Food Tourism Award
Thank you for voting for your favourite of four shortlisted businesses to help us find this year's Food Tourism Award winner sponsored by EatScotland.
Cocoa Mountain is the first ever winner of the accolade, presented at the 2009 Scotland Food & Drink Excellence Awards in Glasgow's Kelvingrove Museum.
Owner Paul Maden, said: "It's wonderful and rewarding to be recognised by the viewers for all the hard work and commitment our team at Cocoa Mountain have put in to providing a top quality foodie visitor attraction.
"The passion, commitment and dedication of everyone has resulted in a first-class experience that goes above and beyond visitor expectations and we aim to continually improve and develop our offering."
The four excellent shortlisted food and drink businesses all display passion for their products as well as for the visitor experience. Find out more about these businesses below.
Watch the video clips for each producer by clicking on the image or links.
Cocoa Mountain, Durness - See and taste hand-crafted chocolates being made, and savour them in the cafe with - reputedly - the world's best Hot Chocolate.
Craigie's Farm Shop & Cafe, Edinburgh - This farm offers fruit picking in season and also has a wealth of activities to entertain the family all year around.
Cream o'Galloway, Gatehouse of Fleet - This farm offers farm tours, wildlife activities and an amazing adventure playground to build up an appetite for their delicious ice cream.
Monachyle MHOR, Balquhidder - Diverse business that offers accommodation, dining, interactive food demonstrations and trips around the farm to see where the produce comes from.
Highly Commended
In addition to the four shortlisted businesses we also had two highly commended food touism businesses that just marginally missed out on being shortlisted. They are (in alphabetical order):
Dean's Of Huntly
Excellent centre allowing visitor to learn about the history of Dean's Of Huntly and shortbread through storyboards and DVD presentation. See the factory at work then relax and savour home baking delights and more in the café/bistro. Finally browse in the 5 star gift shop.
Inverawe Smokehouse
Excellent venue for a day out. See how the produce is smoked, learn about the history, sample the great produce in the tearoom, or purchase some to take home to enjoy later. Also opportunities to try fishing or discover the grounds via nature trails nearby.
Scotland Food & Drink Excellence Awards
The Food Tourism Award sponsored by EatScotland is part of the Scotland Food & Drink Excellence Awards. These awards have been established to showcase the best of Scotland's food and drink both through the industry and also for consumers.