Cakes and ale prove an ideal mix

Viv Parry, owner of Leeds-based Exquisite Cakes, has teamed up with Chris Ives, owner of Ilkley Brewery, to produce handmade Christmas cakes using award-winning stout from the brewery as part of the recipe.

Both are graduates of the Goldman Sachs 10,000 Small Businesses programme in Yorkshire, run in partnership with Leeds University Business School.

They met when Mr Ives came as a guest speaker to one of the modules Ms Parry was attending.

The Christmas cakes are available for sale directly from Exquisite Cakes and Ilkley Brewery and at markets in the run-up to Christmas.

They will also be able to be purchased online from the new year.

Mr Ives said: “It’s a rich fruit cake with chocolate shavings on top, using our stout Mary in the cake.”

He said the two companies plan to develop a range of products.

Ms Parry said the fruit was soaked in the stout, adding: “The traditional alcohol used is brandy in a fruit cake, but we thought we’d try to get a different sort of flavour, potentially more complimentary to the cake.”