Well, we aren’t entirely sure how we got here, but we now have our very first bottled cider available for sale: Milo’s Magic. It’s named after our wonderful old rescue dog, Milo (of course) who is a treasure and an inspiration. We love dogs so much that we simply had to include one of our dogs on the label and in the name of our first cider. It might not be high brow enough for some, but we really don’t care!
Although we have thought about making cider for quite a while, it did feel like something of a distant dream, and so for it to come to fruition fairly quickly, and on a scale where we will have some cider to sell to other people, is really quite something.
The apples that went into this cider are Yarlington Mill, Kingston Black, and a variety of unidentified apples from a timeless, unsprayed orchard. It is a dry, lightly sparkling cider and is available in 500ml bottles. We now realise that the advice given on the label ‘best served chilled’ is misleading. Milo’s Magic is definitely best enjoyed at cool room temperature to bring out the mellow, bittersweet flavours. It is a well-balanced, easy-drinking cider that is perfect with spicy dishes. 6.5% ABV.
So that’s our first commercial cider. Let’s see how far this journey takes us. We are loving using the apples that might otherwise go to waste, and loving that they are going into a handmade, artisan product. Cheers!
Update: Milo’s Magic won an IWSC award in 2023 and is now available from our new online shop!