Some things take ages to be developed. Others come in a flash! And Paul came up with the inspirational phrase when we were designing a banner for the Maker’s Market.
And with such a brilliant phrase…….well you have to register it with the Trade Marks Register. (Thanks to Wendy for telling us why and how to apply).
We obtained confirmation in February 2022. The phrase is ours!
Spirit of Staffordshire®
The public reception received from the two Uttoxeter Maker’s Markets in October and November was outstanding. The local Staffordshire folk embraced this unique and local product. The Cider Brandy was marketed in green and red wrapping ready for Christmas presents. And we sold out! This was in just two events, and despite the November market being moved to an inside hall, due to a power cut, high winds and snowfall. The people of Uttoxeter produced a steady stream of custom throughout the day, and some were warmed by the sample shots on the stall, and the expectation of the delights of the full bottle later!
All thanks goes to our Sales Team, Chris, Paul and myself.
We will look back at the face masks and wonder why? But for now it is all far too current in our minds.
2021 was an especially good year for the apple harvest. A cold winter, followed by an sunny spring, meant we had an abundance of blossom. April was dry ( and very cold) and we had imagined that we would be back to watering the trees, however the warmer wetter May came at just the right time, and the trees produced fruit in abundance.
Harvesting was early, starting at the end of September, which was unheard of for us. We finished harvesting in mid October, collecting nearly 600kg of fruit. There was more fruit than we could handle, so some went to friends who undertook cider making for the first time, and the rest the birds and wildlife enjoyed. For 2022 we hope a local cider producer will take our excess apples.
And why do all this hard work ourselves? Why not engage the family in this activity. For free obviously.
Perhaps a week earlier that usual, in mid October we harvested the apples, a total of 277kg. Again all by hand and directly from the trees. This means the fruit is of the highest quality, with little damage or bruising on the fruit, and it is especially clean. All attributes required for producing a good safe product. As production is geared with Cider Brandy distillation in mind, we raise the alcoholic content of the cider by applying additional sugar and yeast nutrients. Rather than being cider of 5-6%, after fermentation is complete, the base cider product is more like 10% abv. This then helps with the cider brandy distillation.
2020 was a deciding year for us in converting our cider production from basic cider into a more refined Cider Brandy. Our partners at Ludlow Distillery triple distil our cider into pure spirit. This is then aged in oak casks to enhance both the flavour and colour. Having now produced 1,800 litres of cider from the last few years, we transported this by trailer down in early September 2020. Supported by our friends Chris & Chris ( non executive Sales & Marketing), we had a fantastic day out witnessing the first batch of our cider going through the distillation process, and sampling the produce from the various distillations. The liquid produced in clear and sometimes referred to as “Eau De Vie”. Despite not being the final product, the subtle flavours of summer cut grass, apple and vanilla (like apple pie and custard!) could be detected.
This is the woodfired still. And no ……..Paul is not getting one!
The cider matures in oak casks for about a year, so will be ready for sale in 2021. And don’t worry, we pay the HMRC excise duty on every bottle.
The trees are becoming more established, and have produced good fruit every year. Kingstone Black ( our favourite) produced 114kg of fruit this year. All hand picked and washed. We are now using the 200cl fermentation vessels. Whilst the cider produced is crisp clear and dry, the secondary fermentation process (yeast in champagne bottles) would not be commercially viable. We can take the time to slowly and carefully pour the delicious cider from the bottle, others may have less patience.
So it’s back to “putting our thinking caps on” and coming up with a solution…………..
And the mowing season has begun. We mow around the base of the trees to help reduce weeds, and competition for water. This is our little Kubota tractor which is ideal for “getting up close and personal!”, and weaving in and out of the orchard.
Well what a difference a year makes! The trees are becoming well established and have produced a good crop of excellent quality. The picture is of a Dabinett apple tree. We harvested in the first week of October 2017.
With great excitement the new hydraulic Voran press arrived. Whilst initially the output appeared impressive, the time consuming element of unloading the cloth cheeses and cleaning and then reloading dampened our enthusiasm considerably. Maybe the process has to be rethought?
Hoar Cross Cider 