Ridgeway Cider

Holcombe Rogus sat among apple orchards long before the M5 arrived, and a few of those old plantings survive at Ridgeway Farm, where bittersweet and bittersharp varieties still stand. Julie and Stephen Hasell started pressing here in 2014 on a press borrowed from Julie's parents' farm nearby, selling a few extra barrels at local markets. Their daughter Rosina and her husband Jake now run it, describing themselves as custodians rather than founders.

Farmhouse cider is the heart of it, fermented slowly with natural yeasts from fresh pressed juice, on the Devon and Somerset border. The awards have followed: Gold at the Royal Bath and West Cider Championships, several Taste of the West wins, and at the 2023 Devon County Show, Champion for Farmhouse Dry Cider plus Reserve Champion overall. Cider vinegar and a Ginger Switchel round things out. Worth a case for summer gatherings, or a bottle to sit with.