www.awre-bells.supan et.comLink to Awre VillageWebsite

All Copyrights belong to WAC-webdesigns

Cadogan Cider and Perry Traditionally made in Awre

Made from traditional cider apples and Perry pears ripened on the banks of the River Severn at Awre - In the Royal Forest of Dean rural England UK

Some History of Country Cider

For centuries village life has been surrounded by Ale and Cider and as the water would have been a bit dodgy to drink then a jug of ale or cider would have been the alternate drink of the day for all the family children included.  Just about every farm in Awre made cider and part of a farm workers pay was as much cider has they could drink during the working day and a farm workers day started in the cellar to have their first tot of the day. The summer months were long and hard with harvesting all done by hand no modern machinery in those days and of course extra hands would be needed at this time of year and good cider meant that you had a good workforce to see you through this period. Each farmer had their own way of what cider should be and in a way I suppose they would be in competition on what cider should taste like and the variety of apples that were used to achieve this taste.

Although the traditional ways of cider making are still maintained the end products are a far cry from that of our forefathers and beyond, then it would have been a cloudy old pint of Scrumpy or Tangle-foot and the one I like is, Jake - such as old Tom was Jaked up or young Sam had the Jake in him last night (Meaning they were drunk on cider). Our ciders of today go through many processes of filtering to enhance the flavour and sparkling looks, matured in oak casks to maintain that old flavour.

Today cider is drunk by quite a large amount of people in all our social circles made to sip and savour that refreshing feeling of autumn gold with a wisp of country honeydew to relax your mind at the end of a hard working day. 

This small beaker is made from a cows horn and would hold a tot 1/4 of a pint of the good old strong cider the sort that sorted the men from the boys and fetched the enamel of your teeth, not for the faint hearted.

Now here is some movers and shakers of 1950. The chaps at the back with the long poles called “Lugs” because they had a hook on the end for hooking over the branches of the trees and shaking the apples or pears off the branch then the women would pick the fruit up in buckets and then transfer them into either sacks or boxes.

Standing at the back are from left. Ida Jenner, John Cadogan, Walter Cadogan, Doris Watts, George Green. Front row. Mrs Phillips, Mrs Cox, Ruby Hendy, Mrs Ellis and Emmie Price. and you can tell by the overcoats and gloves that it was a cold day in the orchard.

In years gone by the old rough cider drinkers and I use the word “Rough” in relation to the cider not the drinker although in those day’s I guess you wouldn’t sit in a cider house in Top Hat and Tails drinking cider? Anyway the rough that I was referring to is the cider because it was simply made in a rough environment on the land and most of the land went in it - as well as the apples. In those days the apples were not washed so any animal droppings of the like would all be mashed and pressed together! and if that wasn’t enough then off you went to the butchers to get a joint of beef which you would cut up and deposit that in as well.  Once that had all fermented then you had a nice drop of somewhat cloudy, mouth smacking, cheek sucking not to mention the trouser blowing paint stripper they called cider and if in the winter you wanted a hot drink then you simply put the poker in the fire until red-hot then dipped it into your cider pot. Cider making of yesteryear is a far cry from the way we produce it today, although in a small farmhouse tradition the method of pressing etc. remains the same the culture of the raw material (Apples/Pears) certainly has changed because of Health and Safety regs all is thoroughly washed and no livestock are allowed in the orchards for a number of weeks before harvesting the crop and is produced to a strict standard of hygiene and nurtured until the right balance of taste is obtained - without the joint of beef I hasten to add. 

[Home] [Our Products] [History of Cider] [photos 1]