Best Possible Taste With Sharon Noonan

This episode of Best Possible Taste is produced by Sharon Noonan with guest presenter Declan Maxwell. It focuses on Taste of Dublin which takes place in the capital’s Iveagh Gardens from Thursday 15 June – Sunday 18 June 2017. Declan talks to Taste of Dublin Festival Director, Avril Bannerton, about the 2017 programme and gets an insight into behind the scenes. Ian Murray explains why Bank of Ireland supports Taste of Dublin with its “Producers’ Row” competition. Award winning executive pastry chef, Aoife Noonan, discusses her Taste of Dublin demo and Rebecca Bell from Teeling Distillery joins Declan to talk about Ireland's leading independent whiskey producer. For more details about Taste of Dublin, visit www.tasteofdublin.ie The Best Possible Taste is sponsored by TheTaste.ie , voted Ireland’s best on line digital food and drink magazine.

This is a second helpings episode of Best Possible Taste when you get a chance to hear previously aired interviews including the time that Sharon Noonan visited the award winning MacNean House in Co Cavan and met chef/owner Neven Maguire. There's a reminder of the perfect summer wines with Ron Forrestal from Forrestal Wine Merchants and Sarah Evans describes wonderful tour of Limerick city by horse and carriage.

Bloom in the Park takes place in Dublin’s Phoenix Park from Thursday 1 June until Monday 5 June. Mike Neary, Bord Bia Horticulture Manager, provides an insight into this year’s programme and what goes on behind the scenes. Rosemarie Bennis from Sonas Healthfood Shop has advice about how to nourish your skin for the summer sun. Sharon Noonan meets Gillian Nelis, Managing Editor of the Sunday Business Post and one of Ireland’s top food journalists.

Ron Forrestal from Forrestal Wine Merchants joins Sharon Noonan in studio to share his summer wine recommendations. During a visit to Adare, Co Limerick, Sharon talks to Ciara Brennan at the Friday market about her vegan food business, Happy Food at Home and calls to the Dunraven Arms Hotel to congratulate Hugh Murphy on the hotel’s Irish Restaurant Awards’ win for best service. And at the end of the show Theresa Storey from the Green Apron and Limerick Food Group shares details about how to get involved in the Pigtown Festival taking place in Limerick City & County this autumn.

This episode of Best Possible Taste is guest presented by Birgitta Hedin Curtin in Lisdoovarna, Co Clare. It focuses on the culinary attributes of the Burren and Birgitta talks to: Ciara O Halloran, Red Bank Food Company Kieran O Halloran, Kieran’s Kitchen Neil Hawes, Burren Butcher And Peter Curtin, Burren Brewery. The Burren Slow Food Festival takes place 12-14 May 2017. Visit www.slowfoodclare.com for more details.

Sharon meets Patricia O Sullivan who is heading up the Limerick Food Development Strategy. She enjoys a visit to the idyllic Jay farm to talk to Jean McCormack. Caroline Gray provides a preview of the Easyfood May issue by Skype and a report from Food 4 Thought includes interviews with Greta Herbs, Victoria Foley, Cordal Goats Cheese and Dingle Sushi.

Sharon Noonan visits Sonas Healthfood Shop in the heart of Newcastle West to talk to Rosemarie Bennis about spring cleaning the body. Congratulations go out to Keith Mahon from the Taste.ie on being the number 1 food/drink journalist in Ireland by the #MurrayTweetIndex and Keith has details about a competition with BMW to win a year of FREE dining! Stephen Cunneen provides an insight into his craft beer business, Treaty City Brewery, ahead of the Bank of Ireland Food Series event on Wednesday 26 April which focuses on the growing sector of Irish craft breweries and distilleries. Laura Ryan, Head of Communications and Marketing at Limerick City & County Council, has all the details about the Riverfest programme of events taking place over the bank holiday weekend.

Cathy Curran from the National Dairy Council is on Skype with details about the #CheeseUpYourLife competition where the lucky winners will enjoy a trip to Tuscany. There's another chance to hear about the Food 4 Thought event taking place on Wednesday 26 April 2017 at IT Tralee, Co Kerry.

In this episode of Best Possible Taste, wine expert Ron Forrestal of Forrestal Wine Merchants, joins Sharon in the studio to discuss wines from Italy. Trevis L Gleason stops off in Newcastle West for a coffee and talk about his memoir, Chef Interrupted. In Limerick, John Doyle from the Bank of Ireland, reveals details about the new #BOIFoodSeries that will takes place in the BOI Workbench over the coming months.

In this Best Possible Taste podcast Sharon Noonan meets Artie Clifford, founder and chair of the Blas na hEireann, at the Bank of Ireland Food Series, to talk about the 2017 Irish Food Awards. She travels to Limerick to find out from Sarah Evans how visitors to the city can enjoy a tour by horse and carriage. And a call by Skype to the Brian McLernon at the recently refurbished Manor House on Rathlin Island reveals what attracts visitors to the island.

Sharon Noonan travels to Derry City for the Legenderry Food Festival and talks to: Julie & Kevin Hickey, Tamnagh Foods Ian Orr, Browns' Restaurants Melanie Harty, Harty's Hot Jellies Thomas Hughes, Lisnamulligan Farm Barry O Brien, Ballyriff Buffalo Siobhan Reilly, the Giddy Box

Sharon Noonan travels to IT Tralee to talk about food photography with Siobhan Murphy and the Food 4 Thought event taking place on 26 April with TJ O Connor. A SKYPE call to Caroline Gray, Editor of Easyfood Magazine, provides an insight into the latest issue.

Sharon Noonan travels to Blacklion in Co Cavan to meet chef Neven Maguire at MacNean House. She visits the Limerick Urban Coop to meet Deirdre MacMahon and Brendan O Brien and find out about this year's Wise Traditions Conference. Jonathan McDowell is on Skype to talk about his on line artisan food company - Indiefude.com

This podcast of Best Possible Taste features Skype* interviews with: The Irish Queen of Japanese cooking, Fiona Uyema; Julie Coker Graham from Philadelphia Visitor and Convention Bureau shares the city's culinary attributes; Louise Brosnan, chef de partie at Idas in Dingle and chef mentor on the Apprentice Chef Programme reveals what it was like to do a stage at Deane's Eipic in Belfast with Ireland's only Michelin Star female chef, Danni Barry. *Sound quality may be affected in some instances.

Clare Scanlan joins Sharon in studio to talk about her journey since being a leader on the 2016 season of RTE's Operation Transformation and shares details about the Remembering Niamh & Darra fundraiser in aid of CRY which takes place on Saturday 28 April 2017. On visit to Sonas Healthfood in the heart of Newcastle West, we get women's health advice from proprietor, Rosemarie Bennis. Dromcollogher's Ian Cahill is on Skype to reveal what it's like to be a participant on the Bord Bia Marketing Fellowship Programme with the UCD Michael Smurfit Business Graduate School.

Theresa Storey from the Green Apron joins Sharon Noonan in studio to talk about her upcoming series of foraging talks and walks. Chef Mark Doe reflects on the success to date of the Apprentice Programme for secondary school students and its plans for the future. A visit to Chez le Fab Café in Limerick City is an opportunity to enjoy music, fashion and canine conversation with Lesley Anne Liddane.

Wine merchant, Ron Forrestal, is in studio to discuss wines from France. Rebecca Cronin has details about the 2017 Ballymaloe Litfest. Sharon meets Limerick author Roisin Meaney and Lizzy Lyons from Lizzy's Little Kitchen to talk romantic dining.

Food and Wine Magazine's Rachael Kealy returns to the studio to talk about her visit to Salt in Cork city. Kwanghi Chan who was born in Hong Kong before moving to Donegal talks about Asian cuisine, the Chinese New Year and his unique range of Chan Chan sauce. Sharon catches up with Caroline Wilson, founder of the Belfast Food Tour, to find out what opportunities the 2016 NI Year of Food and Drink has generated and talks to 2 childhood friends about their journey to open the latest restaurant in Newcastle West, The Silver Room.

This is a 2nd helpings show when listeners get a chance to hear previously aired interviewed. Rachael Kealy reviews Sol in Kilkenny. Ruth Hegarty discusses an article she wrote about food waste. Georgina Campbell shares details about recent winners of the Bord Bia Just Ask campaign.

Alasdair MacInnes is in studio to tell Sharon about celebrating Burns Night with the traditional fare - haggis. Sharon is out and about and visits Sonas Healthfood to learn how to detox gently. Georgina Campbell has details of the December winner of the Bord Bia Just Ask Campaign.