Cider in the United Kingdom is widely available at pubs, off licences, and shops. It has been made in regions of the country where cider apples were grown since Roman times; in those regions it is intertwined with local culture, particularly in the West Country.
The UK is the largest producer of cider in Europe and has enjoyed a renaissance in the 21st century, with a greater diversity of producers, brands and consumers than ever before.
History
Since the early Roman era, dessert and cider apples had been spreading out of the Mediterranean and naturally would have eventually been brought to Gaul, a province of the Roman Empire after the defeat of Vercingetorix in 46 BC by Caesar, and Franconia, parts of which would have formed Magna Germania.[1]
Much later the northern part of Gaul, heavily populated by a mix of Gauls, Romans, and other Celts, became Normandy and the domain of the lords that grew apples on their fiefdoms.[1] The Normans were most certainly a vector for the arrival of continental apples to England—the word cider derives etymologically from the 12th-century French word cidre[2]—but older accounts tell a different story.
Saxon chronicles[which?] before their conquest of the Britons mention cider-like drinks and also mention the production of a drink called æppelwīn, an ancient cognate of the Modern German ’apfelwein’’, both literally meaning a wine or alcohol made from apples. Though it is unknown if there is any relation between the ancient drink and the modern German product, at least one account indicates the drink was a luxury item that only the wealthy could afford. There is also evidence from the mid-late Anglo-Saxon period of the growth of orchards before, during, and after Christianisation of this group and their ceremonial use, most famously the custom of Wassail at Yuletide, and it is known that monks grew apples in their gardens.[3]
There is also more recent evidence that indicates that the Romans were growing apples and pears in their stay in Britain, and one of the Vindolanda tablets indicates that the largely Asturian-derived guardsmen near Hadrian's Wall, men with an apple and cider culture predating their own conquest by Rome, were seeking the best apples that could be found locally.[4]
One scholar, Professor Christine Fell, posits that a drink served was an apple-based alcohol using honey as a sweetener and extra fermentation agent and served in small cups that are often found in Saxon burials with the dead.[5]
A journalist and beer scholar, Martyn Comell, notes that with the rise of the word cider in the 12th century, the use of beór as a word disappears entirely from use as well.[6] No form of the word was ever in use again before the 1500s, where beer was renamed following its import from German, bier, and thereafter the word began to describe a grain-based alcohol of barley or wheat, sometimes brewed with hops and malt.[7]
Further final evidence from an archaeological dig in Gloucester in 2002 suggests that crab apples, in addition to their traditional use as a foodstuff, were also being pressed into an alcohol sweetened with honey.[8] With the invasion of 1066 the natural sugar in the Norman apples slowly displaced the need for honey as a sweetening agent and so began the love affair between the English and their apples and cider. Increased planting of apple trees began in earnest as soon as the feudal system introduced by William of Normandy could be secured, and continued down over what is becoming close to a thousand years.
One of the earliest mentions of a named apple cultivar in English comes from the Plantagenet era near the end of the 12th century, ”Costard”. This apple was an all-purpose apple that was occasionally used in cider and remained wildly popular until at least the 19th century: as an illustration, a slang term for the head or brain in the works of Shakespeare is ”costard”,[9] a word a man who spent his life traveling back and forth between his wife in Warwickshire and the theatre in London would have known very well; indeed Shakespeare named one of his clowns after the product in the case of Love's Labour's Lost.
In Renaissance England, a ”costermonger” was a seller of apples or wares and remained so right up until the 1960s, long after the apple it was named for became extinct.[10] With the introduction of hops in the earlier reign of Henry VIII, the production of cider declined a bit but through the efforts of His Majesty's fruiterer new plantings of French varieties began in what is now Kent, setting the stage for more cross pollination with varieties already present and the expansion over the reign of Henry's children and great nephew into Herefordshire, Gloucestershire, and eastern Wales.[11]
Not all of the apples in the UK have ever been grown solely for dessert purposes, and indeed in British cookery the distinction between cider apples, cooking apples, and dessert apples has remained intact since before the Tudors and spread wherever the British colonized, with some blurring of lines in North America due to necessity and scarcity.
Early publications on the subject of cider making
Vinetum Brittanicum: A Treatise of Cider
Title page of second edition of Vinetum Britannicum, 1678Title page of second edition of Sylva. In 1702, the "Pomona" appendix was added.
In 1676, John Worlidge wrote his Vinetum Brittanicum, a treatise on the production and processing of apples[1] that gives great insight into how little the method has changed in 340 years. Worlidge was writing at a time in which some of the earliest written intact horticulture tracts were being produced in Britain, alongside cookbooks. Both advocate for proper storage of the apples, told which were the correct ones to use for cooking and for drinking, and in the case of Worlidge, advocated the new technique of fermentation in bottles, something that had come into vogue in the 1630s when glass was first strengthened with coke.[11]
Sylva, or A Discourse of Forest-Trees and the Propagation of Timber
In 1702 an appendix was added to John Evelyn's previous publication of 1664, Sylva. This newly added appendix was named "Pomona: concerning fruit-trees in relation to cider, the making and several ways of ordering it". It is one of the first English cider essays consisting of contributions from several other authors, notably a Dr Beale of Yeovil, as well as Evelyn himself.[12]
Present day
In the present day, the United Kingdom drinks the most cider in the world, if one includes white cider which would not legally qualify as cider in many other countries. It is very common to find cider on tap in pubs and in bottles and cans at the local off-licence and large supermarkets. UK cider is mostly associated with the West Country, the West Midlands, and portions of the Home Counties and East Anglia, more specifically places like Somerset, Devon, Herefordshire, Worcestershire, Kent, Sussex, Suffolk, Norfolk and more recently Buckinghamshire and Cheshire. It is also produced in Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland. Cider is available in sweet, medium and dry varieties. Recent years have seen a significant increase in cider sales in the UK.[13] The National Association of Cider Makers (NACM) estimates a minimum of 480 active cider makers in the UK.[14] As of 2008, UK cider production comprises 61.9% of cider produced in the EU, and a 7.9% share of UK alcohol servings.[14] There has equally been a marked increase in demand for cider amongst the young: Since 2001, UK supermarket Tesco has increased its cider range by 60%, tripling its premium cider category to keep up with demand.[15]
There are two broad main traditions in cider production in the UK: the West Country tradition and the eastern Kent and East Anglia tradition. The former are made using a much higher percentage of true cider apples and so are richer in tannins and sharper in flavour.[citation needed] Kent and East Anglia ciders tend to use a higher percentage of, or are exclusively made from, culinary and dessert fruit; Kentish ciders such as Biddenden's, Rough Old Wife and Theobolds are typical of this style. They tend to be clearer, more vinous and lighter in body and flavour.
At one end of the scale are the traditional, small farm-produced varieties. These are non-carbonated and usually cloudy orange in appearance. Britain's West Country contains many of these farms which have an abundance of ancient varieties of specialist cider-apples. Production is often on such a small scale, the product being sold only at the site of manufacture or in local pubs and shops.[16] At the other end of the scale are the factories mass-producing brands such as Strongbow and Blackthorn.
Mass-produced cider, such as that produced by Bulmers, is likely to be pasteurised and force-carbonated. The colour is likely to be golden yellow with a clear appearance from the filtration. White ciders are almost colourless in appearance.
Consumption
Consumption of cider in the UK per pints per head from 1952 to 1991[17]
Year
Consumption
1952
4.5
1957
4.1
1962
3.6
1967
4.8
1972
6
1977
8.2
1982
10.7
1987
11.2
1992
13.2
Commercial cider
White cider
White cider is made from pomace, the dry apple pulp left over after juicing, and the final product is almost colourless.[18] Some manufacturers make white cider from imported apple concentrate mixed with glucose or corn syrup.[18]
A key market segment exists in the UK for strong mass-produced cider at 7.5% alcohol by volume. Cider with higher than 7.5% alcohol has a higher rate of excise duty. This makes white cider at the lower duty level the cheapest form of commonly available alcohol in the UK, both to buy and to produce.[19] The drink was first produced in the 1980s, and typical brands include White Lightning, Diamond White, Frosty Jack, 3 Hammers and White Strike.[18] By volume of alcohol, the excise duty on cider is lower than any other drink. The duty, as of 2011, was £35.87 per 100 litres of cider of up to 7.5% alcohol. 100 litres of table wine or alcopops would attract £241.23 of duty, wine under 5.5% was charged £102.21, £139.28 for 100 litres of 7.5% beer, and £191.40 for the equivalent alcohol volume of spirits.[20]
Before 1996, brands could be labelled at up to 8.4% alcohol when they actually contained 7.4%. This happened because the duty was levied on the actual strength of the alcohol, but Trade Descriptions legislation allowed the label to overstate the alcohol content by up to 1%.[21] After 1996, White Lightning was then sold in both 7.4% and 8.4% strengths, due to uncertainty about whether consumers would prefer the pricier, stronger drink, or the original and still cheap one, which was thought incorrectly to have been reduced in strength.[22]
Until 2005, the market-leading White Lightning brand was being sold on an almost continual 50% extra free promotion, giving 3 litres of 7.5% cider for a typical selling price of £2.99. Scottish Courage, which owned the brand, decided that year to restrict bottle size to 2 litres as part of its responsible drinking strategy. A spokesman for the company spoke of white cider in general, "It is the cheapest way to buy alcohol in the UK. This is pocket money these days. There is no other alcohol category that has the same challenge as white cider. One three litre plastic bottle of white cider contains twice full recommended weekly alcohol intake for a male or female drinker" (225mL, 22.5 units, of pure alcohol content compared with the recommended maximum of 14 units).[23][24] This led to a 70% drop in sales of White Lightning,[25] but increased sales of the brand owner's weaker, more profitable brands. Other manufacturers followed by increasing prices and scrapping their 3-litre bottles.
The price increases on 7.5% cider has increased sales of 5% mass-market cider, which is still widely available in 3-litre bottles in supermarkets.[25]
Since September 2010, HM Revenue and Customs has decreed that, to be called cider, a drink must contain at least 35% apple or pear juice and must have a pre-fermentation gravity of at least 1033degrees.[26] The legislation was introduced to stop cheap, high-alcohol-content drinks being called cider, thus taking advantage of the lower duty rates applied to cider.[27]
"Real" cider
The Campaign for Real Ale (CAMRA) defines "real" cider as a product containing at least 90% fresh apple juice, with no added flavourings or colourings.[28] Their definition prohibits the use of apple and pear concentrates, and prohibits substantial chaptalisation of the juice (adding sugar prior to fermentation) except in years when the level of natural sugar in the fruit is low.[28] They allow the addition of sweetener for taste after fermentation, and allow limited dilution after fermentation.[28] CAMRA states that the practice of adding a substantial amount of sugar at the fermentation stage to produce a high-alcohol (12–14% abv) beverage that is then diluted with water down to 8.5% abv or less does not conform to their definition of real cider.[28] Some traditional cider enthusiasts consider this requirement is insufficiently strict and prefer ciders made wholly from apple juice, using apple peel as the source of yeasts.
More leniently, UK law defines cider as containing at least 35% apple or pear juice, which may be from concentrate.[26] The gap between the legal minimum juice content and the traditional method (nearly 100% juice) has led to traditional cider enthusiasts refusing to acknowledge many mass-produced drinks bearing the name "cider" as being so at all. Enthusiasts have similarly been critical of manufacturers labelling perry as "pear cider".
Cloudy, unfiltered ciders made in the West Country are often called "scrumpy", from "scrump",[29] a local dialect term for a small or withered apple. Ciders from Gloucestershire,[30][31]Herefordshire[32][33] and Worcestershire[34][35] made from traditional recipes have a Protected Geographical Indication (PGI) awarded by the European Union in 1996. There are over 25 cider producers in Somerset alone, many of them small family businesses.[36] Historically, farm labourers in Devon, Wiltshire, Dorset, Cornwall and Somerset would receive part of their pay in the form of a substantial daily allowance of cider and local traditions such as the Wassail recall the earlier significance of cider-apple.
During the 17th and 18th centuries, a condition known as Devon colic, a form of lead poisoning, was associated with the consumption of cider,[37] vanishing after a campaign to remove lead components from cider presses in the early 19th century. The lead poisoning was also prevalent in Herefordshire as lead salts were added to the cider as a sweetener, being much cheaper than sugar.
Smallhold production of cider made on farms as a beverage for labourers died out in Wales during the 20th century.[citation needed] Cider and perry production experienced a significant increase in the early 2000s, with a number of small firms commencing production across Wales. The Campaign for Real Ale (CAMRA) has actively encouraged this trend, and Welsh ciders and perries have won many awards at CAMRA festivals; meanwhile, the establishment of groups such as UKCider and the Welsh Perry & Cider Society have spurred communication among producers.
Welsh varieties of apples and pears are often distinct from those grown in England, giving cider from Wales a unique flavour profile different from ciders from nearby regions. As such, Traditional Welsh Cider was submitted for Protected Designation of Origin (PDO) status in 2014.[38]
Channel Islands
The Channel Islands once had a strong cider-making tradition likely largely due to the cultural and linguistic ties it had with the Normandy region of France. Cider had been produced in the area since the Middle Ages, but production increased dramatically in the 16th century when commercial opportunities offered by cider exports spurred the transformation of feudal open-field agriculture to enclosure. By 1673, apple growing became so popular that the States of Jersey had to introduce legislation to keep farmers from growing them: the King forbade the Channel Islands from planting any more unless they had an orchard already extant because he was losing money on the tithes he normally collected.[39] Late 18th and early 19th century accounts suggest the island of Jersey was breeding its own indigenous apples for cider making, apples with names like Noir Binet, Petit Jean, Limon, Pepin Jacob, Carré, Bretagne and de France and the islands's proximity to Brittany and Normandy encouraged the migration of seasonal workers just to pick them all, and cider was often part of their payment.
Until the 19th century, it was the largest agricultural export with up to a quarter of the agricultural land given over to orchards. In 1839, for example, 268,199 imperial gallons (1,219,260L) of cider were exported from Jersey to England alone,[40] and almost 500,000 imperial gallons (2,300,000L) were exported from Guernsey 1834–1843,[41] but by 1870 exports from Jersey had slumped to 4,632 imperial gallons (21,060L).[42]
Beer had replaced cider as a fashionable drink in the main export markets, and even the home markets had switched to beer as the population became more urban. Potatoes overtook cider as the most important crop in Jersey in the 1840s, and in Guernsey glasshouse tomato production grew in importance. Small-scale cider production on farms for domestic consumption, particularly by seasonal workers from Brittany and mainland Normandy, was maintained, but by the mid-20th century production dwindled until only 8 farms were producing cider for their own consumption in 1983.[43]
The number of orchards had been reduced to such a level that the destruction of trees in the Storm of 1987 demonstrated how close the Islands had come to losing many of its traditional cider apple varieties. A concerted effort was made to identify and preserve surviving varieties and new orchards were planted. As part of diversification, farmers have moved into commercial cider production, and the cider tradition is celebrated and marketed as a heritage experience. In Jersey, a strong (above 7%) variety is currently sold in shops and a bouché style is also marketed.[44]
In Guernsey the only commercial producer of cider is The Rocquette Cider Co. which produces a wide range of ciders and is beginning to compete on an international stage.
In Jersey, cider is used in the preparation of black butter (Jèrriais: nièr beurre), a traditional preserve.
Scotland
Cider is made in Scotland mainly by small producers, such as Nøvar Cider, Thistly Cross Cider, Steilhead Cider, Caledonian Cider Co. and Seidear. The apples are sourced in Scotland, and the resultant ciders are mainly sold near to the place of origin. Thistly Cross Cider produce many fruit flavoured ciders which are now being sold in Scottish Waitrose and Peckham's stores. Steilhead Cider is made with apples collected from within Dumfries and Galloway, and is mainly sold at farmers markets and festivals. Seidear is made from Scottish walled garden apples using the Méthode Champenoise. Other Scottish cideries are Cairn O’Mohr and Scruffy Dog Cider in Perthshire, in the Highlands there's Nøvar Cider and Caledonian Cider Co., in Fife there is Naughton Cider and Dour Cider.
List of cider and perry producers in the United Kingdom
A drink or beverage is a liquid intended for human consumption. In addition to their basic function of satisfying thirst, drinks play important roles in human culture. Common types of drinks include plain drinking water, milk, juice, smoothies and soft drinks. Traditionally warm beverages include coffee, tea, and hot chocolate. Caffeinated drinks that contain the stimulant caffeine have a long history.
Perry or pear cider is an alcoholic beverage made from fermented pears, traditionally in England, parts of South Wales, France, Canada, Australia, and New Zealand. There is growing interest in artisanal perry production in the fruit-growing regions of the northwest United States.
Fruit wines are fermented alcoholic beverages made from a variety of base ingredients ; they may also have additional flavors taken from fruits, flowers, and herbs. This definition is sometimes broadened to include any alcoholic fermented beverage except beer. For historical reasons, mead, cider, and perry are also excluded from the definition of fruit wine.
Apple cider is the name used in the United States and Canada for an unfiltered, unsweetened, non-alcoholic beverage made from apples. Though typically referred to simply as "cider" in North America, it is not to be confused with the alcoholic beverage known as cider in other places, which is called "hard cider" in the US. Outside of the United States and Canada, it is commonly referred to as cloudy apple juice to distinguish it from clearer, filtered apple juice and hard cider.
Babycham is a light, sparkling perry invented by Francis Showering, a brewer in Shepton Mallet, Somerset, England. The name was owned by Accolade Wines until 2021, when it was bought back into the Showering family business Brothers Drinks Limited. The brand was particularly popular during the 1960s and 1970s. The new owners are planning a major rebrand and relaunch of the drink.
Cider apples are a group of apple cultivars grown for their use in the production of cider. Cider apples are distinguished from "cookers" and "eaters", or dessert apples, by their bitterness or dryness of flavour, qualities which make the fruit unpalatable but can be useful in cidermaking. Some apples are considered to occupy more than one category.
Chouchen is an alcoholic beverage native to Brittany. A form of mead, it is made from the fermentation of honey in water. Chouchen normally contains 14% alcohol by volume. Traditionally, buckwheat honey is used, and this imparts chouchen's strong colour and pronounced flavour.
Scrumpy is a type of cider originating in the West of England, particularly the West Country. Traditionally, the dialect term "scrumpy" was used to refer to what was otherwise called "rough", a harsh cider made from unselected apples.
Blackthorn Cider is a cider produced by Gaymer Cider Company, a subsidiary of C&C Group. Previously it was known as Blackthorn Dry or Dry Blackthorn. It is sold in a variety of forms, commonly being served draught in pubs or being sold in 440 ml cans or two-litre bottles in shops or supermarkets.
H.Weston & Sons Limited is a cider and perry producer based in Much Marcle, Herefordshire, England. The family-owned company, founded by Henry Weston, has been making cider in the same location since 1880 and the managing director, Helen Thomas, is a fourth generation member of the Weston family. The company had 230 staff as of 2016.
Applejack is a strong alcoholic drink produced from apples. Popular in the American colonial era, the drink's prevalence declined in the 19th and 20th centuries amid competition from other spirits.
Aston Manor Limited, trading as Aston Manor Cider, is a former brewery and current cider maker and bottling company in Aston, Birmingham, England. Having started out as a beer brewery, the company now produces exclusively cider and perry. In 2008 it was the third largest cider company in the UK by market share, and the fourth largest in the world. In August 2018 Aston Manor cider was acquired by French co-operative Agrial.
Ice cider is the cider equivalent of ice wine: a fermented beverage made from the juice of frozen apples. Similar to ice wine, the use of frozen apples concentrates the natural sugars in the apples, resulting in a higher alcohol content than cider made by traditional methods.
A sagardotegi is a type of cider house found in the Basque Country where Basque cider and traditional foods such as cod omelettes are served. Modern sagardotegis can broadly be described as a cross between a steakhouse and a cider house.
Cider is an alcoholic beverage made from the fermented juice of apples. Cider is widely available in the United Kingdom and Ireland. The UK has the world's highest per capita consumption, as well as the largest cider-producing companies. Ciders from the South West of England are generally higher in alcoholic content. Cider is also popular in many Commonwealth countries, such as India, South Africa, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, and New England. As well as the UK and its former colonies, cider is popular in Portugal, France, Friuli, and northern Spain. Germany also has its own types of cider with Rhineland-Palatinate and Hesse producing a particularly tart version known as Apfelwein. In the U.S. and Canada, varieties of alcoholic cider are often called hard cider to distinguish it from non-alcoholic apple cider or "sweet cider", also made from apples. In Canada, cider cannot contain less than 2.5% or over 13% absolute alcohol by volume.
The National Association of Cider Makers is a membership organisation that represents the UK cider industry.
In the United States, the definition of cider is broader than in Europe. There are two types: one is the traditional fermented product, called hard cider, and the second is sweet or soft cider. However, in some regions, cider is the alcoholic version, whether made from apples or pears, and apple cider is the non-alcoholic version.
References
1 2 3 "Cider Apples". National Association of Cider Makers. Archived from the original on 19 August 2016. Retrieved 1 April 2017.
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