Ormiston Free Range is open for business...

I had to do it really - pictures from paddock to plate as it were. We have toasted Gloria on many occasions and it feels as if she has had a proper send off - she will always be remembered as the pig that launched the sausage from now on. It is a hot Tuesday afternoon and I think we are really just coming down to earth....even the dogs look exhausted.

The story goes something like this...

The pig eventually arrived at the butchers at about 10.30 on Saturday morning to everyone's intense relief... I went in with James to see the sausages being made with a sweaty brow in case my professional manner was compromised by bursting into tears at the sight of a named pig ending up on the hook - I think James thought this was a possibility as well so he tried very hard to let me stay in the car. Not to be deterred I crept in behind him with eyes averted in case I needed to run out but luckily they had made all 800 sausages and they looked so amazing that we were just terribly excited. The reaction from our lovely butchers also made it all worth while, they were amazed at the consistency of the meat and loved the spice mix that we made up for them.. obviously we let them take some to give us some feedback.

We left them to hang and set but cut off a few to take them home to a waiting audience of willing tasters... the difference in the sausages made from our meat was very evident, they even smelt different when cooking. The spices that overpowered the intensive bland practice sausage meat was perfect with the richer berkshire pork. We decided that I should go along for the day as well and luckily Mum, Fiona and Vanessa were on hand to look after the fort.

Emily must have sensed that I needed a decent night's rest and helpfully woke me at 1.30 on Sunday morning. After this I of course couldn't get to sleep for fear of not hearing the alarm... 3.00 am came around and we were off, both feeling a little sick with nerves and tiredness. The NSW Cellar Door Expo was held in Hyde Park with around 300 wineries from all over NSW - we were in the Mudgee area with another smokehouse, a vension farm, a thai restaurant and a winery restaurant of stalls. I started to feel very nervous for our sausages at this point. I watched the stall from a distance as the doors opened at 11.00 - people wandered past but didn't buy...about 10 minutes of angst followed but by 11.30 we had a queue that didn't go down until 4.30 that afternoon when we sold our last sausage. It really was an amazing experience - we had incredible feedback and lots of requests for which markets in Sydney we would be selling our meat. James managed to drive home that night aided by red bull and jelly babies whilst I lay comatose beside him.

Weigh day took on a whole new meaning yesterday - one of our Berkshires hit the magic number of 70 kilos as did one of the Landrace X girls so they are off today to make up the order for one of the local restaurants and more sausages for Mudfest (a short film festival that attracts about 1,000 people at a local vineyard). They are all very confident in the runs now and go through the scales quite calmly (aided by a handfull of food in the crush which had the unexpected effect of making them unhurried about wanting to leave it). This week we decided they could go home through the walkway by themselves after being weighed but they all refused to leave the stockyards. Dorothy (one of the ginger girls that was handraised) sat at the gate and grabbed it in her mouth shaking it back and forth when we shut her out. On the piglet front we have just lost the second one from our latest litter to some kind of respiratory type infection - despite getting antibiotics, a hot water bottle, fluids and me attempting to stuff a bottle in its mouth most of the night it died this afternoon. It seems very strange that the weakling runts that have been at death's door seemed to live through anything and the strong little fellow that we bought down here deteriorated so quickly...

My goat Maggie (black and white like a Magpie) is getting a little better, I got to observe goat behaviour first hand when they clashed horns and strutted around each other sizing up the opposition. It would have been impressive except Dora is such a rickety old girl that it was like watching a granny beat someone with their handbag. Maggie is still quite flighty but will at least take food from my hand. Gracey is still her demanding self and is enjoying eating her way through my pomegranate tree when I don't watch her closely. She is now with the other kids learning to be a goat.

The website is in progress and you can contact us on james@ormistonfreerange.com.au or georgie@ormistonfreerange.com.au from now on. Sausage recipes gratefully received!