Thatcher's Cider
Encyclopedia
Thatchers Cider is a cider
producing company based in Sandford
, in North Somerset
, England
.
The founder, William Thatcher, first started making cider for his own farm workers in 1904. As the 20th century went on, he started to sell the ciders to outsiders, and eventually to pubs
and clubs. The company is still family owned.
Traditional cider is produced here from locally grown apple
s. The apple trees are trained on wires, like grape
vines to enable easier harvesting and also to ensure the fruit have the same combination of sunlight and rain. Over 25,000 tonne
s of fruit are processed each year, though some of this comes from external orchards.
Most of the ciders are matured in oak vats, which gives the cider a distinctive taste.
There are several brands of Thatchers cider. These are categorised by the brewers as:
In April 2007 Thatchers produced a special Wurzel Me cider in honour of local musical group The Wurzels
.
Thatchers produce ciders for other companies, notably Black Rat, available as a sparkling or cloudy draught cider, and sold under the name of the Moles Brewery
in Melksham
, Wiltshire
.
Thatchers also press juice from apples and other fruit for a number of companies for
use in products such as Ribena
and Magners Irish Cider
.
Cider
Cider or cyder is a fermented alcoholic beverage made from apple juice. Cider varies in alcohol content from 2% abv to 8.5% abv or more in traditional English ciders. In some regions, such as Germany and America, cider may be termed "apple wine"...
producing company based in Sandford
Sandford, Somerset
Sandford is a village between Churchill and Banwell on the A368 in North Somerset, England.The Parish of Winscombe and Sandford, centred around the Parish Church of Saint James, includes the villages of Barton, Oakridge, Sandford, Sidcot and Woodborough....
, in North Somerset
North Somerset
North Somerset is a unitary authority in England. Its area covers part of the ceremonial county of Somerset but it is administered independently of the non-metropolitan county. Its administrative headquarters is in the town hall in Weston-super-Mare....
, England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
.
History
Public house
A public house, informally known as a pub, is a drinking establishment fundamental to the culture of Britain, Ireland, Australia and New Zealand. There are approximately 53,500 public houses in the United Kingdom. This number has been declining every year, so that nearly half of the smaller...
and clubs. The company is still family owned.
Traditional cider is produced here from locally grown apple
Apple
The apple is the pomaceous fruit of the apple tree, species Malus domestica in the rose family . It is one of the most widely cultivated tree fruits, and the most widely known of the many members of genus Malus that are used by humans. Apple grow on small, deciduous trees that blossom in the spring...
s. The apple trees are trained on wires, like grape
Grape
A grape is a non-climacteric fruit, specifically a berry, that grows on the perennial and deciduous woody vines of the genus Vitis. Grapes can be eaten raw or they can be used for making jam, juice, jelly, vinegar, wine, grape seed extracts, raisins, molasses and grape seed oil. Grapes are also...
vines to enable easier harvesting and also to ensure the fruit have the same combination of sunlight and rain. Over 25,000 tonne
Tonne
The tonne, known as the metric ton in the US , often put pleonastically as "metric tonne" to avoid confusion with ton, is a metric system unit of mass equal to 1000 kilograms. The tonne is not an International System of Units unit, but is accepted for use with the SI...
s of fruit are processed each year, though some of this comes from external orchards.
Most of the ciders are matured in oak vats, which gives the cider a distinctive taste.
Brands
- Single Varietal Cider, where only one type of appleAppleThe apple is the pomaceous fruit of the apple tree, species Malus domestica in the rose family . It is one of the most widely cultivated tree fruits, and the most widely known of the many members of genus Malus that are used by humans. Apple grow on small, deciduous trees that blossom in the spring...
is used. Examples included Cox's, Katy, Redstreak, Tremletts and Spartan, many of which were old Somerset varieties. These ciders are sold in bottles through supermarkets. - Speciality Cider, including Oak Matured Cider (aged in rum barrels); Christon, a cider from a single orchard; and Vintage, pressed from the best of a good year.
- Traditional Bottled Ciders, such as Gold, Premium Press and White Magic. These tend to be clear and slightly sparkling ciders
- Bottled Scrumpy These, such as Mendip Scrumpy, Old Rascal and Somerset Draught (sold in jugs and bottles) can be hazy or clear, and are made from the pure juice of apples. Mendip Scrumpy is now available in supermarkets in a 2l bottle. It is cloudy, has a sediment and is quite dry, this is very different from most other supermarket ciders.
- Draught Ciders Sold in pubs predominantly in the south west of England. These include Gold and Old Rascal, which are sparkling ciders.
- Draught Scrumpy Heritage and Traditional are hazy, or cloudy ciders. There is also Cheddar Valley cider, which is cloudy with a distinctive orange, almost red, colouration. These rough ciders have a short shelf life and are generally tapped straight from a barrel kept in a pub's bar rather than its cellar.
In April 2007 Thatchers produced a special Wurzel Me cider in honour of local musical group The Wurzels
The Wurzels
The Wurzels are a British Scrumpy and Western band...
.
Thatchers produce ciders for other companies, notably Black Rat, available as a sparkling or cloudy draught cider, and sold under the name of the Moles Brewery
Moles Brewery
Moles Brewery is a brewery established in 1985. It produces Real Ales at their facility in Wiltshire, South West England.Moles Brewery was originally a mineral water company in rural Wiltshire, which developed specific real ales to diversify their business....
in Melksham
Melksham
Melksham is a medium-sized English town, lying on the River Avon. It lies in the county of Wiltshire.It is situated southeast of the city of Bath, south of Chippenham, west of Devizes and north of Warminster on the A350 national route. The 2001 UK census cited Melksham as having 20,000...
, Wiltshire
Wiltshire
Wiltshire is a ceremonial county in South West England. It is landlocked and borders the counties of Dorset, Somerset, Hampshire, Gloucestershire, Oxfordshire and Berkshire. It contains the unitary authority of Swindon and covers...
.
Thatchers also press juice from apples and other fruit for a number of companies for
use in products such as Ribena
Ribena
Ribena is a British brand of fruit-based uncarbonated soft drink, carbonated soft drink and fruit drink concentrate produced by GlaxoSmithKline. The original and most common variety contains real blackcurrant juice.- History :...
and Magners Irish Cider
Bulmers (Republic of Ireland)
Magners is a brand of cider produced in County Tipperary, in Ireland, by the C&C Group. The Magners product range includes the cider varieties: Magners Original, Magners Light, Magners Pear and Magners Berry. The cider was originally produced as "Bulmers" and continues to be sold under that name...
.