Ballymaloe’s celebration of food

The second Kerrygold Ballymaloe Litfest of Food & Wine ended last night where it all began just 48 hours previously, in the ‘Big Shed’ at Ballymaloe House in East Cork.

A crowd of revellers made up of performers, audience members, and festival staff whooped it up into the wee hours at the closing party for the world’s only literary festival dedicated solely to food and drink.

Despite some rain yesterday morning after a gloriously sunny Saturday, more than 8,000 people turned up on the grounds of the venerable old country estate to witness the 60-plus speakers in action at readings, food demos, tastings, talks, debates, and, of course, an awful lot of food, ranging from formal meals cooked by culinary superstars such as Yottam Ottolenghi to the bewildering array of casual grazing options in the Big Shed.