A hat-trick of North East businesses have joined forces to create a dish designed to score with pie fans.
Heaton-based Anarchy Brewery and artisan bakery Great Northern Provisions have teamed up to create Shearer’s Pie – named after Newcastle United legend Alan Shearer.
The new pie has joined the menu at The Blackbird in Ponteland in time for National Pie Week – which runs March 2-8.
Steak and ale pie has long been a staple on the menu at The Blackbird – which also serves Shearer’s Beer on draught. The beer is brewed by Anarchy to raise funds for the Alan Shearer Centre in Newcastle, and the brewery makes a donation to The Shearer Foundation from every can and pint sold.
The beer has proved so popular that the pub’s bosses decided to see if it could be used in their pies. They approached Gateshead-based Great Northern Provisions, which specialises in handmade pies and savoury bakes, and the team swung into action.
“We wanted to create a pie that would honour the great man it’s named after,” said chef and Great Northern Provisions owner Chris Eagle. “We are very proud of it. It’s a classic, British pie filled with brisket, cooked in Shearer’s beer for a minimum of seven hours, and paired with a slow-cooked sweet onion compôte, which offsets the wonderful depth and bitterness of the beer. The pastry is made of a combination of shortcrust and puff, so you really get the best of both worlds.”
The pie – which is exclusive to The Blackbird and served with new potatoes, seasonal vegetables and gravy – will be a permanent fixture on the main menu, priced at £17.95.
Mark Thompson, general manager at The Blackbird, said: “It’s a great addition to the menu and we can’t thank the teams at Anarchy Brewery and Great Northern Provisions enough. It really is a fantastic pie.”
Along with The Blackbird, Shearer’s Beer is available at bars and retail outlets across the North East – including The Strawberry, Fenwick and Shark Bar in Newcastle, Enjoy Beer in Morpeth, and the Northumberland Arms at Felton. It is also available online at www.anarchybrewco.com.
