For 363 days a year Los Cristianos starves itself in preparation for the Feria de Alimentos Canarios, the Canarian Food Fair, or as I call it, a right good spread of yummy cakes, cheeses, honey, and wine – but apparently that wouldn’t fit as well on the posters.

It makes my mouth water just to see the double marquee going up in the week before the two day feast. This year a heavy band of rain swept across Tenerife limiting the live outside music and herding visitors in big swells whenever the skies opened. It would have been rather rude of me not to try as many tasters as possible, there was more sampling going on than at a L.A record producers studio.

Let’s have a look at some of the more unusual treats on offer. How about the liqueurs, from Fuerteventura there was a goats milk liqueur, smooth and at 15% guaranteed to have you bleating on the front lawn after a full bottle. There were plenty of spices on offer and a couple of stalls selling sea salts with different flavours, the La Palma ones came in test tubes, very trendy.

Organic bread from Guia de Isora was doing well as was the more traditional large unsliced loaves, bloomers, baps etc from Santiago del Teide. Sweets got a good look in with Arona tempting all with wafer biscuits made with turron, normally a Christmas sweet treat. Healthy influences are all the rage, Fuerteventura had some cactus juice which is supposed to be a major energy boost, maybe if Wylie E Coyote had tried some he would have caught that Road Runner. Avocado Oil caught my attention, I tried some in a spread form on a square of toasted bread and was then quite shocked to read you can also rub it on your skin or into your hair. The squeezed pulp of our green friend gives up potassium, magnesium, and calcium, all good for skin and bone ailments.

The old favourites were still highly prized, local cereal gofio in food and drink form, cheese by the stack, luxurious Lava Chocolate, and honey and jam that would have Pooh Bear in ecstacy. I went a bit easier on the wine this year, just a few cheeky swills but the bottles were clinking well in the bags of departing visitors. The rain was an unwelcome guest and kept the staff on their toes but this tenth edition showed there is still a hunger for more traditional Canarian food and drink.