Hydro Connect builds on glowing feedback to offer home-grown produce as part of experience
Festival fare gets sophisticated as revellers can expect best
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When it comes to food at most of Scotland’s big music festivals, revellers normally have to make do with burgers and chips.
But at Hydro Connect at Inveraray Castle this summer, festival goers will be treated to the best of Argyll’s home-grown produce in between watching performances from the likes of Franz Ferdinand, Sigur Ros, Bloc Party and Goldfrapp.
And because the produce is all local, it cuts down on food miles, helping to make the festival one of the greenest in Scotland.
The Circuses and Bread Field food area became one of the most talked-about experiences of last year’s festival, with fans, organisers and artists declaring the food and drink the best of any UK festivals.
It makes a return at this year’s festival from August 29-31. The audience will be able to satisfy their hunger pangs with world-renowned seafood from the Loch Fyne Oyster Bar, organic vegetable dishes from Arran, lamb burgers from the fields of Ifferdale Glen, or home-made venison pie from Winston.
Serving the food will be the farmer, the fisherman, or the cheesemonger who has created the dish, making sure festival goers enjoy it at its best.
Music fans will be able to wash down their food with a pint of locally-brewed Fyne Ale before enjoying an after-dinner dram chosen from a selection of more than 50 whiskies in the whisky bar.
Geoff Ellis, director of festival organiser DF Concerts, said: “Over the last couple of years people are more and more concerned about what they are eating, where it comes from and how it is produced and there is no reason why that can’t be reflected at a music festival.
“As a company we are continually trying to look at ways to be greener and food miles are obviously a big part of that.
“Generally I think food at music festivals has got much better but at Hydro Connect we have created something really special and the feedback we received last year from music fans and from the food producers told us that it had been a really big success.”
Tickets for Hydro Connect 2008 are on sale now. Weekend tickets are priced £120 and weekend tickets with camping are £140. To buy, log onto www.connectmusicfestival.com or call Ticketmaster on 08444 999 990.
