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DEER BUTCHERY DAY AT MELBURY

September 2008 sees the start of a new venture for the deer park at Melbury. The Deer Butchery Day will be held in the state of the art deer larder at Melbury Park in Dorset. This has been a managed deer park since 1549 and there are several varieties of deer here, including sika, roe, fallow and red deer. The estate sell between 300 and 400 deer a year, both park and wild. They are now in the fourth season of supplying Melbury House, private customers and local businesses, including River Cottage, with approximately 80 of this total, all butchered by Ray and Richard to a high standard.

The day will be led by Richard Squires, deer keeper at Melbury for 26 years, and Ray Smith, known to most as the River Cottage butcher, who has over 40 years experience. You will learn to skin and butcher the deer carcass and will each take home half a deer.

TIMETABLE FOR THE DAY

9.00am START – Coffee or tea on arrival. You will then be kitted out with wellingtons, overalls, knives etc, followed by a brief talk about hygiene and health and safety. Richard will then show how to skin a deer and there may be the opportunity for you to have a go at skinning. After the larder has been set up for butchery, Ray will then butcher one deer into basic cuts and you will then do the same. You will then bone out the shoulders, strip the loins and seam out the haunches under Ray's guidance.

1.00pm LUNCH – A light lunch will be provided

2.00pm – Ray will demonstrate how to finish the joints and you will then do the same. This will be followed by making sausages. The meat for the sausages will be divided into 2 x 15lb mixes and each student will have a go at each stage. The sausages will be bagged along with the meat you have butchered and will be packed into boxes for you to take home.

4.30pm – End of session

The cost of this course is £200.00 per person, plus VAT, (total cost £235.00) payable at the time of booking, cheques to be made payable to Evershot Farms Ltd.

DATES

Please contact Ray for dates

To reserve a place, e-mail Ray at raythemeatguru@googlemail.com