BATHURST has an Australian title-holder in its midst – and it’s got nothing to do with sport.
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Local butcher Martin Timms, of Martin Timms’ Farmgate Fresh Cut Meat, has returned from his trip to the 2017 National Sausage King competition in Hobart with the national title for traditional Australian pork and plenty of bragging rights.
And the humble winner said it came as a shock.
“I thought we might be in with a bit of a chance to grab second or third, but to win was a huge surprise,” he said.
“I talked with a few of the guys and NSW does not normally have a lot of success, but had a couple of wins [this year], which was good.”
One of Mr Timms’ competitors in traditional Australian pork was a hall-of-famer, having won a national title three times.
“I was a bit worried about him being in our category,” Mr Timms admitted.
The local butcher won the Central West and NSW rounds of the Sausage King titles to earn a place at the national showdown at Hobart as one of 31 finalists in six categories, whittled down from around 3000 entrants at the beginning of the process.
Mr Timms transported his sausages from Bathurst to the Tasmanian capital, where they were judged on appearance before they were cooked and then their shrinkage, crinkling, flavour, texture and fat content once they’d faced the cooking heat.
The local butcher has been enjoying the fame that comes with his national title, appearing on television and radio programs to talk about his big win.
He said the competition – which is only for independent butchers – was a showcase of what separated the independents from the supermarkets.
“If you are doing the right thing, you can pull a bit [of custom] back from the supermarket,” he said.
“You can entice them across if you are doing something right.”