Island Life Magazine Ltd November/December 2005 | Page 42

FEATURE

Traditional Cider
Making Season
The people at Brickfields have recently revived the ancient craft of
traditional cider making, using a method that dates back 150 years.
They previously produced the cider from 1980-1998, and have just
started brewing again this year. The strong cider is produced using
traditional machinery that’s driven by horse power – Prince the
handsome shire horse to be precise.
In days gone by, the machine would have been towed from farm to
farm, since most farmers did not have a pulping machine of their
own.
The apples used in the process do not come from the Island, as the
soil here is not right for producing good cider fruit. Instead, they are
shipped in by the ton from Herefordshire – because it takes a hefty
six hundredweight of apples to produce each 100 gallons of cider.
Cider dates back centuries and was used in earlier days as a form of
currency. At one time, cider was more popular than water, since the
latter was often either polluted or simply not available. An old trick
that used to be employed years ago was to place a piece of pork
belly into the barrel, to give the cider more flavour and a bit more of
a kick!
The way the cider is produced at Brickfields is exactly how it would
have been done all those years ago. At its absolute best, the cider
produced is sharp and makes a perfect accompaniment to bread and
cheese, as well as being good as a punch base. However even if a
barrel gets air into it, all is not lost, as the cider then turns to cider
vinegar, which is good for all kinds of ailments in humans and
horses.

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