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Flag Sauce

motorman-mike

motorman-mike

Brum visitor who stayed.
Whilst a great many folks are devoted to HP Sauce, my favourite always was Flag Sauce. It was made in Birmingham I think by Farndon's Vinegar Co.? I can still taste it now in my mind but the last two bottles in our house came from the then newly opened indoor market in the Bull Ring Centre back in the 1960's. They were large catering size the stall had got hold of. Never saw it again after that. I got the taste for it as a child when it was on sale everywhere. What ever happened to it? Don't suppose it could still be out there under a supermarket own brand, that would be too much to hope for. Talking of sauce the 55 bus used to pass the ruins of a vinegar facory I think in Ashted Row at one time, whose was that?
 
Food Processing industry pub 1956 describe Flag sauce as being made be Fardons (though the abstract in Google book search reads this as Pardons), but earlier mentions of it attribute it to Lewis & Co ,Atlas Mills, Worcester. Presumably Fardons took it over.
mike
 
Thanks mikejee, yes I meant Fardon's but seem to remember their address as Brum. Hoping for more info as we go along.
Mike
 
Flag Sauce was much spicier than HP - very much to my taste. A1 Sauce was popular in the USA when I lived there in the 1970's.

Last week my wife bought a bottle of "HP Sauce" made in Holland, and I refused to allow it in my house - it's in the garage if anyone wants it.

Big Gee
 
Well done Big Gee. I feel the same way about HP. Have now taken to Hammonds Chop Sauce but don't see it about much. Supermarkets seem to sell it every now and again so stock up when it's about. Odd thing about Chop Sauce is that it is originally from Yorkshire but now made in Lancashire. Funny old world but at least it's still British.
 
think I saw something about Flag in Mexico on Google and didn't bother to look it might still be going over there big gee
 
Thanks Alf, that was an interesting excursion. Turned out to be a salsa in the colours of the Mexican flag! By the way, did you catch my bit about the Lister over on the lorries and stuff.
 
If Flag sauce was made by Fardons, then it was made in Glover st. That is just off Great Barr St, Bordesley. You could smell the vinegar factory over the smell of the salvage yard in nearby Montague Street.

The Vinegar factory on Ashted Row was Holbrooks, who were bombed out during the war.

Phil

FlagSauce.jpg
 
hi i worked at fardons vinegar in the office 1960s, the sauce was made there. mr fardon was a lovely old chap
 
Hi boomerang, thats really interesting. Any idea please what happened to the firm and when Flag Sauce actually went off the market. Was there a Flag Tomato sauce as well, I never saw any.
Mike
 
My father used to work at Fardons and I am sure they were in Glover Street as PMC1947 stated.

They not only made sauce and vinegar but chutneys as well.

I believe they were taken over by Horlicks in the
?mid to late 60's.
 
Thank you for that Nephrititi. I looked up Horlicks through Google but there is no reference to them taking over Fardons but then Horlicks was taken over and ended up absorbed into the Glaxo empire. What I did find of interest was a film clip of a strike at Fardons on 24-11-60 over Union recognition. Maybe this contributed to the company finishing later on. For this and many other items of Midlands interest go to
www.macearchive.org
 
Motorman-mike

Just googled Farndons+Horlicks and found the following:

Brum's 'Mister Vinegar' dies at 83.
Birmingham Evening Mail (England) ; BIRMINGHAM'S former Mr Vinegar has died at the age of 83. John Fardon, from Edgbaston, was chairman and managing director of Fardons Vinegar from 1932 until it was acquired by Horlicks Ltd almost 30 years later. Fardons Vinegar was established in Bordesley in 1855 by Mr Fardon's great grandfather,

Taken from the Birmingham Post October 7th 1998.

Regards
 
I'm surprised no-one has come up with a Brummy alternative to HP yet, or have I missed something?
 
Don't think they will, same as Ansells it never was the same when the brewery was demolished. All to do with the water from the wells below. My uncle Norman worked for hp most of his working life and my husband had the worst job in Brum [a brewer and SAMPLER at Ansells]. Jean.
 
I'm a bit late for this thread, but I do know that Fardon's was bought out by Horlicks many years ago. My grandfather was part of the company, and knew the family well.
 
I think my grandfather had the recipe, but sadly all those records have gone now.
 
Evening Trevor, Fred's sauce was anybodys guess! You were asked if you wanted it on and the food arrived with it on but you never saw the bottle it came from. I remember it was some pale runny stuff so reckon it had a high vinegar content I stayed with his tomato sauce meself, the brown was yuk! LOL
Mike
 
tony 5112

If you look at the previous posts nephriti posted a message to say Horlocks had taken them ovr. I think it is post 14 quoted from the Birmingham Mail.
Jeoffry
 
I'm curious about flag sauce because our builder found an empty (but whole) bottle of it buried in our yard. Wondered what it was (I don't remember it - born in 1968!). It's quite a big bottle (not quite as large as a standard bottle of wine). We live in Stratton, Bude but I'm originally from the Midlands so was interested to find out it came from Birmingham. The builder likes his HP Sauce but he is far too young to remember Flags.
 
G G Jean said:
Don't think they will, same as Ansells it never was the same when the brewery was demolished. All to do with the water from the wells below. My uncle Norman worked for hp most of his working life and my husband had the worst job in Brum [a brewer and SAMPLER at Ansells]. Jean.
Click to expand...


Hi Jean,

A bit late replying Jean, - M & B used a well too (their telegraphic address was 'Artesian') , and also R Whites in Western Road used one until the late 60s, but went onto mains water because the water quality deteriorated.

Kind regards

Dave
 
hi yes its long gone thank god and well passed its sell bye date
i never like it ,still its each to every own taste that wat i say
i now used lea and perrins and i live down the rd from it -its amazing
i used to live down the rd from H P on the lichfield rd
best wishes atonian ;;;
 
hi all
I remember flag sauce and the chop sauce, the flag ketchup was fantastic though I never knew it was made in brum, but when ever we went camping with scouts the old scout master always had the flag sauce for the bacon and eggs.
regards
paul stacey
 
paul stacey said:
hi all
I remember flag sauce and the chop sauce, the flag ketchup was fantastic though I never knew it was made in brum, but when ever we went camping with scouts the old scout master always had the flag sauce for the bacon and eggs.
regards
paul stacey
Click to expand...

Nice to see the old Scoutmaster not only had good taste but lived up to the famous motto, 'Be prepared' with Flag to go on his bacon eggs when he went camping.
Mike
 
Another brown sauce I had forgotten turned up on my table as a surprise birthday present from one of my sons - a bottle of OK Sauce. I hadn't seen this one for years but turns out Colmans Mustard still make it for the Chinese market! The label is partly printed in Chinese and it's on sale at Wing Yips in Nechells where my son got it while looking round there. Not the same as Flag, as it is much fruitier, but is a nice tasty blast from the past in a cheese sandwich.
 
Eureka!!!!. My dearly beloved treated me to a toasted sandwich in Marks & Sparks cafe so thouight a sachet of their brown sauce might help it along. To my delight it reminded me of my favourite Flag Sauce. When we had eaten, it was straight down to the food hall for a bottle of it. Wondered if it would be the same stuff as in the satchet and it is. No other brown sauce from now on. Getting some more in over the weekend. Great!
 
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