Brilliant Blends
Autumn is all about the harvest and cidermakers across the country are busy picking and pressing apples to make the new season’s cider. The crop varies hugely from year to year depending on the weather and a host of other factors. Some apples are ready at different times in the season and some varieties have ‘on’ and ‘off’ years. The skill of blending is working with the characteristics of each year’s harvest to get the best out of it. We’ve picked 3 classic blends which contain all the different apples grown on the farm and 3 blends that are made from a single orchard so will reflect the makeup of that orchard.
Bere ‘Five Acres’ (6.5%)
Cider has been made on the family farm in the Polden Hills for about 40 years. A number of different single varietals are produced but this is the house blend and is made from around 20 varieties of apple grown on the 5 acres of orchard on the farm, hence the name.
Burrow Hill ‘Somerset Cider’ (6%)
We’ve always liked the fact that Burrow Hill only makes blended cider. They make lots of drinks with their famous Somerset Cider Brandy but when it comes to cider they like to keep it simple. They grow 40 different apple varieties on over 7,000 trees and this is the result.
Crossman’s ‘Somersetshire Cider’ (5.5%)
Like many traditional cidermakers, Ben Crossman makes cider on a working farm. He also produces free range eggs and has over 2,000 birds! His cider is made from 2 main orchards, a traditional ‘standard’ orchard which was replanted in the 1960s and a 400 tree ‘bush’ orchard planted in the 1980s.
Ganley & Naish ‘Mourning Drop’ (6%)
In a nice cider connection, the ‘Naish’ in Ganley & Naish was Victor Emmanuel Naish who was Ben Crossman’s grandfather. And the cider is made on Stonehouse Farm in Kenn, where Victor planted his orchard in 1924 and Ben learnt the art of cidermaking! Andy Jenkins has kept the tradition alive and now makes cider from the apples grown in that orchard.
Stones ‘Ram of Shepton’ (5%)
Alan Stone is well known to cider fans as the author of no less than 5 books about cider. He also makes award-winning cider with his son Richard from the historic Glastonbury Abbey Orchard. The Ram of Shepton is a new cider made from early-season, low-tannin varieties.
Taunton ‘Longaller Mill Reserve’ (5%)
A blend of 4 classic cider apple varieties from a single orchard at Longaller Mill in Somerset. The mix of Yarlington Mill, Sweet Coppin, Improved Lambert Pippin and Tom Putt produces a nicely rounded cider with the complementary characteristics of the 4 component apples.
We hope that you’ve enjoyed this month’s selection. Watch out for our festive case next month!
How quickly will I get my order?
We will ship all orders in two working days maximum, often the next day. Deliveries are only made Monday to Friday, by our courier, DHL.
Can I request delivery for a specific day?
Unfortunately we can't guarantee delivery for a specific date, but will try our best to delay it if needed for a future date. Just add a note at the 'Cart' page in the 'special instructions' box. Or drop us an email queries@bristolcidershop.co.uk with your order number and we will get back to you.
What happens If I am not in?
Because we are shipping a Licensed product (alcohol), parcels wont normally be left in safe places. One of three things will happen if you are not in at the time of your delivery.
1. It will be delivered to a neighbour and signed for - the tracking will show a photo of where your parcel has been delivered. Calling cards are not left so please keep a close eye on your tracking information for updates.
2. Your parcel will be returned to the depot and a redelivery will be attempted the next working day. DHL will make three delivery attempts before your parcel is returned to us, where there will be a charge for further delivery attempts after this time. Alternatively a full refund for the cost of the product will be issued on its safe return.
3. You can tailor the delivery via your DHL tracking email. This includes choosing a future, preferred delivery date or choosing a DHL Service Point to redirect your delivery to. More information can be found out on the DHL website.
How much does delivery cost?
Delivery is £6.95 for most of UK for your first case and then £2.95 for additional ones. Rather than hiding the delivery cost in the product price and offering free delivery (there’s no such thing as free delivery!) we’d rather be transparent about the cost of the product and the cost of the delivery.
Are there any places you cannot ship?
We currently only ship within the UK. Delivery to UK islands, Scottish Islands and Scottish Highlands postcodes may cost extra - delivery charges will be displayed at checkout after you have entered your delivery address. Unfortunately we cannot ship outside the UK.
I live in Bristol. Can I collect?
Unfortunately our licence doesn’t allow us to have customer collections on site so we can only take orders for delivery, sorry!
How can I track my order?
When we ship your order, you will receive an email from us containing a tracking code from our couriers, DHL . The quickest way to track your parcel is to follow the tracking link and this will show you the status of your delivery in real time. This will also allow you to change any delivery details if you need to. If you have any further problems, please email us at queries@bristolcidershop.co.uk and we will do our best to help. Sorry we don't have a phone number.
Can I add a Gift Message?
Yes you can, simply add it in at checkout and we will include it on a card. No invoices nor sensitive information are included in the boxes, so no pricing information is given out, should you be sending a gift straight to a lucky recipient.
