about cider

Cider making has a long history. Apples are thought to have originated in what is now called the Middle East where the first cider was probably made. A type of cider is known to have been made by the Greeks well before the birth of Christ.  The Romans, the Spanish and the French all learned the art of cider making,  as it moved westwards.

Cider has been made in the west counties of England at least since Roman times. Although the Romans are known to have brought their own apple trees with them from Italy, cider was probably already being made been from the crab apple varieties already growing in England when the Romans arrived.

Cider has also been made in France, since the earliest times. Cider is still very popular in France, being the second largest alcoholic beverage to wine, but it ismade in a very different manner to English cider.

The home of French cider is the areas of Normandy and Brittany on the Atlantic and Channel coast. French cider production is highly regulated and partly controlled by an Appellation system similar to that of wine.

Dispute still rages as to whether the English cider makers were the first to make bottle fermented or “champagne” ciders. English cider makers argue that the English records of bottle fermented cider predate the French “champagne” by more than half a century.

The French naturally claim that the famous Monk, Dom Peringion who lived near Epernay, some two hours from Paris, was the first to bottle ferment his wine. “Dom Peringion” champagne, much favored by James Bond, is produced by Moet & Chandon. 
                                     
It is less well known that “hard Cider” i.e. alcoholic cider, was the universal alcoholic drink in the USA for many years after the country was first settled by the Pilgrim fathers in 1620. Apple trees are fairly easy to grow and cider was safer to drink in many urban settlements  than water. Pollution is not new. Cider eventually lost popularity to beer and whiskey and was dealt almost a death blow by the introduction od Prohibition in the 1920's. Fortunately it  is now experiencing something of a resurgence in popularity.

The juice of any crushed apples left to ferment will make alcoholic cider but the best cider is made from varieties selected for their high acid and tannin levels which give traditional cider its color, body, and flavor.

In England most cider was made on farms from farm grown cider apples, with each variety often being given a local name. Farm cider was usually left unfiltered after “racking” and was usually still and often cloudy. This cider is often referred to as “scrumpy”. “Racking” is the process where the almost clear fermented cider is drained from the fermentation barrel or tank leaving most of the residue of apple solids and dead yeast cells, “the lees” behind.

Our cider is made using only 100% fresh apples, mostly grown by us, and which are carefully pressed on the property.