BEHIND THE CRAFT
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When East Meets West

Making Remarkable Connections has shaped The East India Company, transforming the world with fusion of cultures, materials and skills.

We remember and celebrate these not only in our choice of ingredients but also in our design work that transports through storytelling.

Enjoy one of our biscuits and cast your eye on the carton. You’ll see a shape that instantly takes you to India, the Taj Mahal of Agra. India and The East India Company’s history, inextricably linked.

Underneath, a beautiful Arts & Craft pattern. William Morris, the celebrated designer of this movement adored the colourful, artisan textiles of India. His designs are considered quintessentially British, but in fact he was enormously influenced by the patterns and colours of the Kashmir shawls, silks, indigo-dyed cottons and garments of South Asia.

We bring together east and west in celebration. Enjoy your biscuit!

FGBI11104

Roquefort Cheese Filled Biscuits

Net Weight: 125g

Inspired by a 19th century French recipe, these wafer thin artisan biscuits are a delectable twist on the traditional cheese biscuit. Exquisite crisp parcels filled parcels of flavoursome Roquefort cheese.

The East India Company - Lifestyle

Biscuits

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£9.50
These Roquefort cheese biscuits from The East India Company are delicate, brittle baked shells with a light Roquefort filling. Known as a gavotte, they are very fragile, the biscuits shatter in the mouth, resulting in a lovely combination of soft and crunchy textures.

Like many wonderful foods, the origin of the gavotte rests in a mistake – back in 1886, a crepe being cooked by Marie-Catherine Cornic was left on the stove and overcooked. To ‘get rid of it’, she rolled it up, popped it in her mouth and discovered it to be anything but ruined – it was light, crispy and the birth of new delicacy.

With the characteristic tanginess of Roquefort, these biscuit are fine on their own, but great with wine or beer - they are very moreish.
A little about Roquefort – it’s one of the world’s finest blue cheeses.

Made from the milk of sheep in Southern France, it can only be called Roquefort if it is made under strict appellation d'origine contrôlée regulations about how the cheese may be manufactured, one being that it must be aged in the natural Combalou caves of Roquefort-sur-Soulzon, where the mould that gives the characteristic colour and flavour is found in the soil.

Roquefort is made in a wheel of between 2.5 and 3kg, each cheese needing 4.5 litres of milk to produce. It's tangy, white and crumbly, also slightly moist, with distinctive blue veins.

Ingredients

Malto-dextrin, Wheat Flour, Vegetable Oil & Fat (Rapeseed, Copra), Cream Milk Powder, Roquefort Cheese Powder (10%) (Milk), Butterfat (Milk), Glucose Syrup, Barley Malt Extract, Salt, Yeast Extract, Emulsifier: Lecithins (Rapeseed); Acidity Regulator: Citric Acid; Colour: Paprika Extract, Carotenoids


Allergens

Manufactured in a factory that handles nuts, fish, celery, eggs & soya. Contains wheat, gluten, barley and dairy products.

Nutrition

Typical values 100g – Energy 2344kj/562kcal • Fat 36g, of which saturates 17g • Carbohydrate 49g, of which sugars 14g • Protein 10g • Salt 1.6g


Storage

Store cool and dry. Avoid sunlight and strong odours.

Suitable for vegetarians.

Stories

The Biscuit - from Hardtack to Sea Salt & Caramel

Today, there is a biscuit for every occasion, and it is one of the most popular sweet snacks in the world. But biscuits had a vital role in the life of the seafaring adventurers, including the men of The East India Company, in the 17th and 18th century.

Biscuits date back much further and like much else, it was the Romans who created the ‘panis bicoctus,’ or bread twice baked, to create a food that could be stored. Richard the Lionheart took stores of ‘biskits’ on his crusade ships and in the Armada battle of 1588, each sailor had biscuits included within their diet.

It was Samuel Pepys, famous diarist but also naval administrator, who introduced victualising, the planning and rationing of food supplies at sea. Rations included "1 lb daily of good, clean, sweet, sound, well-baked and well-conditioned wheaten biscuit (plus a gallon of beer!)". Ships of The East India Company routinely received 8 months rations for their long voyages.
The ship’s biscuit was also known as hardtack, a very hard-baked substance made of wheat flour, salt and water which would survive long journeys - inedible without softening in stew or brien - the original ‘dunk’ perhaps?

We celebrate the heritage of the humble biscuit, a truly critical ingredient in the success of The East India Company. Pepys’ description as ‘sweet, sound and well-baked’ still sounds relevant today, but our artisans in British and French bakeries now elevate that to a fine art using wonderful new ingredients, like our Seville Orange Marmalade or Caramel and Sea Salt Biscuits.

Our spirit delivers no ordinary products

  • FAQ

    How long will the biscuits last once opened?
    Once opened, they should be stored in an airtight container and consumed within 30 days.

    Where are your savoury biscuits made?
    Our savoury biscuits are made by our biscuitier artisanal in Northern France.

  • Delivery & Returns

    UK Standard Delivery: £3.95
    UK Next Day Delivery (mainland UK only): £9.95 (Order before 12pm)
    International Delivery is available, please see our delivery page for details. For more information and Terms & Conditions, please see our Delivery page.

  • Reviews

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