The last pressing of the year took place in the second week of December and we then said goodbye (and thank you) to our seasonal workers Michael, Trystan, Gemma and Sam. All the apples in the store have been used and the press and production room washed down and put to 'bed'. Next year's stocks are safely bottled - ready to be labelled through the Spring and Summer and the cider is singing in our vats and stainless steel tanks.
The new licensing law that received so much media coverage was, actually, good news for us. We can now sell cider at a limited number of events each year - something our customers have been asking us to do for some time.
The change came in time for all the pre-Christmas fairs that we had booked and Susie, who chases all over the county setting up our stall and talking to customers, was able to sell our hot cider punch 'Wassail' to late night shoppers and people looking for Christmas inspiration. One lady sorted out all her present problems at once and bought over twenty of the Wassail flagons to give away.
The last job of the year was to bring the cows into their winter quarters. As they had been in the same fields all summer, it took some gentle persuasion (armfuls of hay and a bucket of feed) to get them to move in the right direction. A refurbished barn with space to roam waited and once in, they kicked up their heels and made themselves at home very quickly. A peaceful end to the year. |
