Draught Real Cider and Perry in Northamptonshire

CAMRA has a definition of real draught cider and perry which aims to promote the very best produce of our traditional craft cidermakers. Draught real cider and perry will be made from at least 90% freshly pressed apples and/or pears, with no concentrate or unnecessarily high levels of added sugar. The resulting cider/perry should be served in its natural state, without the 'benefit' of artificial carbonation, colourings or flavourings, and not be pasteurised or heavily filtered.

CAMRA Real Cider and Perry logo Needless to say the majority of draught cider available in the UK is not real by CAMRA's definition. Practically all the nationally available brands of cider in our pubs and clubs are the cider equivalent of 'keg beer' - pasteurised, filtered, watered down, and heavily fizzed up. The difference in flavour between these 'industrial ciders' and the much rarer real products, is as noticeable as that between smoothflow keg beer and real ale.

A word about Perry

Real draught perry can be pretty hard to find even in the Three Counties of Herefordshire, Worcestershire and Gloucestershire, which is where most of it is produced. Made from hard, tannic 'perry pears', almost unique to the Three Counties, perry is a delicate, fragrant drink often on a par with the finest wines, and can even compete with Champagne in its bottle fermented form. Genuine craft produced perry is made from genuine perry pears. 'Pear Ciders' on the other hand are often made from a cheap cider with added 'pear flavour', and have more in common with alco-pops than perry.

Where can we find Draught Real Cider & Perry?

Lego WurzelReal ciders and perrys have enjoyed a resurgence of popularity in recent years, largely on the back of Magners, a cider which is certainly not 'real' by CAMRA's definition, but whose hugely successful advertising campaign has helped to stimulate the whole cider market. Even so, real cider and perry can still be hard to find unless you know where to look. Of course the best place to be sure of finding a range of high quality real ciders and perrys is a CAMRA Beer & Cider Festival. Northants CAMRA run two very successful festivals, Delapre Abbey in May, and the Welland Valley Beer Festival in June, both of which offer a good range of ciders and perrys. Real cider and perry is also becoming more popular at the many beer festivals organised by pubs throughout the county.

CAMRA's Good Cider Guide is now available: Set in the same style as the Good Beer Guide. All of the listings are organised into counties, and the guide contains maps, listings of producers, and a selection of approximately 600 real cider outlets. Priced at £8.99 (members) and £10.99 (non-members). [ Buy Now ]

Outlets for Real Cider & Perry in Northamptonshire

Northamptonshire Cider & Perry producers

The current popularity of cider has had another knock-on effect, with many new cider and perry makers springing up throughout the country. The East Midlands have not escaped this trend, and it may surprise you to know that there are now three small-scale commercial cidermakers in Northamptonshire, all producing high quality full juice ciders, and in one case an excellent perry.

Eve's Cider - Kettering:
Malcolm Grant produced several hundred litres of cider from a blend of locally sourced apples in 2006, and having recently upgraded his operations with a new twin-bed hydraulic press looks set to increase production significantly in the near future. Malcolm's cider is made from Dessert and Culinary fruit, and is dry, pleasantly sharp, and fruity in the Eastern Counties tradition. Look out for Eve's cider at local CAMRA and pub beer festivals, as well as a number of Northamptonshire Freehouses throughout the Summer.

(no contact details known)

Rockingham Forest Cider Rockingham Forest Cider - Middleton, nr Market Harborough.
Mark Shirley has made small quantities of cider on and off since the late 80's, but has only been selling his ciders since moving to Middleton in 2005. Two ciders are produced, Rockingham Forest Cider which is a blend of Herefordshire and Worcestershire grown cider apples and a smaller quantity of local Dessert and Culinary fruit, and a Welland Valley Special which is made exclusively from apples grown in Middleton and surrounding villages. Rockingham Forest Cider is available throughout the Summer at the Hatton Arms, Gretton; and the Criterion Freehouse, Leicester, plus some local festivals.

Contact via website: http://rockinghamforestcider.moonfruit.com/ (Flash Required)
Windmill Vineyard Perry

Windmill Vineyard - Hellidon, nr Daventry
Doreen & Thomas Hillier-Bird are Northamptonshire's oldest established cidermakers, and possibly the only producers of perry in the county. The ciders, perry, and wines are made from fruit grown on their hilltop smallholding near Daventry, matured for 18 months, then pasteurised and bottled for sale from the vineyard during the Summer months. Unpasteurised draught cider and perry has occasionally appeared at CAMRA beer festivals, including the Northampton festival at Delapre Abbey.

Contact: Windmill Hill Farm on (01327) 262023

Note: This list represents the current state of knowledge with regard to real cider outlets and producers in Northamptonshire, but we are aware that this is almost certainly incomplete. If you know of any outlets or producers not listed here please send details to the Webmaster.

External Links: