Scottish rope grown mussels produced by Inverlussa Shellfish based in Loch Spelve on the Isle of Mull will take a starring role on BBC TV’s James Martins “Home Comforts” programme later this week. When we anchor in Loch Spelve, on our Magical Mull cruises, a major highlight is to buy fresh mussels from our friends, the Wilsons, to serve up at dinner onboard.
A TV crew from the programme visited Inverlussa last summer and saw at first-hand how the mussels are grown and cultivated. Shown around the farm on Loch Spelve by Inverlussa director Douglas Wilson and manager Cameron Maclean, the environmentally friendly manner of the cultivation of Scottish mussels was explained and their excellent taste and nutritional properties highlighted.
The mussels are grown on ropes suspended from buoys in the sea and feed naturally off plankton in the rich tidal flows to ensure the growth of succulent and sweet tasting shellfish. Inverlussa is a member of the Scottish Shellfish Marketing Group, a co-operative of mussel and oyster farmers based on the Scottish west coast and Shetland.
Following the tour, the Inverlussa team served a tasty meal of sweet and sour mussels cooked up by nine-year-old Charlie Knight, the grandson of Douglas Wilson.
Douglas said: “It was great to welcome the Home Comforts team to Inverlussa and for us to be able to show how we grow our quality mussels. They really are the most superb tasting shellfish and their popularity with consumers is growing all the time.”
Nicola Kingscote, Series Producer, said: “We were thrilled to film on the Isle of Mull with a local firm catching such wonderful mussels. We were also treated to a special cook up outside by the loch, with a tasty mussel recipe courtesy of nine year old Charlie Knight. Some of the most beautiful shots and flavours of the series were captured on Loch Spelve in the company of Cameron and Douglas and their families.”
The programme James Martin: Home Comforts, under the theme “Friday Night Suppers”, will be aired on BBC1 at 15.45 on Friday 23 January. It will then be available on BBC Iplayer.
This cruise is the shortest one they do but we still managed to get in a lot of walking in some beautiful locations. It was the rutting season so it was magical to stand out on deck listening to the bellowing stags in the hills surrounding the Loch. We also had some good sightings of them. We were privileged to have two very close sightings of wild otters on land eating their catch! The crew were as helpful and attentive as ever. I think the fact that out of the four cabins on the Elizabeth G, three were people who were returning to the ship, including myself, which proves what a wonderful experience it is. It was also nice to have a couple on board who hadn't sailed with Hebrides before as they were so enthusiastic. A friendly group, lovely locations and brilliant crew - what more could you ask for!
Melanie Rogers: 1 October 2022Inner Hebrides Big 5 Autumn Wildlife Cruise