Apples are picked from the Orchard and loaded into wooden crates. The apples are then either pressed immediately, or stored in giant refrigerated apple stores, to keep them in peak condition before pressing. We will select which varieties of apple to use depending on their character. Some will be sweeter, meaning more sugar and some will be more tart, meaning more acid.

The apples make their way to the mill, where they are broken down ready to be put through the belt press. This process is made up of a perforated belt, where the apple pulp is pressed under high pressure between a stainless steel roller and the belt, to squeeze as much juice out as possible.

After pressing, the apple juice gets pumped into our tanks. Where the wild yeasts that are brought from the orchard will start fermenting the juice. The yeast will eat all the sugar present in the juice and produce alcohol!

After the yeasts have done their thing, we then rack the cider, leaving the yeast behind and transfer to our blending tank. We then blend the cider with different amounts of freshly pressed apple juice, depending on the style and strength of our desired cider. We’ll choose which apples to use depending on their sugar and acid content.

Once the cider is blended, we then package it into Bag in Boxes and Bottles. We pasteurise our ciders to remove the risk of refermentation. This also means we don’t have to use any chemical inhibitors, such as Sulphites, which is great because some people are very allergic to them!