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Local chutney, area bakery make New York Times list
"Good guests bring wine and chutney," say Clare and Nevill Turner of Virginia Chutney on their Web site but even better guests come by for dinner, fall in love with the "sweet and savory" local condiment and write about it in The New York Times.On Tuesday, an article by Times food critic Marian Burros gushed about her favorite indulgences and the chutney from Clare and Nevill's little Rappahannock home-based operation made her annual Christmas gift list. By Wednesday, the phones began to ring off the hook.
Others had read what Burros wrote: “Turner, an Englishwoman . . . has merged her country's chutney wisdom with Southern recipes. The results are full of fruits, instead of gooey syrups.”
The Turners live across a meadow from John and Beverly Sullivan in “Little” Washington. The Sullivans had invited Burros over for dinner one evening at which they served some of Turners' chutney and a pie made by nearly local Red Truck Bakery of Orlean which also made the list.
Brian Noyes, the owner of Red Truck, said Wednesday that his "phone's been ringing since 5 a.m."
Burros said Noyes “has a deft hand with pastries and an unerring sense of flavor balance.”
Now the Turners are "working like hell," said Clare, to meet the orders.
Son Oliver was at a New York City Whole Foods handing out samples while Clare and Nevill spoke to a reporter Wednesday. They were packing and labeling dozens of boxes for shipment.
Clare Turner was very proud to point out that their Virginia Chutney was now in many of the Whole Foods stores up and down the East Coast, something she said is very hard for small home-based manufactures like the Turners to do.
The Turners moved to Washington from Middleburg – which they found a little "stuffy" – three years ago, and have easily integrated into the more friendly and enterprising local food movement in Rappahannock.
"People are just a lot friendlier here," said Clare. And perhaps a little prouder to have yet another Rappahannock business pop up on the national scene.
The Turners can be reached at 540-675-1935. Their Web site is virginiachutney.com
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