Full Juice - Episode 4

EPISODE 4 SPRING 2020

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CELEBRATING THE WORLD OF CRAFT CIDER

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03/04/2020 22:35

Without exaggeration, I’d say this is the most important issue of Full Juice we are likely to publish. Here’s where we enable you guys to help save the craft cider industry.

Coronavirus has hit craft producers in every sphere hard.

Anyone who counted on the hospitality trade for their custom has been left winded. I hate clichés, but the rug being pulled from under one’s feet is an apt one. As a small producer who was beginning to make connections with pubs and restaurants, building our future on those liaisons, and planning on opening a tasting room, it’s time to rethink. On a major scale. And we’re certainly not alone. But unlike even five years ago, today we have the technology. The champions. And You! First up, crucial cider advocate Dick Withecombe. Best known as the founder of Manchester’s much loved – and copied – Cider Club with partner Cath Potter, he curated the vital Cider Supplier map you’ll find within. This forms part of the much appreciated – and needed – Pulling Together campaign launched by CAMRA. Here’s where you can find the producers selling direct, the suppliers reorienting themselves to sell to consumers, and the plucky pubs and bottle shops staying open or offering direct delivery. Here’s where we hope you find ciders – and perries – you’d like to buy.

This spread also symbolises the changes we have brought about with this issue. Most obviously, we’re online! We’ll return to print when our friends in are back able to open their doors again. Meanwhile, we fast forwarded our digital plans, guided by our dynamic designer, Laura, and what you see is the result.

The content has had a rethink too. We’re thrilled to welcome three new voices to the Full Juice family.

Alongside Dick, meet James Finch, aka the Cider Critic

and one of the country’s foremost bloggers and vloggers, as he shares his top 10 online experiences. To accompany Bill Bradshaw’s inspirational pen portrait of cider Down Under, our overseas pages sees Adam Wells, one of our most talented new cider writers, share his fresh snapshot of the Basque Country.

Our news inevitably has a different feel. Events of the virtual kind accompany notes on forthcoming cider releases, news of northerly cider producers, and a call to glasses for Gabe Cook’s global cider tasting on 2 May. Some things haven’t changed. Our keynote feature is unmissable, this time coming from the ever-eloquent Gabe. Written before the pandemic struck, it’s even more relevant now. Orchards are places of solace and creativity as much as they are purely fields of apples. Biodiversity and community are the immediate winners, but we all gain.

Bill travels to the source with our chosen apple, Yarlington Mill. Pre-coronavirus, I had the good fortune to sit down with Ann and Norman Stanier, custodians and creators of one of the world’s finest apple collections, Dragon Orchard. And Gabe unravels the intricacies of what makes naturally sparkling cider so divine.

Finally, our back cover closes the issue not with an ad but a beautiful picture from Bill, of green shoots peeping through rich, dark soil. We have the chance to emerge from this battle stronger, with better links between producer and consumer, with new tastes under our belts, a fresh wishlist of who to track down, and more insight all round. Let’s embed this greater connectivity into our cider world now and in the future. And Full Juice will stay online, to help inspire and guide.

Thank YOU for making the survival of craft cider possible. Wassail!

Susanna Forbes

WE NEED YOU 2 4 6 8 11

Join us

News Events, launches, new cideries, reviews Virtual Reality James Finch’s online cider odyssey Cider Needs You! Dick Withecombe’s UK buying guide Gardens of Earthly Delight Orchards enthral Gabe Cook Apple Bill Bradshaw cherishes Yarlington Mill

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Txotx! Adam Wells raises a toast to the Basque Country Style Counsel Gabe Cook dissects naturally sparkling cider Wizards of Aus Bill Bradshaw goes walkabout Down Under In Their Own Words Ann & Norman Stanier, Dragon Orchard The Gift Of Life Bill Bradshaw nurtures a baby apple tree

SO WHEN LOCKDOWN FINISHES, WHAT THEN? @fulljuicemag

COVER: Japanese crab apples, just after flowering Publisher: Susanna Forbes Advertising: Gabe Cook Editor at large: Pete Brown Creative director: Bill Bradshaw Design: Laura Brown-Little Photography: Bill Bradshaw, unless noted News, distribution, comments, advertising enquiries: fulljuicemag@gmail.com © 2020 Full Juice is published by Full Juice Ltd. All rights reserved. All material in this publication may not be reproduced or distributed in any form without the written permission of Full Juice Ltd. Opinions are those of individual authors.

As soon as things move on, I’m looking forward to heading down to my local in Bristol, The Good Measure, to hang out with my buddies, including BrewLDN cofounder Chris, the amazing Dom and Lara from Two Belly and the inimitable Martin “Cider Shit” SharmanGoodwin. I’ll then head to Bristol’s finest cider boozer, The Orchard Inn, to see Sam and Steph and have a pint of Union from Pulpt. Lush. GC

I’m most looking forward to being able to sit in the pub garden again on a sunny evening. I love the democratic nature of pubs – we can all drink what we choose, sit/ stand together and share the week’s ups and downs with friends and strangers. I hope the freedom to be able to do that won’t be taken for granted again – it’s something a whole generation should be celebrating for some time to come. BB

I can’t wait to welcome visitors to our Tasting Room.

To share with them the story of cider. To look through the big window into the cidery and glimpse the barrels with this year’s new recruits. To take people into the orchard, before heading to the bar.

To swap tales of trees we’ve seen, apples and perry pears we’ve loved, and wonderful orchardists and makers we’ve met. It will be time to open up the cider world once more. SF

I was interviewing Tom Stephens from Wobblegate for a future Full Juice article, and he mentioned the taproom they’d opened on his farm last summer. I had a sudden longing to be sitting on a wooden bench outside a barn, drinking a cool, fresh farmhouse cider and gazing at an orchard full of delight and possibility. I can’t wait to see apples on the trees and feel the grass beneath my feet again. PB

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NEWS NORMAN WELCOME

February saw cider lovers by the hundred descend upon Caen for the first ever edition of CidrExpo. Over 90 producers from Normandy, Brittany and further afield gathered over three days to present their ciders, perries, Calvados and more.

Whilst heavily weighted towards France, particularly Normandy, cidermakers from Spain, Belgium, Denmark and even Latvia attended, showcasing the breadth of European cider and cider brandy through well over 500 different expressions.

“The opportunity to learn about the remarkable range of ciders being made by small producers in other places is priceless,” said American writer and cider historian, Darlene Hayes.

Whilst English cider wasn’t represented on the stands, speakers at the Expo included Ciderologist Gabe Cook and Pommelier Jane Peyton, debating such topics as “the makeover of cider”, “aromas and quality” and (this is France, after all!) “successfully keeving your cider”.

After high praise from all who attended, here’s hoping for a repeat of CidrExpo next year. Though it should be noted that the rent for stands wasn’t cheap, and if organisers are keen to attract international producers in greater numbers, this is perhaps something to consider for 2021. AW

200 litres of beautiful Bacchus wine lees post-ferment (grape harvest and fermentation are often over by midOctober), “I thought, what can I do with these?” So he married them with Dabinett and Russet juice, and left them to it. The result? A zingy, lightly sparkling cider with elderflower, lemon and apricot aromas, leading to a zesty, crisp palate with hints of brioche. A versatile food partner, think mildly spiced dishes through to glorious sales and roasted root vegetables. shop.haygrove-evolution.com

Arena, with demonstrations of crafts, trades and skills. Oliver’s Cider & Perry and Kentish Pip will be among those in the food and drink tent, and Jane will be sharing ciders from Oliver’s, Kentish Pip, Once Upon A Tree, Pilton and Dowding’s.

Over 100 trade stands have raised over £5000 for five farming charities.

Follow OnlineAgShow.co.uk

MANCHESTER TURNS THE TIDE Under new management, the cider offer of the Manchester Beer & Cider Festival reversed a decline with a double digit rise through a slimmed down, rethought list, and a focus on quality dispense.

The first CAMRA festival to showcase keg-conditioned ciders, contrary to popular myth, dry cider proved popular, as did perry.

With Dick Withecombe and Cath Potter,

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A little north of Inverness, William Munro Ferguson has founded the UK’s most northerly cidery; Nøvar Cider. Seeing an opportunity in the global cider market whilst working abroad, William returned with a passion to start his own cider journey. A fortuitous series of events that started with a florist at a wedding (it’s quite a story), led to him being mentored for a season by Eric Bordelet in Normandy, the first and only to receive this honour.

Following trials to see which varieties would thrive in North Scotland, William now has a 3,000 tree orchard, including classics such as Dabinett and Kingston Black, and less well known varieties such as Knotted Kernel and Court of a Wick.

His first cider, Nøvar, is full of tannic-led varieties, like those Normandy ciders he

PAINTING THE BARREL RED

AGRICULTURAL SHOW GETS CYBER TREATMENT Pommelier Jane Peyton, founder of the School of Booze, will be leading a #RethinkCider tasting at The Greatest Online Agricultural Show, hosted by Love British Food on Saturday 2 May. Sponsored by Innovation for Agriculture, the organisers are planning to offer the full agricultural show experience, including livestock competitions in the Main Ring, dog and pony shows, and a Countryside

another first, says Albert. Meanwhile the 2015 Ashton Brown Jersey emerges at the same time as a younger model, from 2017, allowing valuable vertical comparisons.

Available from Scrattings, CiderOnline, and a host of others

THE CIDER IN THE NORTH

TERROIR & CIDER WINE COFERMENT BOOST SALES New ciders, a desire for quality and the energy of social media have catapulted online sales for Once Upon A Tree to stratospheric levels in the wake of COVID-19 lockdown.

While Crafty Nectar account for twothirds of the online sales, primarily in 50cl bottle format, it’s the 75cl sharing bottle that dominates at Once Upon A Tree’s own webshop.

Driving interest have been two new ciders in the Limited Edition range, Tidnor Wood, a partially wild-fermented field blend of bittersweet apples from the historic Tidnor Wood Orchard, aged on new French oak, and Bacchus Cider, a world first, where apple juice was fermented and aged for nine months on Bacchus wine yeast lees.

Simon Day, Once Upon A Tree founder, crafts award-winning wines too under the Sixteen Ridges label. Bacchus grapes produce fragrant wines with zesty, herbal notes. Realising he had

BUMPER HARVEST - IN SPRING! Ciders fermented in Armagnac casks, a Thorn pét nat perry plus a four-year old Ashton Brown Jersey cider are among the new releases landing late May from the apple and pear heroes at Ross on Wye Cider & Perry.

The new recruits follow swifty behind the release of seven single varietals and one novel blend, part-aged in an Islay barrel.

The Armagnac barrels are a first for the team, conferring an “intense and so enjoyable” flavour, according to Ross’ Albert Johnson. A present from their friends at Ferme De La Come in Toulouse, Albert confirmed this “definitely” won’t be the last outing for these barrels.

With fruit coming from an orchard on May Hill itself, the Thorn pét nat perry is

Cider Buzz Manchester, and Chris Hewitt, Dunham Cider, at the helm, volunteers underwent training in STAr, the highly effective sweetness, tannins, acid ratings method of describing ciders, devised by veteran festival organiser, Ray Blockley at the Nottingham Robin Hood Festival. Ciders made by women proved popular, thanks to extra signage curated by pommelier Cath.

learnt from. A great believer in “respecting the vintage”, he picks the apples by hand. Bottle size is 25cl, a size chosen to encourage consumption like wine. Pouring liquid gold with a good level of fizz, the nose is full of green apple, citrus and spice, leading to a well balanced palate dominated by caramelised apple with mellowed acid and tannin and a hint of vanilla and strawberry. novarcider.com JF

Somerset fermentation explorer Martin Berkeley has been at it again! The latest Pilton Cider creation is Scarlett Sharpe. As its name implies, beautifully vibrant on the eye, this is a blend of Somerset blackcurrant wine and naturally sweet new season keeved cider, dry-hopped with a splash of Mandarina Bavaria and Mosaic. The blackcurrants were fermented on the flesh with cider yeast before pressing and ageing in ex-Tamoshanta cider barrels for six months.

Meanwhile, for those who like to have a steady supply of cider on the go, Martin has also been filling handy five-litre boxes. Two are currently

available: Didgeridoo 2018, a Somerset farmhouse-style keeved cider, and Tamoshanta 2019. piltoncider.com, thefinecider.company

ROLE REVERSAL

BIRDSONG

Kentish Pip has taken a turn on the tannic side with its latest cider, Up and Over. Crafted from Woolton Farm fruit and part of the Limited Edition range, the bittersharp Foxwhelp takes the lead, balanced with fellow bittersharp Kingston Black, and king of the bittersweets, Dabinett. Dry and tart, Kentish Pip’s Sam Mount recommends matching it with smokey barbecue food and oily fish. kentishpip.co.uk

Following its successful debut at BrewLDN back in February, Nightingale’s Wild Disco hits the dance floor proper with its first full canning run. This is crafted from the first apples to ripen on the farm, Discovery apples.

The new season Night Bird also heads into can soon, alongside the Falstaff/Bramley blend going into bottle. nightingalecider.com

CRAFT CIDER LANDSCAPE LIKELY TO CHANGE IMMEASURABLY The fall out from the COVID-19 pandemic will be felt long after lockdown ends, with orchards likely to become yet another casualty.

In a poll carried out a month ago at the start of lockdown by the Three Counties Cider & Perry Association, every respondent reported that they expected to sell less than 50% of their normal volume. Three-quarters cited cancellation of events (markets, festivals etc), with no alternative routes to market.

If cider remains unsold after the summer, producers will have space pressures, affecting the volume of fruit they can buy and cider they can make.

“With volume dropping, I think orchards will definitely be coming out,” says Tom Oliver, Oliver’s Cider & Perry.

To offset lost draft sales, many producers have increased bottling and canning. In the short term, Tom saw selling online to established cider drinkers and “some inquisitive” drinkers coupled with

a renewed focus on local sales as the way forward. The survey showed that while a third of respondents had webshops already, a third were in the process of setting them up, and 15% said that, if licensing laws could be relaxed, they would like to start online deliveries.

Throughout, the NACM has been liaising with relevant drinks and hospitality bodies in discussions with government. The longer the pub sector remains closed, the more difficult the situation. While major players such as Hogans, are “looking forward and making plans”, nevertheless they have had to furlough seven out of nine of their team.

“The pandemic is likely to leave deep scars in our small industry,” says TCCPA chair, Simon Day. “But I remain optimistic that those businesses who do survive by accessing support, adapting, working together and embracing new sales routes will find a future where society is more supportive of local, specialist producers.”

CIDER TAKES ON THE WORLD C/O THE CIDEROLOGIST Grab a glass, crack open a bottle and join the Ciderologist Gabe Cook for the World’s Biggest Cider Tasting on Saturday 2 May. Cider makers from four continents, from Brazil to Australia, Norway to the USA, are already on the guest list, and Gabe has pledged to say “cheers” in the language of every participant, “although I might need to brush up on my Norwegian”. Designed to bring the cider world closer together, Gabe hopes this will also showcase the “amazing array of global cider styles”.

8pm UK (GMT+1), tune in via

@Ciderologist Instagram channel,

MAKE THAT A DATE

We may not be heading out every night, but there’s plenty going on. Dick Withecombe to the rescue (again!).

Updated daily, his events calendar can be found on both CiderBuzzMCR and the #RethinkCider facebook page. https://www.ciderbuzz.co.uk/post/ cider-events-during-a-time-of-crisis Three that caught our eye: 5-7 MAY – RE: TALK

8pm, InstaLive – ReStalk Cider’s Grant Hutchison hosts three guests over three nights, Ciderologist Gabe Cook, Susanna and James Forbes, Little Pomona, and Pomologik, inviting them to chat all things cider and music 9 MAY – BIG CHEESE WEEKENDER ,

8.30pm – Felix Nash of Fine Cider joins Sam Wilkin, aka Cellarman Sam, for a talk and online tasting on the art of matching cider and cheese 10 MAY – WOTFEST 1pm – Women on Tap has reoriented its popular festival into “an internet-based showcase of brilliant women”. Join members of CiderWomen for chat and tasting of ciders crafted by members.

#worldsbiggestcidertasting

CRAFTY MAKEOVER

Following good feedback at BrewLDN, Crafty Nectar No 7 will re-emerge in mid-May in a slightly drier format, with dessert apple, Michelle, replaced by Somerset Redstreak.

of unknown apple varieties which have contributed a lemony flavour, according to Polly. “It’s zesty and bright,” she says.

The 2019 vintage of the keeved Huxham blend has recently gone into bottle. “You can never say how its going to be until you release it,” she says. “I think, fingers crossed, it’s shaping up to be a good one.

Similar to the 2017 possibly.” https://thefinecider.company/ http://www.findandfosterfineciders.com/

Credit: Anders Sune Berg

THREE IS THE MAGIC NUMBER FOR ART OF DARKNESS

For the first of its special releases for Club Members, Little Pomona will be launching Art of Darkness 2017 in three expressions. Always a blend of zesty Foxwhelp and the more mellow Ellis Bitter after a spell in barrel, the proportions vary in each expression, 75%:25% Foxwhelp: Ellis Bitter; the reverse; and a 50: 50 blend. This offers a fascinating insight into the contribution played by both varieties and

how they react to time spent maturing.

The ciders will be available on general release from mid-May. littlepomona.com

Fans of OLIVERS CIDER & PERRY have five new Fine Cider/Perry bottlings to look forward to over the coming months. On the cider side, a trio of bottle conditioned ciders from the 2018 vintage are in the wings, Dry, Off-dry and Medium.

Meanwhile perry fans have a 2017 Pét Nat Perry and and 2019 Keeved Perry on the horizon. https://thefinecider.company/ CRAFTY NECTAR’S MARKETPLACE offers

producers with their own premises license a virtual stall to sell. Within a month of launching, it had received over 300 orders worth over £7,000, with 35 producers being listed with over 120 different products.

The JEAN NOWELL BURSARY SCHEME is open for applications until the end of May. Launched by the Three Counties Cider & Perry Association, the bursaries are aimed at providing opportunities for individuals to further their progress and development in the world of craft cider.

Four bursaries worth up to £250 will be available each year for the next three years. For further information and an entry form, see the TCCPA website.

Times of lockdown can be thirsty, so a handy bag-in-box of what you fancy can really hit the spot. News that the addition of 20-litre BiBs to the FETCH THE DRINKS CLUB SUBSCRIPTION offer is proving popular comes as little surprise.

Elsewhere in its portfolio, the British side of the family has expanded with the arrival of Tricky, Bushel & Peck, Iford and Dunkertons. Further afield, overseas newcomers including Ramborn, El Gaitero, Wignac, Brannland and Templars round off an impressive European selection. fetchthedrinks.com

RED-FLESHED VARIETY IS FOUND & FOSTERED Pendragon, a red-fleshed apple variety local to the south-west and dating back centuries, forms the heart of Find & Foster’s latest release. Fermented on Pendragon skins with wild yeast and no sulphites, it’s bottled pét nat-style, to finish its fermentation in the bottle. Known for her natural touch and innate sensitivity to heritage varieties, cidermaker Polly Hilton is “very excited” about how Pendragon and her other 2019 pét nat, working title Snicket, has turned out.

“Pendragon is red all the way through and extremely aromatic,” she says. “Although it smells and tasts of plums, the resulting cider is almost Viognier-like, with apricot, blossom and orange zest on the nose.”

Snicket was fermented on the skins

SLICES

EEBRIA TRADE is the latest cider supplier

BIRTHPLACE OF THE APPLE

“I’m now totally convinced that cider apples originally came from Kazakhstan,” said renowned cider specialist Andrew Lea, pictured above, as he bit into a wild apple. “All the characteristics that we are looking for in cider apples are present in some of the apples we’ve tasted.”

Andrew was one of four intrepid apple explorers on a special journey to the birthplace of the apple in Kazakhstan.

Hosted by Aizhan and Alex Thomas, founders of the nation’s first cidery, Apple City Cider, the quartet included international cider educator, Peter Mitchell, head cidermaker at Angry Orchard, Ryan Burk, and Canadian author and cidermaker, Claude Jolicoeur.

Cider in Kazakhstan follows their quest, as Aizhan and Alex overcome natural and regulatory challenges to guide them to the wild apple forests. “It was a great privilege and experience to be where the apples first came from,” said Peter.

A three-part series, the first two episodes are available now. For more on the trip, listen to Claude Jolicoeur’s interview with Ria Windcaller on CiderChat, podcast 153 https://vimeo.

com/ondemand/ciderinkazakhstan DW

to share its cider and perry black book with the public as well as the trade.

There are minimum order requirements, but here’s where you’ll find a goodly selection from around the country, including Kentish Pip, Duddas Tun, Severn Cider, Meon Valley, CiderSmith and TyGwyn to name a few. eebriatrade.com/individuals Recent times have seen online orders rise over five-fold for COTSWOLD CIDER CO as it seeks to look after thirsty fans around the country. Meanwhile local deliveries continue as before, with founder Rory Souter seeing this “as a great opportunith to connect with our local community”.

DUDDAS TUN in Kent reported brisk business on the first weekend of its online shop being open in late April.

Alongside bottles and cans, bag-in-box is available in 5 litre, 10 litre and 20 litre sizes. There’s a 10% discount for first orders – see ad on page 18 for the special code – and deliveries are free. duddastuncider.com NEWS: Susanna Forbes, Adam Wells James Finch & Dick Withecombe

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ONLINE

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VIRTUAL REALITY 4

From podcasts to pubs, tastings to readings, the world of cider online is growing exponentially.

James Finch homes in on the best

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1 CIDERCHAT PODCAST Ria Windcaller, MC extraordinaire at CiderChat, has been producing a cider podcast for a long time, so not only are there great upcoming episodes featuring producers from across the world but also a fantastic back catalogue of over 200 episodes to explore. Now’s a good a time as any to sit back and listen with a glass of the good stuff in hand. Recent makers featured include Rebel Apple from Moscow and Andy Hallett of Hallets Cider. Subscribe to ensure you don’t miss an episode. https://ciderchat.com/ 2 THE CIDEROLOGIST, Rising to the current challenges, everyone’s favourite cider celebrity is embracing virtual opportunities to continue his mission to bring ciderology to the masses. Over the coming weeks, look out for Facebook and Instagram Live masterclasses, curated boxes with wholesalers (such as Crafty Nectar & Bath Road Beers) with online tastealongs, plus cider courses – and the world’s biggest cider tasting - see News.

Follow Gabe Cook on Facebook and Instagram so you don’t miss a beat: @ciderologist.

3 #RETHINKCIDER FACEBOOK GROUP There’s a reason close to a thousand people have joined this online community. A positive, constructive forum that celebrates not only cider’s rich and varied history but also its modern innovation. Constantly buzzing with topical debates and news stories, you’ll always find something interesting to read, watch or take part in. #Rethinkcider, a phrase coined by Full Juice’s own Susanna Forbes and Britain’s first pommelier, Jane Peyton, is about changing the perception of what cider is and what it can be.

So sign up to the group and join the movement. https://www.facebook.com/ groups/rethinkcider/ 4 HAWKES TV Those lovable London innovators are pushing the boundaries to keep connected with consumers and cider fans. Their new YouTube channel, Hawkes TV, launched early April and they’ve already done new product launch reviews, cider school on the history of the apple, and how to make your own cider at home. Expect more fun and frolics over the coming weeks as they bring the Hawkes experience into your home.

Subscribe here: bit.ly/HawkesTV 5 FINE CIDER FRIDAY James Finch, aka The Cider Critic, has been running a Friday night YouTube tasting of some very exceptional ciders and perries every week for almost a year now. Today, look out for virtual guest appearances and the odd live version with a cidermaker over on his instagram account (@thecidercritic).

You can subscribe to the Fine Cider Friday channel here: bit.ly/ FineCiderFriday

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6 CRAFTY NECTAR BLOG Voted the best cider blog in the world last year, Crafty Nectar is a one-stop shop for entertaining reads about different producers, hot and challenging topics, debates and news. With contributions from owners, James Waddington and Ed Calvert, as well as long time guest writer, yours truly, plus other writers from all over the world, look out for single variety adventures and the spirit forms of cider. https://craftynectar.com/blogs/cider 7 MALT REVIEW That’s right, a whiskey review site in the top 10! Thanks to the superb writing of Adam Wells (@Drinkscribbler), Malt has embraced cider, big style. Recent articles include a trip to the Basque Country, exploring blending, the influence of wood and the Grand Crus of cider. Expect many more fantastic reads over the coming weeks, and check out Adam’s piece on the Basque Country for Full Juice (see page 12). www.malt-review.com.

8 SANDFORD ORCHARDS STRAW & OAK FullJuice’s very own Bill Bradshaw has used his fantastic camera skills to create a short 18 minute video for Sandford Orchards. It explores the history of the business and the tradition of cider making in Devon, focusing on “Straw & Oak”, a dry cider pressed on straw using a traditional single screw press. Watch it for some beautiful scenery and a glimpse into cider’s rich heritage. https://www. facebook.com/sandfordorchards/ 9 THE CIDER EXPLORER Natalia Wszelaki, based in Berlin, has been reviewing ciders from across Europe for several years. Her honest, unbiased format has gained her a strong following and her reviews extend across the breadth of cider styles and types.

Her most recent post includes a recap of a trip to the UK visiting some cider hot spots in London. Read back through her previous reviews – you may find a new producer or bottle to add to your online order list. https://ciderexplorer.wordpress.com 1O THE RED (ON)LION CAMRA has launched an online virtual pub and it’s well worth a visit.

Anyone can register and book a table to share with friends, or simply join the public bar for a lively chat. Look out for pub quizzes, taste-alongs, and other activities coming soon. This initiative is part of CAMRA’s wider #PullingTogether campaign which also includes a country-wide cider supplier map, local deliveries and online, curated

by Dick Withecombe (see page 8).

Look out too for its friendly Pubs. Pints.

People. podcast as well as exciting future plans for some seriously farreaching cider educational content. https://theredonlion.co.uk JAMES FINCH blogs on cider @thecidercritic and vlogs too, at Fine Cider Friday. About to embark on his own cider journey, look out for Chapel Sider coming soon

Two Belly

cheese, beer & cider shop 116 Whiteladies road, Bristol, BS8 2RP cheese | beer | cider www.twobelly.co.uk

two_belly

CHANGING THE WAY THE WORLD THINKS AND DRINKS CIDER

WATCH LIVE VIA @CIDEROLOGIST INSTAGRAM & FACEBOOK www.theciderologist.com

IN FOCUS

GARDENS OF EARTHLY DELIGHTS

If we didn’t have places that grow apples we wouldn’t have cider. But as Gabe Cook explains, the full value of orchards is way higher than we might think Orchards are lush. They really are the most special, unique environments, and are one of the most important uses of land in the UK today. For me, what makes them so intriguing is that they are on the front line of the interplay between the anthropic world and Mother Nature. It’s like they are entering into a joint venture for mutual gain.

What one must remember, of course, is that orchards are inherently unnatural places. Their entire existence is brought about through a series of considered decisions: location, size and shape of tree, spacing distance and selection of varietals are all entirely conscious decisions. Human decisions. But that’s not to say that nature doesn’t get to have its say – the quality, quantity and distribution of the fruit produced every year is certainly not determined by horticultural practice alone.

I think that’s why orchards appeal to me so much – orchards are managed, and cider apples are produced, using methods that have been around for hundreds, if not thousands of years.

They are so much more than simply productive pieces of land. They are entirely entwined into their local culture and heritage and today provide socially and environmentally crucial functions – they are in essence, highly sustainable.

Now, I understand that mention of the word “sustainable” or “sustainability” can elicit an eye roll from some people, probably because they’ve heard the terms being used in a macro context, and attached to issues which seem entirely out of an individual’s control, or without any clearly defined meaning.

But, in the context of the wider world, for something to be “sustainable” it has to operate and function in a net positive way in relation to its economic, environmental and social interactions.

Or in other words, something that does stuff that it can continue to do in the future without harming other stuff.

When you break it down, orchards are wonderfully sustainable places.

And here’s how.

ECONOMY As with many forms of agriculture, the growing of apples has become less profitable for farmers over recent decades. There is still some money to be made, as demonstrated by the tens of thousands of acres of commercial apple orchards planted in the UK. And now, orchardists are beginning to understand the extra value that can be derived from old fashioned apple varieties from older, standard orchards.

The economic benefits of orchards extend beyond that experienced by the grower, however, as cider orchards have other positive financial impacts, too.

In the commercial cider apple growing

regions of the West and South West of England for example, an entire industry has been created around the growing of these apples, providing crucial jobs in rural areas.

Specific pieces of machinery are necessary to manage orchards and harvest the fruit, and these are developed, built and maintained by local agricultural engineers.

Specialised apple contractors are needed during the autumn to harvest the fruit, whilst many local haulage firms will be transporting nothing other than cider apples during October and November, day and night.

ENVIRONMENT Although I described orchards as unnatural environments, I meant that purely in the context of them not occurring in this form within nature.

That is not to say, of course, that they do not retain any natural value – orchards open the front door for all sorts of wild things because, let’s face it, it’s as close to a woodland environment as many parts of the world get these days, postNeolithic transition.

“PEOPLE OF ALL AGES CAN DISCOVER NATURE, EXPLORE THE CHANGING SEASONS AND LEARN VOCATIONAL SKILLS SUCH AS PRUNING, HARVESTING AND GRAFTING” Orchards are hotspots for biodiversity; a result of the mosaic of habitats they encompass, including fruit trees themselves, but also scrub, hedgerows, hedgerow trees, non-fruit trees within the orchard, the orchard floor habitats, fallen dead wood and associated features such as ponds and streams.

As a result, uncommon and rare birds, invertebrates, mammals and amphibians all call traditional orchards home.

Of course, one can not gloss over the fact that most modern apple orchards will be utilising spays and applications to control certain invertebrates and fungi. But an orchard of any description will always be more bio-active than a patch of mono-culture arable crop that is devoid of any adjoining habitat, and a sub soil that has been tilled into oblivion.

One should also consider that, like any tree, apple trees are net carbon sequestrators. Through photosynthesis they are storing up carbon dioxide that would otherwise be present within the atmosphere. That’s right– in order to help combat the ravages of global warming, I propose that we should all drink more cider!

COMMUNITY Orchards can play an important role in the general health and wellbeing of individuals and entire communities.

Within urban environments, Community Orchards have grown in popularity over the last decade, driven by a genuine desire for communities to have a place to meet and rediscover the benefits and pleasures of cultivating green spaces.

These oases of green space nestling amongst the concrete hum can provide a fantastic place for isolated or otherwise disparate people to come together to be social, active and engaged. They promote the health benefits of fresh produce and outdoor exercise, improving wellbeing and making our cities and neighbourhoods more pleasant places to live. They also offer a hands-on approach to learning.

People of all ages can discover nature, explore the changing seasons and learn vocational skills such as pruning, harvesting and grafting.

Orchards also play an important role within the rural communities in which they normally sit. They have a massive social value. They are places where people go to exercise, walk the dog, have a picnic with family, go camping with friends, or steal a kiss. There is nothing better than sitting in an orchard during the height of blossom with good weather, good company and good cider. They are the seat of wider social gatherings – celebrations, feasts and festivals.

For many people, myself included, orchards are more than an amenity space – they are the epitome of the cultural heritage of a particular place, a particular landscape. Their mere presence is an inherent positive contribution to society.

A piece of research undertaken in Herefordshire and published in 2012 sought to understand the economic, environmental and social value of orchards in hard cash terms.

To ascertain the social value of an orchard, nearby residents of the orchards in question were invited to events to guage their perspectives.

One of the study orchards was on private land, with no footpaths or public access, invisible from any road or hill as it was predominantly surrounded by woodland.

Yet the local residents to this invisible orchard gave it the highest ranking of importance of any of the orchards being studied. Why? The residents took immense satisfaction that this old orchard was simply there.

How lush is that?

An edited extract from Ciderology

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Cider Needs YOU! The craft cider renaissance could have been dealt a death blow by coronavirus. Yet dozens of plucky producers, bottle shops and pubs have turned their lives around to enable the sector’s survival. Inspired by the results, passionate advocate Dick Withecombe charts the results in a ground-breaking map Surveys show that beer and cider are being hit hard in the current climate. According to the Society of Independent Brewers (SIBA), UK average beer sales are down 82% and many craft breweries will struggle to survive. To help keep themselves afloat, nearly 2,000 pubs, breweries and cideries are now offering takeaway or delivery services.

As part of its Pulling Together campaign, launched in mid-March in partnership with SIBA, CAMRA has put together a directory to encourage beer and cider drinkers to support the industry and to shop locally for their favourite brew or cider.

Cider in particular needs support. In a CGA survey, 25% of drinkers chose cider when drinking out, but this number slips to just 14% when buying online.

It doesn’t have to be that way.

The Pulling Together for Cider map I have curated with the help of many enthusiasts lists over a hundred places, including producers themselves and scores of national and local cider suppliers, where quality cider can be bought.

“I would urge all cider and perry drinkers to order from a local producer who can deliver straight to your home,” says Gillian Hough, who heads up CAMRA’s campaigning body for Real Ale, Cider and Perry, the architects of the Pulling Together campaign. “Now more than ever is the time to use your money wisely to support producers that you want to see thrive.”

“I WOULD URGE ALL CIDER AND PERRY DRINKERS TO ORDER FROM A LOCAL PRODUCER WHO CAN DELIVER STRAIGHT TO YOUR HOME” Here’s some of my highlights, and do bookmark the ever-updating map to find your best cider source. You’ll find it on our Cider Buzz Manchester pages as well as the CAMRA website.

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ADJUSTING TO A NEW WORLD ONLINE National cider suppliers and wholesalers are the essential cog of the cider community. With tight margins they are the people tasked with probably the most difficult problem for craft cider: bring quality cider to the market in a sustainable fashion.

1 PULLING TOGETHER – CRAFTY NECTAR MARKETPLACE Crafty Nectar was quick to react to the Covid-19 crisis. On 16 March it opened up its large online reach with a Cider Marketplace for small producers without an online presence or their own distributor.

“The Cider Marketplace will allow any cidermaker to use our platform to host their own web store, taking on new cider sales and benefiting from the thousands of visitors who come to our website every month,” says Crafty Nectar co-founder Ed Calvert.

“We’re also giving Marketplace producers promotional access to our social channels, so all they have to do is craft the message and we will share across the community of 80,000 we have built since our foundation in 2015.” https://craftynectar.com/collections/ craft-cider-market-place 2 NIFTY & NIMBLE – THE FINE CIDER COMPANY Pommelier and fine cider and perry merchant, Felix Nash of Fine Cider Co, champions producers of minimum intervention natural ciders. In response to lockdown, Felix acted quickly, changing his business from mainly supplying the hospitality sector to selling direct to consumers online.

Offering free local delivery and affordable nationwide delivery, Felix has curated interesting cider collections, gathered in new releases from his producers. Response has been good, he says. “We’ve already been able to take on an extra worker as we have built up home cider deliveries across East and North East London.

“As we develop we are looking to more customer engagement with the many new customers giving quality cider a

first try. We are also teaming up with some of our sommelier and restaurant partners for online tastings and events, such as Cider at Six on Instagram Live.” https://thefinecider.company/ 3 GROWING THE FAMILY – SCRATTINGS CRAFT CIDER SHOP Just in case you were wondering, scrattings are chunks of apple once they have been milled!

Since its formation in 2018, Susan and Karl Withers have built up their gimmick-free, online shop to stock one of the largest online craft cider selection in the UK. “Our ciders are all made by independent producers, both large and small, and we also stock a large selection of ice cider,” says Karl. “As soon as we heard about the lockdown we put out a call to help small cider producers without their own online sales. We have since taken on new producers, from Barley Wood near Bristol all the way down to Touchwood Cider in Cornwall.

While the lockdown has meant that producers have lost their pub and festival trade, Scrattings sales have increased, with regular customers returning with larger orders and many new customers. “When we first started, many of our sales were in 500ml bottles. In the two years since, we’ve seen the finer ciders and 750ml bottles come to dominate our sales” https://www. scrattingscraftcidershop. co.uk/

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PRODUCERS FIND NEW WAYS TO SELL When the majority of your sales outlets suddenly disappear, imaginative approaches have to be taken, and cider producers are creative.

4 CHANGING SPACES – LITTLE POMONA CIDER HOUSE, HEREFORDSHIRE About to open their new tasting room just as lockdown fell, Little Pomona has been among the many having to change tack. “We’re introducing Click & Collect for local customers, and we’ve brought forward plans for our online shop and our own Cider Club,” says co-founder Susanna Forbes.

“In this time of isolation, it’s even more vital to build links between ourselves and our

customers. We are planning virtual tastings, to share and explore the intricacies of new releases, and we hope our website with its Family and Friends pages can become a launchpad into the craft cider community.” http://www.littlepomona.com/ 5 TEAMING UP – JOLTER PRESS, FOREST OF DEAN For many, what’s vital is keeping the spirit of community. The weekend cider tap at Jolter press has become a community hub supporting traditional arts in the Forest of Dean. For founder, Pat Lock, it has been a time of change.

“We had to close our Friday bar and to cancel events, and I switched to reduced hours for collections from

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Jolter Towers and a Friday delivery service in the Forest of Dean.

“But I’m working with a local farmers market, with Bespoke Brewery next door, and with six other small cider producers to get our products to the people. The customers appreciate we’re going the extra mile and what we as local producers represent. Their response and support have been quite touching.” http://jolterpress.com 6 LOCAL FOOD & DRINK HUB – NIGHTINGALE CIDER, KENT Sam Nightingale has been putting in the hours supporting his local community through the family farm shop near Tenterden in Kent “In the last few weeks we have started a box scheme in our farm shop, preparing boxes for collection four days a week, which has really helped the local community.

“I feel incredibly lucky that my family has this small working fruit farm. My siblings and I are now the third generation and with that comes a huge responsibility as custodians of the land and nature.

“Having a cider webshop for direct cider sales has been an absolute saviour for the cider business. Lots of local people asking for cider doorstep deliveries, along with national orders via courier are making a dent in the painful loss of our wholesale business partners. We are about to start bottling again, there has been so much of a demand for bottled cider, it’s been rather humbling.” https://nightingalecider.com/

LOCAL HEROES KEEP THE CIDER FLOWING Community pubs, craft beer breweries and pubs, wine shops and bars around the country continue to sell ciders through local delivery, collections and some with online sales. The Cider Map lists many, from the far South West way up to Glasgow and Edinburgh.

7 HEART OF A COMMUNITY – THE SALUTATION INN, HAM, GLOS The Salutation at Ham not only sells cider, they make their own Sally Cider as well, with a little help from John Barnes at Wild Cider Co. “Initially we started selling takeout cider, beer and food through our off-sales serving hatch, but as the lockdown was announced we moved direct to home deliveries via our online store,” says landlord Pete Tiley.

“Online sales have been great, and the community has really got behind us. I think they realise that without their support at this time there wouldn’t be a pub for them to come back to. “Driving past the local orchards… the importance of

supporting our local Gloucestershire cider makers really struck home.

“In addition to the cider and beer we’ve also been selling ready meals, simple groceries like bread from the local baker, even toilet paper, recognising that a number of people were struggling to get out to the shops and if they could, quite often the shelves would be empty. http://www.the-sally-at-ham.com/ 8 GOING LOCAL – VESSEL BEER SHOP, PLYMOUTH Sam Congden and his partner Katie, familiar faces at festivals up and down the land, have built up a loyal following at their bar and bottle shop in Devon, “We have switched to a home delivery service for our local area,” says Sam. “We are very lucky to have a great group of regulars who continue to support us, plus a few new faces on the orders who will hopefully stay with us.

“Before the lockdown we had started to see an increase in cider sales, which I think was down to having a dedicated cider fridge and our monthly Cider Sunday. We’re still trying to support as many producers and suppliers as possible so are still ordering, with recent new additions from Pilton and Little Pomona.” http://www.vesselbeer.co.uk/ 9 SUPPORTING THE PRODUCERS – FRAM FERMENT, DURHAM Following lockdown, cider Pommelier Susannah Mansfield and husband Chris closed their pub The Station House, Durham, but have kept their newer business Fram Ferment trading.

“After a short period of reflection, we’ve set up a webshop where our customers are able to order for personal delivery to the local area,” says Susannah.

“Interestingly we are noticing an upturn in sales of products that had been slow to shift previously, perhaps because the webshop gives them more or equal visibility. Or maybe people are just taking the chance to buy something they’d been eyeing up in the shop and have decided now is the time to take the plunge.

“If we’re honest, this new normal is a lot of work for very little profit, but it keeps our customers in good cider, is a morale booster for both us and customers, and, perhaps most importantly, means we can keep buying at least a small amount from our suppliers.” https://fram-ferment.square.site/

DICK WITHECOMBE is the founder of Manchester Cider Club and a member of CAMRA’s Real Ale, Cider and Perry Campaign Committee. ciderbuzz.co.uk Follow him on facebook,@Ashton1848 on twitter and @ciderbuzzmcr on instagram

www.ciderbuzz.co.uk

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APPLE

YARLINGTON MILL A batch of ripe Yarlingtons in the right hands makes a fantastic cider. Bill Bradshaw reckons it’s a variety to cherish for consumers and cidermakers alike The “Yarly” is a bit of a legend amongst the traditional cidermaking fraternity. I would almost venture to say it’s one of the few things cidermakers can agree on… almost! As a variety, it’s a great all rounder and is one of the more available single variety ciders with good reason.

Its popularity has spread this pale yellow, bittersweet apple far beyond its humble origins in bucolic east Somerset. Today its roots spread to mainland Europe and as far as the USA, Australia and Japan.

Its birth is dated to 1898 and, like many cherished traditional cider apples, it was found growing as a wild pippin, or gribble, in the race-wall by the water wheel at Yarlington Mill near North Cadbury in Somerset. It is believed it was originally taken and grown on to use as a rootstock but when it bore such tasty fruit, it was properly named and propagated to plant out.

It is classed as ‘vintage quality’ – balanced and tasty enough to make good cider on its own, without the need to blend other varieties in to make up for anything that might be lacking – not something every apple can boast.

Although seasoned cidermakers and drinkers will know what to expect from Yarlington Mill, its gentle, not too challenging balance of flavours, tannins and acids offers drinkers a classic taste experience. Thus the juice sits well with less experienced palates and those drinkers still slightly nervous, much like that wonderful moment when you bite into and slurp the fresh juice from a cider apple for the first time. As with every single variety of apple, a cider made solely from that variety offers a great way to familiarise yourself with the particular set of characteristics that a specific apple can offer. The Yarlington Mill is definitely one to seek out.

“RICH AND AROMATIC, PLENTY OF TANNIN GIVES IT A UNIQUE AND DISTINCTIVE SET OF CHARACTERISTICS” As a tree, once established Yarlington Mill grows well and crops heavily, if biennially, often producing bumper crops. This medium-sized apple often exhibits some pinky-red sun blush and once crushed, yields a wonderful juice – rich and particularly aromatic with plenty of tannin.

The ciders made from Yarlington Mill, have a great vibrancy, almost glowing gold. The variety tends to yield higher than average sugar levels, giving rise to a full bodied cider. This, when coupled with deep tannins results in ciders with distinctive, fantastic aromas, making them both beguiling and recognisable.

TASTES

WOODREDDING, 2018

THE NEWT, NO 3 CYDER

ROSS ON WYE, PREMIUM

Herefordshire, 6.7% abv woodreddingcider.weebly.com

Somerset, 5.4% abv thenewtinsomerset.com

Herefordshire, 7.4% abv rossonwye.com

Brian and Fran Robbins have been making cider and perry for over 10 years. And they’re pretty bloody good at it. Situated in direct line of sight with May Hill, the old standard trees planted

by Bulmers well over 70 years ago provide ciders of boldness and integrity, with the Yarlington Mill the standout.

Insane levels of earthy, tarry, liquorice and Christmas pudding spices partner succulent, juicy (not cloying) sweetness while a zesty dash of VA spiciness makes this quite the beast!

This bright, beautifully rich coloured cider has a sweet fruity-apple aroma.

The first taste is crisp acid followed by a long, full-bodied medium sweetness with hints of leather and apple skins, finishing perfectly with soft tannins for a lingering taste. It’s clean, aromatic and, pleasingly, the residual sugars are used to balance out the overall structure. It’s a really good example of modern cidermaking craft based on a traditional approach.

Fermented in oak casks and left to mature for 18 months before bottling and conditioning, this is a perfect Yarlington Mill cider in the way it combines character and drinkability. The aroma is full-on earthy, loamy orchard floor. This continues onto the palate, but opens out into a perfect balance that hits all the targets: there’s dry tannin that gives structure without being astringent; sweetness that’s candied without being artificial; and a light acidity that makes the mouth water without puckering. .

PB

GC

BB

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MORE THAN JUST A FESTIVAL, THE TXOTX SEASON EMBODIES THE VITALITY AND VIBRANCY OF THE BASQUE COUNTRY’S ELECTRIFYING CIDER WORLD. ADD TO THIS THE GASTRONOMIC HERITAGE OF SAN SEBASTIAN, AND ADAM WELLS FINDS AN UNBEATABLE PROPOSITION Let’s cut to the chase here, and in Basque cider country the chase is txotx. If you visit Astigarraga, Hernani, San Sebastián and you don’t attend at least one txotx meal then I’m afraid that your Basque journey is incomplete and you need to go back as soon as you can. The white hot soul of Basque cider is bedded as deeply in the sizzle of cod omelette, the rich, hot, oily flesh-reek of perfectly rare steak, the clackety tumult of crowded dining rooms and the long lines of waiting punters snaking from colossal chestnut casks as it is in the glittering lace of sagardoa that arcs from those casks into impossibly thin proffered glasses.

Txotx is a celebration of the culmination of a vintage; the first taste

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of the fermented cider. Anywhere else it would be filed under “festival”.

Here it happens every day for three months at every cidery. Just think about that for a moment. By the time it closes in April, over 800,000 people have attended. Every last one of them eating the set menu of chorizo in cider and honey, salt cod omelette, cod loin with peppers, t-bone steak and cheeses. And every last one of them drinking cider. It almost doesn’t matter which cidery – sagardotegia – you visit. The experience at each one will be like nothing you have ever done before. This is cider writ gourmet; writ spectacle; writ theatre. For the record, we went to Zelaia, pictured immediate right, and it was magnificent.

But the funny thing is that txotx as a festival really hasn’t been around all that long. Merchants and gastronomic societies may have dropped by at cideries to taste and procure the first of the vintage for centuries, but the public meals, the set menus, the theatre – that’s only existed for about as long as the Beatles. From nought to 800,000 in half a century. It’s an impressive statistic – one that cider regions around the world would do well to bear in mind.

“THIS IS CIDER WRIT GOURMET; WRIT SPECTACLE; WRIT THEATRE.” Cider is everywhere in San Sebastián, but it’s everywhere you’re not looking. It’s hidden in huge fridges under the counters at bars. It’s on the bottom shelves of shops, beneath Rioja and the local wine, Txakoli. It certainly looks the part; always served in an elegant 75cl wine bottle, in the style of a German Riesling or an Alsatian

white. At a cursory glance from an uninformed consumer it could easily be mistaken for wine, until you see the price tag of just €3 or so for even the most premium, gold-topped bottles.

As is so often the case, even in the heartlands of cider world, the juice of the fermented apple is generally seen in San Sebastián bars as a poor second cousin to that of the grape.

A shame, because Basque cider is rocketing at the moment, thanks to cideries like Zapiain and Zelaia, who treat their fruit with a winemaker’s reverence, sensibility and equipment.

And let’s dwell on that fruit for a moment, because it’s an important aside. Unlike North-West France and South-West England, where tannins often reign supreme, this is the land of sharps. What bittersweets are used tend to sit on the mildest end of the spectrum; there really isn’t much tannin here, if any. What there is, is a beautiful rasp of acidity that whispers through the oil and fat and protein of local cooking. The cider is built to match the food – and it does so, beautifully. You won’t often see apples named on labels, but something in the

Credit: Haritz Rodriguez | Ciderzale.com, Bill Bradshaw

Txotx!

OVERSEAS region of 115 varieties are permitted by local legislation.

That legislation was put in place to catch up with Spain’s other great cider region, Asturias, and to lay down a Protected Designation of Origin (PDO) designed to safeguard quality and tradition.

The Basque PDO falls into three categories: Gorenak, comfortably the largest, which permits apple varieties from outside the Basque Country, and requires an independent rating of at least 53/100. Then there’s Euskal Sagardoa, marked by a red top.

Again, a score of 53 is required, but the apples must be Basque. Finally there’s the Gold Top, Euskal Sagardoa Premium. Only Basque apples qualify, and the cider must be rated at least 70 points. Realistically we’re talking the top 1%.

But how do you drink these ciders?

Well, stay your hand, don’t pour all the way to the top of the glass. Whether you’re catching cider from a barrel or pouring from a bottle, you only want an inch – maybe two inches at a time – poured from a great height. Why? For a delicate seam of carbonation, a ribbon of beads that lift the liquid and heighten its fruit. In Asturias you’ll see bartenders pouring with arms fully stretched, but you don’t need to be as showy as that – a foot or two is more than sufficient distance. And many of the ciders have specially-designed corks to prevent you making too much of a mess.

“THERE ISN’T MUCH TANNIN HERE. THERE IS A BEAUTIFUL RASP OF ACIDITY THAT WHISPERS THROUGH THE OIL AND FAT AND PROTEIN OF LOCAL COOKING” In 1967, Basque cider production was as low as 1.25m litres in the year.

These days it’s risen back up to 13m – and growing. There are festivals in summer and at harvest time and at the start of the year, of course, there is the txotx season. Cideries are improving their techniques – even experimenting with different styles, like champagnemethod and ice cider – but chiefly perfecting their classic, natural, dry still. This unique, dazzling, refreshing, natural cider, so closely entwined with the cuisine of one of the world’s gastronomic epicentres, is getting its mojo back, and no mistake.

ADAM WELLS is a drinks writer, covering cider for Graftwood and Malt Review in addition to his articles in Full Juice. He writes extensively about whisky for several magazines and websites, works in the wine trade and holds the WSET Diploma.

HARITZ RODRIGUEZ aka Ciderzale, is a Basque cider enthusiast, journalist and marketing consultant. ciderzele.com

HOW TO GET THERE

A regular, one-hour bus ride will take you straight from Bilbao airport to the centre of San Sebastián.

The cideries of Astigarraga are then just a 15-minute bus ride… or a very pleasant hour-or-so’s walk away.

CIDER HOTSPOTS SAGADOETXEA, ASTIGARRAGA This cider museum, complete with its own orchards and handy tourist office, should be your first port of call on arrival. You’ll learn about the historic, ancient beginnings of Basque cider and track its journey through the tumult of the 20th century, to the present day. Topped off with a few tasters, a healthilystocked gift shop, and a chance to plan your other visits. www.sagardoarenlurraldea.eus/en/ ZAPIAIN You should try to visit as many cideries as you can, but if you can only get to one, make it Zapiain.

It’s the biggest Basque cidery, at around 1,000,000 litres a year, but its output is entirely natural, entirely full-juice… and outstanding quality. They also lead the region in innovation; their ice and fortified ciders are delicious, and their brandy’s no slouch either.

TXOTX! The all-important. You have dozens of options here, but the season only lasts from mid-January to April, so be sure you book your visit for then.

And don’t forget the other 799,999 visitors … txotx evenings book up well in advance. Prices are generally around €35pp. For the quantity and quality of food… and bottomless cider straight from cask… it’s a thief’s bargain.

THE BARS OF SAN SEBASTIÁN. Another huge generalisation, but the experience is so universally excellent that you’re more or less

well-set whichever you stumble into. Order yourself a plate of pintxos – the local specialities, disarmingly simple but hugely varied small bites of food – and a bottle of whatever cider they sell, sit back, and one small pour at a time, realise you’re starting to “get it”.

ADAM’S FAB FOUR

ZELAIA, EUSKAL SAGARDO PREMIUM The best bottling from a cidery at the top of its game. Bone dry and sitting slap bang in the middle of the Basque cider flavour scale that runs from citrus to tropical.

Brimming with green apples, sherbet and sorbet-fresh lime juice.

Utterly refreshing.

BEREZIARTUA, EDICIÓN GOURMET Made from local apples including Txalaka, Urtebia and Gezamina, this shares the whipcrack acidity of the Zelaia, but its fruit tends in a slightly deeper, more tropical direction. Impressive and deliciously lingering. Demands a lazy afternoon in the sunshine.

ZAPIAIN, BIZI-GOXO A single variety ice cider Zapiain makes from the Errezile apple.

A decadent, unctuous nectar of a drink, kept fresh by a core of piercing acidity that lends brightness to the richer caramels, baked apples and brown sugars.

Essential sipping for lovers of great dessert wines… or simply those with a very sweet tooth.

ASTARBE, BYHUR 24 The deluxe edition of Astarbe’s champagne-method Byhur, this one takes its name from the 24 months it sits on its lees before disgorgement after its second fermentation in bottle. A yeasty, brioche richness beautifully accompanies the apple and citrus of the fruit, offset by a fine, creamy mousse.

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STYLE COUNSEL

NATURALLY SPARKLING WHETHER IT’S TO ADD VIVACITY AND COMPLEXITY OR AS A WAY OF PRESERVING CIDER WITH MINIMAL INTERVENTION, CIDEROLOGIST GABE COOK FINDS METHODS TO CRAFT NATURALLY SPARKLING CIDERS HAVE A RICH HISTORY, ESPECIALLY HERE IN THE UK. One of the joys of cider is its simplicity: get apples, squeeze them, extract juice, place in a vessel and ferment. The resultant dry, still cider has been enjoyed in various parts of the “Old World” of cider for millennia.

Cider can, however, exude all of the finesse and elegance of wine, expressed most pertinently with naturally sparkling ciders. These drinks – the close cousins of opulent champagne, vivacious crémant and cool-as-cats pét nat – are now starting to emerge as some of the finest drinks made on these shores.

WHAT & WHERE Quite fantastically, naturally sparkling ciders have quite the heritage in the

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UK. If we travel back to the early 17th century, we find the aristocracy drinking high quality cider from beautiful crystal flutes, with wine being scarce due to Britain’s almost permanent state of war with its various European neighbours starving off its importation. Crucially, this fine cider was allowed to spend time in new bottles coming from the furnaces of Sir Kenelm Digby in the Forest of Dean, in Gloucestershire.

He was innovating with bottles that were stronger and more stable than any other in their day. These strong bottles enabled a final portion of fermentation to be completed within the bottle, ensuring that the cider was kept free from spoilage

and, most importantly, adding a light, natural sparkle. Remarkably, Digby’s exploits were being undertaken before Champagne pioneer and Benedictine monk Dom Pérignon was even born.

We have legitimate cause, therefore, to describe this as being the “Forest of Dean” Method rather than the “Champagne” Method – not sure whether the French will go for that!

“WE HAVE CAUSE TO DESCRIBE THIS AS BEING THE ‘FOREST OF DEAN’ METHOD RATHER THAN THE ‘CHAMPAGNE’ METHOD” Today, varying interpretations of naturally sparkling cider are made across the globe, from Old World to New, from Northern Hemisphere to Southern and from traditional craftsmen to modern specialists. The area most associated with naturally

sparkling ciders is France, where the regions of Brittany and Normandy have undertaken a unique process of cidermaking that elicits a natural fizz, whilst also retaining an unadulterated sweetness. These ciders, normally achieved through the keeving process, are so idiosyncratic and so inextricably linked to a region and to an old cider culture, they have been omitted from this style discussion today, in favour of allowing the space and time to tell their full story separately another time.

The singular, key aspect of any naturally sparkling cider is that the carbonation has been achieved, well, naturally!! Or more specifically, without force carbonation. Broadly speaking, naturally sparkling ciders head down a few different paths. Let’s delve a little deeper….

MÉTHODE TRADITIONELLE These are ciders which undergo their primary fermentation in a vessel – whether it be steel, plastic or wooden

– culminating in all of the sugar fermenting to alcohol. The cider is then placed into a bottle with some extra sugar and (normally) a specific yeast strain, to undergo a secondary fermentation, creating a strong sparkle.

Classically, the bottles would be rested on their side with the cider allowed to mature sur lie, meaning “on the lees” or yeast. This maturation sur lie normally lasts between six and 18 months before the cider will be riddled and disgorged – the process of removing the lees from the bottle to leave a clear, naturally sparkling cider. At this point, there may be the addition of a dosage, a sugar solution, to sweeten the cider to taste.

There is a high pressure in the bottle, creating a strong, sustaining bead of bubbles once opened. This is the process that Forest of Dean…

I’m sorry… Champagne-style wines undergo in order to gain their sparkle.

BOTTLE CONDITIONED To “condition” (so the OED tells me) is “to bring to a desirable state” – in

this case, to achieve a level of natural sparkle. This can be achieved through a minor, secondary in-bottle ferment, as per the méthode traditionelle, but without the high level of carbonation and with the cider still sitting on the yeast deposit.

“THERE ARE NO RULES – ONLY FUN AND EXPERIMENTATION!” Some producers undertake (and describe their cider as having undergone) a bottle conditioning process whereby the cider finishes its primary fermentation in the bottle, rather than starting a second. The cider is moved from the vessel to the bottle whilst there is still sugar to be fermented. Depending on how the fermentation has been managed and the intention of the cidermaker, the cider may end up bone dry (known as pét nat in natural wine circles, and increasingly with some cidermakers), or still retaining some residual sweetness via cold racking or

keeving – in France often referred to as méthode ancestrale.

Cidermakers often like to employ bottle conditioning as a minimal intervention preservative measure, as well as helping to enliven the cider with some carbonation.

FRUIT & TANNINS For all of these styles, any variety of apple can be used, entirely at the cidermaker’s discretion, depending on which flavour they wish to achieve.

Méthode traditionelle ciders made with high acid fruit is a logical step, given that high acid grapes would be used for their wine counterpart, but bold and idiosyncratic méthode traditionelle ciders made from tannic apples can also be achieved.

Similarly, the textured nature of tannins could be suggested to work well with ciders that sit on the lees, but there are many fine examples of more fruity and acid-driven ciders that employ the same methods.

There are no rules – only fun and experimentation!

TASTES

OLIVER’S FINE CIDER, BOTTLE CONDITIONED PERRY

FIND & FOSTER, RB MÉTHODE TRADITIONELLE 2017

BOLLHAYES, 2014

Herefordshire, 5.6% abv oliversciderandperry.co.uk/shop, thefinecidercompany

Devon, 8% abv scrattingscraftcidershop.co.uk, thefinecidercompany

Devon, 8.4% abv bollhayescider.co.uk

The Godfather of soulful cider and perry making comes back with another classic. This naturally sparkling perry has been carefully managed through racking and temperature control to slow fermentation prior to bottling. Using favourites such as Blakeney Red, Gin, Red Longdon and Oldfield from old orchards, this results in a well balanced, lively perry with some residual sweetness. Fruity on the nose with hints of elderflower and citrus, the sensorial assault continues in the mouth with a juicy mouthfeel and gooseberry and rhubarb vibrancy. Lush!

GC

Nature, heritage, terroir, craft – it’s all here. The MT is the pinnacle of Polly and Mat’s ciders, the one you can’t wait to sip. With a host of rare, unknown apples – I’d never met the Devonshire Buckland – there’s elegance and complexity. While the latest MT 2017 to be disgorged spent time in an ex-Sharpham Rosé barrel, we had the RB cuvée. With a citrus overlay to the warm, baked apple plus hints of dark spices. Small bubbles propel notes of medium-cut marmalade, lemon peeland apricot danish. Perfect at room temperature. Memorable and well executed.

SF

The supreme mousse and clarity in the glass as the Bollhayes pours attest to the skill in conditioning this cider.

The traditional varieties used give it a lovely golden amber colour. It has spicy aromas of clove and nut-shell with a gentle zest running through it.

To taste, it is dry, woody and has an underlying grapefruit tartiness giving a pleasant degree of sourness. The soft tannins which have mellowed on-lees, give it a long finish and the resulting cider has a modest, satisfying sparkle which would suit a range of foods.

BB

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OVERSEAS

THE WIZARDS OF AUS Craft cider may be in the minority in Australia, but it is authentic, drawing on deep technical skill as well as good apple terroir. Bill Bradshaw finds himself excited Like every country with a modern cider industry, Australia has its fair share of run-of-the-mill, lacklustre ciders – too sweet or too onedimensional, yet all too easy for consumers to buy. This leads anyone with a genuine interest in well made craft ciders to assume that there aren’t any, and the only option for cider and perry drinkers is ubiquitous, industrial beverages. But when you consider the country’s winemaking prowess, its rich deep soils and huge amounts of sunlight, not to mention the history of European settlement, you’re left thinking “there must be some… so where is it?”

Fear not, there is! Australia actually has a vibrant, friendly and generousspirited craft cider community, and any visitor passionate about high quality cider won’t leave disappointed.

As a nation, Australians produce a wide range of styles using a multitude of approaches.

“AUSTRALIA HAS A VIBRANT, FRIENDLY AND GENEROUSSPIRITED CRAFT CIDER COMMUNITY, AND ANY VISITOR PASSIONATE ABOUT HIGH QUALITY CIDER WON’T LEAVE DISAPPOINTED” Still cider producers challenge their fantastic white wine compatriots (think Small Acres Cyder, New South Wales), while carbonated, quenchable lower abv quaffers (Hills Cider, South Australia) sit alongside internationally awarded fine ciders and perries made with an impressive level of skill and passion (Red Sails, Tasmania; LOBO Cider SA).

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Geographically if you were to draw a line between Sydney in New South Wales and Adelaide in South Australia, the majority of producers in the east are found below this line in the cooler climes that support apple growth. For example, Tasmania has a great climate for apples and great cider. Meanwhile, across the Nullaboor into Western Australia the regions to watch are the Great Southern and the South West.

AUTHENTIC AND PROGRESSIVE Australia, much like the USA, has followed its own trajectory, creating something authentically Australian.

Today’s producers at the cutting edge, are doing just that. Interestingly, as the nation’s wine production began to decrease a few years ago, many of the skilled wine workforce and the facilities used for making wine sidestepped into cider production.

The experience and set-up for making wine are directly transferable to cider. From what I’ve seen, producers seem to have a much higher technical proficiency than in the UK and, allying this with their experienced palates, this has given the industry a unique advantage.

Ironically, many of the winemakers turned cidermakers seem to use what they tend to have access to, non-tannic culinary apple varieties, something I’m sure they’d never consider doing with grapes when it comes to winemaking. Varieties such as Fuji, Granny Smith, Pink Lady and Gala are all commonly used.

Traditional British and French cider apples are available in small, but increasing quantities.

The recent fires plaguing the country have taken their toll, with some cideries completely razed to the ground. Apple growing regions in a huge area have been affected, ranging from Batlow in New South Wales right

across to the Adelaide Hills in Victoria, 1,000 km away. How those orchards and cidermakers whose businesses have survived will cope with the aftermath remains to be seen. Perhaps the positivity in the craft cider scene will keep them buoyant.

“THE RECENT FIRES PLAGUING THE COUNTRY HAVE TAKEN THEIR TOLL, WITH SOME CIDERIES COMPLETELY RAZED TO THE GROUND” One illustration of the pride of the sector is the 100% Australian Grown scheme, launched by official body, Cider Australia. Sam Reid, co-founder of Willie Smith’s and president of Cider Australia, reports that the trust mark has taken membership of Cider Australia to over 100.

Increasingly consumers are

choosing Australian Grown as their favoured choice, Reid says, helping this sector grow by over 10% in 2019, compared with cider made from fruit from outside Australia, which has declined by over 3%. As craft cider in Australia continues to mature, so does its annual Cider Awards, with the 2019 Australian Cider Awards attracting a record 267 entries.

While the majority might be shut at the time of writing due to the COVID-19 pandemic, more cellar doors are opening, allowing consumers greater opportunity to sample more ciders and to understand them better.

And for those who can make the trip, Tasmania offers a trail for cider lovers who want to explore the island.

After all, apples are its most famed crop. Western Australia also has a cider trail that runs from Perth down through the Peel and South West regions, culminating in the Great Southern regional town of Denmark (see Box, right).

WHOLE PICTURE Cider Australia’s members map shows the major apple growing regions, cidery locations and whether they are open to visitors. cideraustralia.org.au/ industry/australian-cider-map

MY FAB FOUR Sadly, and understandably, not many Australian Ciders are available here in UK, but some bottles to look out for are: WILLIE SMITH’S, FRENCH BLEND, TAS Anything from Willie Smith’s is worth buying but this particular gem is a fantastic ode to cidre. a 15-variety strong blend results in a full bodied, fruity and tannic cider, with a tasty hit of sparkle and masses of character. Really satisfying! williesmiths.com.au 6.3% abv HENRY OF HARCOURT, CHÂTAIGNIER, VIC Again, anything from Henry of Harcourt is worth making a beeline for. My personal favourite is the Châtaignier, a super tasty, punchy cider made from a French culinary apple. This cider ages gracefully, developing complexity along the way, finding balance for the acids which dominate at the outset. Lovely. henrycider.com, 9.9% abv HILLS CIDER, APPLE, ADELAIDE HILLS, SA A good example of a modern Australian style, Hills Cider’s Apple scored a Silver in the New World Medium Sweet category of the 2019 Australian Cider Awards. It is clean crisp, simple and refreshing in style. thehillscidercompany.com.au, 5% abv ST RONAN’S METHODE TRADITIONELLE PEAR CIDER, YARRA VALLEY, SA Made in the traditional method and a medal-winner since the start, this delicate pear cider has lovely crisp mousse. Just one of many reasons to head to the cidery tap room, hosted by Badger Creek Farm in Healesville, just over an hour’s drive from Melbourne. stronanscider.com.au 7% abv

CIDER HOTSPOTS

HUON VALLEY MID-WINTER FESTIVAL, TAS What I believe may be the largest Wassail in the world takes place at Willie Smith’s as part of the annual Mid Winter Festival. While you’re there, Willie Smith’s Apple Shed Cider Museum is a must any day of the year. williesmiths.com.au AUSCIDER Industry dorks should head for Cider Australia’s annual meeting. Due to take place in June, AusCider 2020 has been postponed. However, this information exchange and networking event inspired by CiderCon in US is worth watching out for. AusCiderbrings together cider producers, fruit growers, researchers, suppliers and other industry representatives from Australia and abroad. The first AusCider took place in 2019 in Tasmania, and the organisers are committed to taking it around different regions each year.

EXPERIENCE FLYING BRICK CIDER CO If you happen to be near Melbourne, visit Flying Brick Cider Co with its lovely restaurant and cider centre.

The fantastic freshly prepared food matches its wide range of ciders well. flyingbrickciderco.com.au TASMANIAN CIDER TRAIL Beautiful Tasmania is known as The Apple Isle because of its long and strong history of growing apples commercially. These days there are numerous cider producers – and an 11-strong cider trail. A trio of cideries are in the north, with the majority clustered within striking distance of Hobart. tascidertrail.com WA CIDER TRAIL For those visiting Perth or Western Australia, check out the Western Australia Cider Trail, with its ten members. With half of the producers to be found south of Perth, the trail makes its way down through Swan Valley on the way to Darwin. trailswa.com.au/trails/wa-cider-trail

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GOLD AWARD WINNER INTERNATIONAL CIDER AWARDS 2019 www.hoganscider.co.uk +44 (0)1789 488 433

THE INTERNATIONAL CIDER AWARDS

2019

Credit: 6: National Trust Images/William Shaw; 9: Ginger-Pixie-Photography

Made From 100% Fresh Pressed English Cider Apples

IN THEIR OWN WORDS

DRAGON ORCHARD 22 acres - 15 acres cider fruit; also dessert apples, damsons, Mirabelles, greengages, quince.

CIDER APPLE VARIETIES inc: Dabinett, Somerset Redstreak, Browns, Ellis Bitter, Kingston Black ONCE UPON A TREE numerous awards, including 2012 – BBC Food & Farming, Drinks Producer of the Year OTHER AWARD HIGHLIGHTS 1997 – Daily Telegraph Eco-House of the Year Self Build House of the Year 2007 – Country Living Business Women of the Year, Rural Diversification dragonorchard.co.uk

ANN & NORMAN STANIER DRAGON ORCHARD Forget the 3 Rs, for Ann and Norman Stanier, owners of the peerless Dragon Orchard, it’s the two Cs, connections and community. Susanna Forbes catches up with them after a chilly day’s pruning With a shared love of the great outdoors, orcharding in the blood, and an infectious interest in humanity, it’s perhaps not that surprising that Ann and Norman’s Dragon Orchard is so much more than a collection of trees. Yet often when we meet there’ll be updates on travels too, and ciders caught along the way. As it was when we met one windy evening before the COVID-19 crisis began to take a grip…

Norman Stanier: In 2016 we took a whole year off.

We went to Willie Smith’s in Tasmania. It has a museum and it was just like going into an old Herefordshire orchard. They had done it so well.

But we’re getting ahead of ourselves. Where did your innate connection with orchards begin?

NS: It’s sort of what I am really. My greatgrandfather, Harry Taylor, came to Putley in the 1870s to manage the Putley Court Estate. One thousand acres, it was bought by a Yorkshire man called John Riley. He’d been to Trinity College Cambridge, and his family made their money in cloth. He was one of the very early members of the Royal Horticultural Society.

When Riley bought the estate he went to America and saw all the new orchards in the Hudson Valley and Vermont. They were amazing because they weren’t hampered by tradition. The English orchards at the time were a complete mess. There was a massive balance of payment problem for prime minister William Gladstone.

The Yankee apples were all coming in, while the English dessert apples – no-one knew what they were.

It took Gladstone and Dr Robert Hogg from the RHS to shake up the whole of the English apple industry.

And Herefordshire through the Woolhope Club, was commissioned by Gladstone to lead the way. Riley was a member of the Woolhope Club, and the secretary of the Woolhope Club at the time was the Rev Bulmer.

“IT’S PROVIDING SHAPE TO THE TREE. BUT IT’S ALSO GIVING SHAPE TO OUR LIVES, AND CONNECTING US TO THE LANDSCAPE” Riley realised that his 1,000 acre farm could be a model orchard but he didn’t know how to do it. So he advertised for an overseer and my great grandfather got the job. He learned his business from his father, Samuel Taylor, who had this big nursery in Droitwich.

The family story is that he was interviewed at Malvern Station and Riley said “I think you’re great but you’re too young for the job.” And he said, “Well if you’ve got a young prime minister – Gladstone was only 26 – I think I can run your orchards.” And so he did, until the end of the century.

Back then it was called Orchard Croft. It had apples, plums and pears. No cider fruit. It was all dessert fruit. I worked on the farm with my brother. I vividly

remember just after I’d learnt to drive – I was 17 – I got up at 4o’clock in the morning, did three hours picking, had breakfast. Then I took the strawberries to Hereford Market and then I went and did my A levels.

In the 1970s, it was getting harder to sell dessert fruit at a decent price, so my father put in nine acres of the first Bulmers bush fruit.

How did you and Ann meet?

We met through the Outward Bound organisation.

I was working in Holne Park in Devon, and so was her father. We spent a lot of time in Minnesota. Got into Canadian canoeing. We have two canoes which we use whenever we can. It’s the rhythm of it, the journey and the remote places you can get to. It’s the connection to the elements.

When I’ve got an axe in my hand and when I’m splitting firewood, it’s exactly the same feeling as when I’ve got a pruning saw in my hands. It’s being outside. It’s being in the elements. It’s being totally connected with the surroundings. With the weather and the wind. When we’re pruning, you’re very aware of where the sun is because you can’t see if it’s not at your back. You’re very aware of where the wind is because otherwise you’re getting sawdust in your eyes.

And it’s providing shape to the tree. But it’s also providing shape to our lives, and connecting us to the landscape.

We’d always wanted to come back here, but we didn’t know how we could do it. When we did get back, we worked alongside my mother, Dorothy. She said she didn’t know much but she was still pruning when she was 80.

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Ann set up Dragon Orchard Crop Sharers, a community agricultural scheme, in 2001. We had had a terrible time with foot and mouth disease.

People couldn’t come into the countryside. We felt we needed to do something to ameliorate it.

We realised that with the farm, it’s not just the fruit, it’s the countryside. It’s the ambience.

People paid an annual subscription and we ran four weekends a year. In the autumn, people took home a share of the crop, hence the name. This has morphed into FRODOs, Friends of Dragon Orchard.

Ann won Country Living Business Women of the Year 2007 for Rural Diversification of the Year.

We wanted to plant what we called an amenity orchard. So, traditional Herefordshire varieties, but also new varieties, like Herefordshire Russet and Jumbo. We also wanted the orchard to be a thing of beauty and inspiration, So we designed it with aisles you can see through and different varieties – apples, plums, pears, quince, Mirabelles (type of plum).

We wanted to provide a focus so people could come, bring their grandchildren. So with straw bales we built an amphitheatre. We call it The Hug. We very much tried to develop our orchard community.

Annie felt people had lost the connection with the land and would welcome the chance to have a bit.

AS: To have a little piece of countryside that they have access to – they don’t have to look after it but it enables us to keep it going.

How did Once Upon a Tree, the cidery you began with Hannah and Simon Day, come about?

AS: Simon came to us because we were doing something different.

NS: Once Upon A Tree started in 2007. Our first year, we won three first prizes at the Museum of Cider, Hereford. And the next year he won Supreme champion with single variety Kingston Black. In 2012 we won BBC Drinks Producer of the Year!

AS: We used to have some wonderful tasting sessions at Orchard Croft. Tom [Oliver] came over.

Especially when we were deciding what sort of ciders we really wanted to produce, because Simon was doing something different. It was a real privilege to sit with him and Simon.

AS: I learnt to like cider. I like what we produce. I enjoy wine but cider didn’t do it for me. When we first came here, Mike Henney made a Dabinett/

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Bramley mix and it was like an apple wine. And when we started Crop Sharers we got his first batch.

NS: Well Mike had the apples from us. It was our Dabinett. What about the sparkling ciders?

AS: The Chapel Pleck? I love the sparkling ciders.

And then the dessert ciders. One of my favourite things is Blenheim Superb. He says he can make these things, but you don’t really expect something so extraordinary.

NS: The first lot was made in our chest freezer!

AS: That with Christmas pudding makes my Christmas.

But then it can go on to the cheese as well...

NS: For me, a really good Kingston Black is just out of this world. It’s like drinking the countryside.

I just love the complexity of it all. it’s so rich and wholesome. Simon produces cider from the orchard that we’ve just been pruning, Dorothy’s Orchard, so dessert fruit, and I really like that. And with food, there’s no tannins. it’s like wine. because I like the surprise of drinking a complex cider made with dessert fruit. I enjoy the quirkiness of it.

“FOR ME, A REALLY GOOD KINGSTON BLACK IS JUST OUT OF THIS WORLD. IT’S LIKE DRINKING THE COUNTRYSIDE” Do you help out many other cider producers?

NS: Quite a few craft people. They don’t want very much, and we’re delighted to help them out.

We’re very happy to receive enquiries from small producers.

AS: The price tag of Crop Sharers (c £250/year) limited those who could be involved. I wanted a way that people could have an engagement on a lower scale. Since we wanted to hold onto different varieties of dessert fruit, we pulled out the cider apple trees that weren’t doing very well and planted trees that were sponsored by people. A lot of them are in memory of people who have died. So we’ve always said “we will keep these in perpetuity”.

There’s always a lovely community here…

NS: Yes, and it doesn’t stop. We had our artist in residence. Jess Allen. A walking artist.

AS She was doing a PhD. She got married here.

NS: The project we first got involved with Jess on was All In A Day’s Walk. She was living at Caplor Farm [five miles away, renowned for its social and environmental sustainability], Fownhope. She only ate what she could find within a day’s walk, and she did it in December. She drank lots of our cider. On Christmas Day too.

NS: My dad was a founder member of the Big Apple. I’ve been vice-chair for ages. The Big Apple is becoming a Community Benefit Society. We’re future-proofing it really. Its original aim, to promote the seven parishes in the Marcle Ridge, we feel is even more important than it has ever been, because the countryside is under more threat.

We’ve got a climate emergency. We’ve got all sorts of challenges. We need to be in a position to be flying the flag. And promoting the importance of the apple. The culture of the apple. The connections between the people who grow it, eat it, make cider, enjoy it and benefit from it. And to realise the importance of locally, seasonally produced fruit.

NS: When we built this house, it won lots of awards (see Box, page 19). A timber-framed house with eight inches of newsprint in the walls. We also have a pond and wetland sewage treatment system.

Now we want to make a very, very green dwelling.

This house is called Dragon House – I want to call the new one Green Dragon. I hope it will be a passive house. We’ll probably rent it out. Like any small business, regular income is always the challenge.

Someone’s got to do it and it may as well be us.

What about the next generation?

AS: We have two sons, Patrick, the eldest. He’s a stage manager. He’s touring with Blue Man with his wife Emma. Hugh is a contemporary dancer. He’s in the middle of a dance residency in Goa. NS: In 2016 when we took our year off, we saw Hugh in India, and Patrick and Emma in Perth. Which is before we went to Tasmania But we love Tasmania, Willie Smith’s…

Which is where we began. So I take my leave. As I scrunch out on the gravel, I can’t help but gaze into the night sky and think of all the wonderful orcharding life that this place embodies. The pioneering spirit lives on…

Temptedcider.com @TemptedCider

DAVY’S FAMILY TREE once there was a man named davy whose passion and endeavor helped nurture and redefine cider for us all.

New, and old.

Tempted Irish Cider Crafted with family at its core

THE GIFT OF LIFE In autumn 2019 I was sent some small wild crab apples from a cidermaker in Asturias which I stratified and managed to germinate this spring.

I’m not entirely sure of their destiny at this stage, and don’t really care because they will grow safely in my care until I can decide what to do with them.

Even if I give them away - they will make great gifts to frends with new orchards as pollinators because they represent what cider is about to me: kindness, international friendships, sharing of passions and stories. Gracias EL CUCHARERU! Bill Bradshaw