Happy Nasjonaldagen! 17th May marks the anniversary of Norway’s independence, so why not mark this felicitous occasion with a selection of the finest foods our Scandinavian friend’s have to offer – Take a longboat and twenty of your finest men and head to culinary Valhalla… 

Tempted out of his London comfort zone to the wilds of the New Forest, Nick Harman visits The Pig, named sustainable restaurant of the year by Restaurant magazine 2012

‘What’s as orange as being Tango-ed but doesn’t give you the headache? Why, Slovenian orange wines, of course; naturally and organically produced, they result in hardly a whiff of hangover.’ Anita Pati heads East with grape expectations.

Showing off its new Jugged Hare pale ale, Battersea brewery Sambrook’s gives John Oates some tips on combining food and beer.

Billed as the’Lunch of a Lifetime’ and sponsored by Moretti beer – seven of the greatest Italian chefs in the world, boasting 13 Michelin stars between them, cooking a seven-course lunch – who could really argue?  Not Joel Porter that’s for sure.

Has the wine industry typified our tastes? Stefan Nicolaou finds out at the RAW wine fair’s sampling event.

A pheasant strutted beside the drive as we arrived. Hams hang from trees beyond the car park (an Aston Martin, a couple of Jaguars – the cars you want to see to be sure you are where you want to be: somewhere classy but not showy).  A peacock strolled languorously past the door leading to my gorgeous bedroom … Joanna Biddolph visits the Bailiffscourt Hotel & Spa at Climping in Sussex for a spot of foraging and a lot of indulging. 

It’s the culinary equivalent of Apple Macintosh in its heyday. Its products are undeniably on-trend cool; are available in irresistible colours; do exceptionally clever things; and come from across the pond. It’s KitchenAid and its newest products are stunning.

Douglas Blyde learns about Ben & Jerry’s Caring Dairy programme while watching cows cavort in the windy Netherlands.

Purveyors of mail order meat to the masses, Donald Russell now offer an easy Toad in the Hole as well as mini Lamb leg. We put both in our oven to see what came out