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In 2010, Rob decided to take his passion for cider making to the next level and became a craft cider producer. Over 9 years the company has expanded and now provides a variety of ciders across the Country but has not lost its original heritage or authenticity. The company, based in the quintessential village of Hallaton, Leicestershire produces a range of ciders using apples from orchards in Gloucestershire, Hertfordshire and from the farm itself.
Hallaton is the home of the ancient tradition, Bottle Kicking and Hare Pie Scrambling which takes place every Easter Monday and is claimed to be the forerunner to Rugby. The tradition and the company’s prominent position on the Hallaton try-line inspired the name of the company and its first cider, Scrambler.
Having experimented, tried and tested we have used the finest apples to develop our range of ciders. Find out more about our original range below:
In autumn, our cider apples are handpicked from West Country Orchards, delivered to Hallaton and pressed within 48 hours. High in tannin, the juice we extract is big in flavour, giving depth and complexity in the final blend. Our Leicestershire home orchard apples are naturally more acidic, giving a sharpness that beautifully balances the finished brew.
The apples are washed, milled and pressed as soon as they arrive at the farm. The juice is then left to slowly ferment in a carefully controlled environment.
Whilst the apples contain natural yeasts, we also use champagne yeast to enhance the process. We allow the natural sugars present in the juice to turn to alcohol, and we are left with a dry, draught cider. We do not add any sugar during fermentation to increase alcohol production – we just let mother nature run her course.
The cider sits on the residual yeast for a short time before we “rack off” into large airtight containers, to ensure the cider maintains its freshness. It is then left to mature and develop over the cold winter months.
In Spring we blend our base cider into our range of draught ciders for your enjoyment, just as nature intended and just in time for the Bottle Kicking spectacle itself.
Thatched cottages, ducks on the village pond, a Norman church, rolling ridge and furrow farm land; this is the quintessential Leicestershire village of Hallaton, home of the ancient tradition of Hare Pie Scrambling and Bottle Kicking.
Every Easter Monday two villages (Hallaton and Medbourne) come together and “wrestle” for two or three bottles (barrels) that are dropped at the top of Hare Pie Bank, near the site of a medieval shrine. There are no rules, and it is difficult to tell the teams apart. Hundreds make up the teams.....thousands come and watch the spectacle.
A game is won when one of the barrels is hauled across a stream or “try line” marking the village boundary.
Victory comes when 2 of the 3 barrels can be claimed by one of the villages. The contents are supped amidst much celebration at the end of the day from the top of the Buttercross.
This is a day for family and friends to join in the revelry and rivalry, scramble across the Leicestershire countryside, and savour the unique atmosphere of the ancient Bottle Kicking contest.