BRILLIANT bangers have helped a county butcher scoop a top prize.

Linton Butchers lifted the South East of Scotland Regional Champion title in the 2024 Scottish Beef Link Sausage Championship.

Run by Scottish Craft Butchers and sponsored by Dalziel, this year’s championship attracted entries from more than 70 independent butchers across Scotland.

John McKirdy, owner of the East Linton business, was “delighted” to be back among the trophies after winning the South East accolade for a third time, having previously won it in 2014 and 2016.

John also previously clinched the overall Scottish title in 2016.

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“My wife Elaine woke me up to tell me we’d won the regional championship,” he said.

“I’ve never been so delighted to get hauled out of bed.”

John explained that the success of the company’s beef link sausages has helped to build up the business that he took over in 2013.

But details of his winning recipe remain a secret he will not be sharing.

He said: “We buy our top-quality beef from Traprain Farm just along the road and if you’ve got top quality beef it deserves to be made into top quality products.

“We hang it for three weeks and use the brisket, thick runner and chuck for our links.

“Brisket has a flavour all of its own which is perfect for our sausages.

“We then add seasoning and spices – and some magic fairy dust - and hand link the mix into natural sheep casings.”

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John and his seven staff were all rooting for the Linton Butcher banger this year and everyone is thrilled to have secured the regional title once more.

He told the Courier: “The best beef link sausage in the south east of Scotland is a title we’ve always been justifiably proud of and everyone is over the moon to have it back at Linton Butchers.

“The competition has given the staff and the customers a real lift.”

When John and Elaine took over the business, they were selling between 10 and 20lbs of beef link sausages each week.

Impressively, they now shift 100-150lbs as fast as they can make them.

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And hopes are high that this latest award will keep the butchers even busier at the linking machine.

Gordon King, Scottish Craft Butchers executive manager, said the standard of this year’s entry had been extremely high with more than 70 butchers from all over Scotland competing for the title.

He said: “This is something that skilled butchers in every part of the country are producing day in and day out – most handmade and in small batches.

“This Championship brings together some of the finest butchers in the country and the team at Linton Butchers should be justifiably proud of their regional title.”