Herbie's spices

I've had the pleasure to attend a very, very interesting event at Harvey Nichol's foodhalls recently - all about herbs and spices. During the month of September, Harvey Nics are promoting Australia and offering a whole lot of products from Down Under, not to mention numerous tastings - if you live or work in London, pay them a visit around lunchtime when you're likely to find lots going on.
For the session I attended they flew in a "little Australian" (his words exactly) called Ian "Herbie" Hemphill, founder of "Herbie's spices" in Sydney. He works with a lot of the Australian chefs we hear so much of these days: Bill Granger, Donna Hays, Christine Mansfield (of London's East @ West) etc. He's really into his herbs and spices and it was great to see somebody so devoted to what they're doing and so passionate about their products. Not to mention knowledgable, as he is really a walking spice dictionary!
It was a really good talk lightened up by some interesting tastings. Interesting, for example, how different herbs and spices from one and the same plant taste - like coriander: smell the leaves and then the seeds, you'd think it's a different plant altogether! I got to know a few herbs and spices as well as blends which I had not tasted before. Lemon myrtle, for example, which is a lovely native Australian plant and can be used as a (quite powerful) substitute for lemon grass. Australian spices in general, he says, should be used sparingly and not cooked for too long, as they're quite strong. Another one would be the Australian native bush tomato which you can use in pastry and biscuits, but also BBQ blends. Lastly he presented us with wattle seeds, harvested from the acacia plant, which are roasted and ground and possess a quite smokey, coffee-like flavour - a perfect match for chocolate.
Herbie's sell every herb and spice imaginable - also via mail order, by the way. Really appealing are their spice blends, I think - you'll find the usual suspects, like ras-el-hanout and chermoula, but also unique mixtures like the "True Blue Aussie" and the "Sydney Spice", which the Australian Tourism Board commissioned as give-aways for journalists visiting Sydney in the course of the recent Rugby Work Cup, I believe.
Also interesting is the fact that they sell their spices in plastic bags (quite a thick material, though) which are resealable. You're meant to keep them in there, rather than transferring them into glasses or grinders, making sure that you carefully extract all the air before closing them up every time. I definitely took a lot of inspiration home and realised I don't use spices as much as they deserve - particularly because I tend to think "fresh is best" which is not necessarily true, as I learnt.
This weekend I am planning on buying a few of his spice mixes, to experiment with new flavours... so watch this space for some unusual taste combinations coming up!

(picture courtesy of Herbie's)

Comments

[Niki]

Yes, Herbie is highly regarded here. He's a Sydney man, so I've never had the chance to pop into his store or sample any of his collaborative dinners (being too inexperienced food wise the last time I spent more than a day in Sydney), but we certainly hear a lot about him in the food sections of the papers and on cooking shows.

[Vic Cherikoff]

Ian (Herbie) Hemphill is a great spokesman for what initially appear as humble herbs and spices yet it is these ingredients which drove the exploration and colonisation (this wasn't always good for the locals) of the planet. In fact we are only just discovering the native resources of Australia as bush tomatoes, Oz lemon, Wattleseed and over 22 other species which I identified and developed are entering world culinaria. I am proud to continue to work with Ian in providing him with the Australian native ingredients he promotes so well.

[johanna]

vic, i am very enthusiastic about those spices and will be being them and experimenting with them. sure to use benjamin christie's recipes as well and hope that the "dining downunder" series will hit london soon... i don't normally watch tv, but with this coming up i'll sure be glued to the television!

[Australian Native Lemon Myrtle Ltd]

Hi, our company supplies superior quality certified organic Lemon Myrtle in various size cuts as well as powder. We have plantations of 1.4 milion trees with processing implemented according to Haccp and USDA/NOP & EU organic procedures, and can provide your requirements.
Fresh, green aromatic organic product!
Price per kg: $16.50.
Please advise if you would like to receive samples.
kind regards
Cass Betts
Export Manager
ANLM Ltd
tel: 0400 927 274

[Fritz]

Herbs and spices are the essence of all great cooking. Great job!