Our initial thought didn't go down the path of what flavours are currently in the market place, rather we looked at what ingredients the Margaret River region has to offer, as well as how well these flavours will pair with the amazing wines, cheeses and dips located within the region. From the very start we knew the perfect olive oil for our crackers was going to be Vasse Virgin, so the next step was to meet with the local Farmer's Market growers and source as much local produce as we could for our crackers.

We sourced a number of local ingredients including fresh rosemary and fresh thyme from local herb gardens, organic garlic from Osmington Mill Garlic, onions from a number of local farmers for our onion glaze, truffles from Great Southern Truffles and Blue Cheese from Harvey Cheese. Slightly further abroad we sourced our Pepper from Queensland, our Sea Salt from Tasmania and our Rock Salt from Murray River.

After months of trialing with many flavour combinations as well as sampling our crackers with many local wines, cheese and fresh dips, we finally came up with our first 7 flavours.

Here they are...

1. Original

Sometimes it's just nice to have a cracker that offers a flavoursome base while still allowing the wine, cheese and dips to be the main attraction. The original, whilst similar to traditional crackers has a beautiful rich savory flavour, delicate buttery undertones and a fresh crisp crunch.

2. Cracked Black Pepper & Sea Salt.

Freshly cracked Queensland black pepper is combined into the dry ingredients and activates during the baking process. The fresh pepper is not only highly aromatic but creates a warming sensation on the palate and is the perfect accompaniment with soft and hard cheeses.

3. Fresh Rosemary & Rock Salt

The secret behind this cracker is using fresh rosemary. The natural oils in the rosemary bake into the cracker and a light sprinkle of Murray River Rock Salt balances the natural flavours with the the highly aromatic rosemary characters.

4. Caramelised Onion & Fresh Thyme

Caramelised onion and thyme is a well known flavour combination for jams and relishes so there is no wonder it works as a cracker as well. We choose to bake with fresh thyme for the lifted aromatics and the addition of a sweet onion glaze offers an overall savory yet sweet component which is a perfect marriage.

5. Roasted Garlic & Fresh Rosemary

Using fresh organic garlic sourced from Margaret River's Osmington Mill organics ensures real and lifted garlic flavours bind into the cracker biscuit. Combined with fresh rosemary takes the aromas and flavours to a new level.

6. Shaved Parmesan & Roasted Garlic

Parmesan & garlic, two of the most recognizable components in Italian cooking. Why are these flavours so popular? Well, primarily because they have robust flavours which hold their own, offering lifted aromas and matched rich flavours. Using fresh organic garlic and fresh Parmesan cheese is the real difference.

7. Blue Cheese & Manjimup Truffle

The unmistakable richness and unique flavours in blue cheese combined with the earthy flavours of local black winter truffles make for a truly gourmet flavour experience. Blue cheese in crumbled on top of the crackers prior to baking and the truffle is mixed into the cracker base, creating a rich flavour profile which continues to build with every bite.

We are always looking for more growers and flavour combinations to sample. For now we hope that these flavours, as well as 5 out of the 7 also being available in Gluten Free, will be an appealing selection for the next soiree.

We searched near and far to find gluten free crackers to compare with and we just couldn't find anything that offered a gourmet approach to Gluten free. There were rice crackers and very simple grain crackers which were either very crumbly or too hard but nothing came close to what we had in our minds as a gourmet cracker.

Why should it be that a gluten free diet means you have to substitute flavour and choice. From the beginning it became our aim to come up with a cracker that could stand on it's own and match the flavours of our classic gourmet crackers. We finally came up with the perfect flavour combination, using 5 different flours no less. The result we are very proud of and having 6 gourmet flavours available means no one has to miss out on choice or flavour.

As with our regular crackers, our belief stems from using fresh local ingredients and this is why we believe this range of gluten free cracker is the best out there. They have a fresh crunch of a regular cracker and contain all the amazing local Margaret River and Australian ingredients, ensuring flavour is unmatched anywhere else.

We really don't want people to have to even think about of crackers being gluten free. We would much prefer people to enjoy our crackers for their high quality and authentic flavours and because they are a great cracker to share with others. The fact that they are gluten free, made with all natural ingredients and made in Australia is just a bonus.

One of the best ways to meet and talk with our growers is to head down to the local Margaret River Farmer's Market on a Saturday morning and actually stand face to face with the growers working behind the stalls. As most of the herbs and veggies have been picked the previous day, the growers know exactly what it takes to have their product ready for sale every Saturday.

By having that direct contact with the grower we know when is the best time to order our ingredients ensuring consistent freshness and availability. We can also determine the best varieties to use for our baking needs and find out tips and advice the growers who have been on the land for often generations can pass on to us.

The herbs and garlic are all organic and because they are freshly picked, the flavours are much richer and far better quality than will be found at the supermarket. Our blue cheese producer Robert St Dukes from Harvey Cheese is an artisan cheese producer specialising in small batch traditional cheese production. The milk is sourced from Southwest cows and the cheese has won numerous awards including champion cheese producer at the Perth Royal Show 2015.

The Truffles are grown in Manjimup on the roots of hazelnut trees. Each truffle is hand picked and distributed around Australia and exported globally. Manjimup is the largest truffle region in Australia and is supplying many world class restaurants with fresh black truffles.

We are always on the lookout for new fresh suppliers for our crackers and will continue to source the freshest ingredients for baking. We are also on the lookout for new flavour combinations and already have an Australian bush herb range in the pipeline!

Why we believe cooking with fresh ingredients make all the difference... Firstly, many of the nutritious elements of food rely on the ingredients being fresh. This should be no difference for baking cracker biscuits. The more processed a biscuit, the more stablilisers and enhancers are required to keep the product fresh. We use no stabilisers, enhancer or ingredients to enhance the longevity of our crackers. Instead we use all fresh ingredients and bake and package our crackers on the same day. Our crackers are stored in air locked bags and are guaranteed fresh.

Secondly, why is it that when you go to a restaurant you expect the chef to be cooking with all fresh ingredients but food on supermarket shelves can be full of preservatives and enhancers and dried ingredients. The reason why chefs cook with fresh ingredients is that the fresh oils that are in the herbs and vegetables contain many of the flavanoids that give the ingredients their flavour. By drying these products, many of these natural oils are lost or altered during this process and with it much of the associated natural flavours and aromas as well. For this reason, we choose to cook with all fresh ingredients. The end result, well we believe our crackers speak for themselves.

Thirdly, baking with fresh ingredients allow the fresh oils and flavours to combine with each other throughout the mixing process. During the baking process the fresh oils and flavours which have combined together then activate producing lifted flavours and aromas. As the cracker cools the flavours bind into the cracker fresh and ready to be consumed.

We will never compromise on our cracker flavours.