Church. 50 adults watched me demonstrate the different stages of making marmalade and were very enthusiastic with their questions and comments. The equipment for the demonstration was provided by Whisk cookshop. They have become a stockist of First Preserves. With the combined sales of tickets and the jars of marmalade made on the night, the organisers raised a significant amount for the Festival’s charities.
Hot on the heels of Carolyn Hart’s review in the Telegraph, Mark Taylor has written a glowing review about First Preserves in the Bristol Evening Post and the Western Daily News.
Event photography by David Beresford
Food news by Carolyn Hart in the Daily Telegraph, 14th January included a prominent review of First Preserves. With examples of the stunning photography by Rob Walster of Big Blu Design, readers are told the book is the source to go to for a beginner. The Seville orange recipe from the book is included. Here is an expanded version of my recipe which makes approx 2.25kg.
Seville Orange Marmalade
675g (1lb 8oz) Seville oranges
1 Lemon
1.4kg (3lb) granulated, cane sugar
3 pints water.
Method
Juice the oranges and pour the juice with the water into a large, lidded pan with a capacity of 7 litres. Remove the inner membranes and pips from the oranges.
Juice the lemon and add the juice to the pan. Put the membranes and the lemon shell into a food processor or mini-chopper and chop finely.
Put the chopped membranes, chopped lemon and pips into a 30cm x 30cm piece of thin cotton muslin. Tie this up with string and add to the pan.
Slice the oranges and add to the pan. If possible, leave the pan overnight to allow the fruit to soak. Next day, bring the lidded pan to boil, turn down the heat and simmer gently for two hours. The peel should be tender. Remove the muslin bag and squeeze it out back into the pan.
Warm the sugar in a low oven. Add the sugar to the pan and dissolve. Bring to a rolling boil and test for a set after 5-7 minutes. Leave to cool for 7 minutes. Pour into sterilised jars and cover with new twist top lids.
In February 2011 during the Marmalade Awards ceremony at Dalemain, a class of children from a local school sang a fun song about marmalade. Standing in the drizzle, listening to the singing gave me the idea for a song about marmalade, sung by adults. I imagined a male barbershop singing about the delights of making marmalade and competing for the Marmalade Awards. Men won four of the Awards in addition to the Man-Made category last year. Lord Henley of Carlisle was declared the overall winner of the Homemade Awards. From my experience, more men are making marmalade, entering competitions and buying my book, First Preserves.
Last summer, Lucy Deakin wrote the lyrics and music for Men into Marmalade. The song was recorded in London in December by a group of five professional singers. Released on December 20th, the song is available to buy as a download at www.cdbaby.com/cd/menintomarmalade.
During 2012 20% of download proceeds will be donated to the Marmalade Awards as a contribution to the charities they support. Be warned-the catchy chorus may take up residence in your head!
Topping in Bath were one of the first booksellers to express an interest in stocking First Preserves. Last Friday they hosted an event to promote the book and my preserves.The evening started with tastings of my marmalade, jam and chutney spread on bread shots using a recipe from Richard Bertinet’s book, Dough. After this unusual ice-breaker, I was asked a series of questions about my passion for preserving, how First Preserves came to be published and the features of award-winning preserves. There were plenty of questions from the audience about equipment, ingredients and recipes. The evening ended with a book-signing. Topping is a book lover’s paradise where you will discover new titles and old ones you thought were out of print. Well worth a visit and the ideal venue for a book launch.
