In 2011 we started producing our own apple brandy and in 2014 we acquired our first still, Velocity, extending our product range to include malt spirit. In 2016 we now feel the time is right to expand the range further, increase our capacity and to create a dedicated brand for our unique artisanal spirits and liqueurs. To achieve this goal we are hoping crowd funding will provide the answer...

Change could be underfoot for us as landlords consider development of the historic Galleon Wharf site for luxury housing. So what does the future hold?

There is always a long list. On this list are all the jobs that need doing now; all the jobs that need doing soon; and all of the other things I’d really like to do as they are so much more fun than the previous two categories. Unfortunately I never get around to writing this list down and therefore usually get distracted by the things I like to do but aren’t a priority. As such, it comes around to this time of year and I realise the folly of my ways: lots of jobs still to do and only a few days before the first apples of the season will need pressing.

Ok, I confess, I'm probably not the worlds best blogger. Strangely I quite enjoy the act of blogging, time however always seems to get the better of me, and what seemed like just a few weeks between blogs actually became months. In this case 8 months! So here we go, a catch up of the past 8 months in an 8 minute read.

First of all, let me apologise for the hiatus of blogs since the harvest in September. Poor I know but a lot has happened in the time that has passed and I guess I have been rather pre-occupied. OK, so I'm possibly being a bit cryptic, apologies again, just lots of updates and not sure where to start. Maybe I'll just cut the waffle and spit it out. I've left my job...

What a great start to the season. Three quarters of a tonne of hand-picked apples from nine different orchards and, 6 hours later, 500 litres of glorious juice. Everything didn't quite go according to plan though and, at 9.30am I was wondering whether there would be any juice at all!

Today was a good day. Today I started collecting apples ready for the first pressing of the year this coming weekend. Well technically I started yesterday, but that was just a few kilos, whereas today was nearer half a tonne. The weather was spot on too: a nice cool breeze and a little bit of sunshine. All in all, ideal conditions and a good crop for just a few hours graft.

It’s always a worry. You put it off as long as you can, as if the delay will make everything taste that much better. Of course, it may not taste great at all! After a long winter and fermentation phase, there is always the question of whether or not the cider will taste good or not. This is even more pronounced when you decide to use natural (wild), rather than cultivated yeasts. A hundred cider producers in the UK will always say to use cultured yeasts…

Welcome to my blog! Not that it’s much of a blog yet as I haven’t really written
anything. However, the plan is to blog the ramblings of a cider maker during the
course of  a cider year. As the fruit starts to ripen I’ll begin to sharpen the pencil and scribe my thoughts…   watch this space :-)