It may not be the real reason why cider making has been more of a past time in West rather than North Dorset. But in March 1841, 58year-old Christopher Hill of Pimperne, near Blandford took a swig of his locally produced cider. He was not aware that his tankard, filled with the ‘wine of the apple’, contained a bee. While he was downing his drink the bee stung him in the throat. Christopher Hill sadly died soon afterwards.
West Dorset has a long history of cider making. However in comparison with Somerset and Devon, cider production has never really taken off here on a commercial scale. There has never been an industrial scale producer like Coates of Nailea, Somerset or Whiteways Cyder of Whimple, Devon. (There are the two ways to spell cider/cyder and some say using ‘y’ is the more traditional spelling. Author Thomas Hardy sat on the fence and used both spellings.)
According to the National Fruit & Cider Institute cider making came to England from Normandy and they claim the first cider in this country was made near Bridport. Agricultural workers were often paid part of their wages in locally made cider. This could have amounted to five or six pints each day. Drinking cider instead of breakfast could begin in the fields as early as 6.00am. Although cider was generally safer to drink than water, and far from being a perk, it did enable Dorset farmers to pay exceedingly low wages. This practice of paying part of a worker’s wages in kind became illegal when the Truck Acts were introduced in 1887.
West Dorset may not have had an industrial scale producer but it did have the popular Powerstock Cider Festival. The event which celebrated craft cider making was run for 16 years until 2017 and held in Powerstock Village Hall. The event played a major role in reawakening interest in Dorset cider making and rediscovering the many lost cider apple varieties. In 2007, the event won an Innovation Award at the Bath & West Show.
Comments
Post a Comment