Last Saturday we spent a sunny afternoon in the apple orchard of Armagh Cider Company. Even just saying those words conjures up autumn, don’t you think ? It was part of a series of events being held to celebrate the culture, heritage and food of County Armagh in Northern Ireland. County Armagh is also known as the orchard county.
Armagh Cider Company is run by a local family who also own a stud farm. We arrived early in the afternoon, to be greeted by various dogs and some curious goats ! And after admiring the lovely rural setting, we made our way to the top of the orchard to listen to a short talk by one of the owners.
History of the orchard
It was during the Plantation of Ulster in the 1600s that orchards first developed here. At that time, local land was given to settlers from England and Scotland and one of the stipulations of owning land was that an orchard had to be maintained. Apples were the fruit of choice because of their use by the military. When soldiers went off to fight abroad, the cider that was produced then had enough alcohol in it to help sanitise the local water. Equally, it didn’t have too much alcohol in it, so soldiers could drink it neat if required and not get drunk !
Normally in the UK, apples can’t be grown any further north than Birmingham. However, due to the specifics of the local eco system (the orchard lies just a few miles south of Lough Neagh), it means the temperatures remain more moderate. This allows apples to grow in a location significantly further north.
Cider making
In more recent times, and after many years of producing just apples, the family decided for financial reasons, to diversify into cider making. That’s how the Armagh Cider Company came about. We left the orchard then (reluctantly for me, as it was idyllic) and headed to a small production facility. There we were shown where the apples are pressed and left to ferment and how the juice is then bottled and packed for distribution.
What I hadn’t known is that more apples are produced in Northern Ireland than potatoes. In fact, this year it’s estimated the region will produce around 45,000 tonnes….and that’s a whole load of apples !
Tea and Apple pie
Then, we were brought into a barn to sample some of the ciders (also called apple wine). Tea, coffee and apple pie were served while we sat down at a beautiful trestle table, made from local wood. I have to say, the homemade apple pie was the best I’ve tasted in a long time.
We each got to take home a bottle of cider of our choosing and after a final glimpse at the beautiful orchard, we headed back to the car for the journey home.
For more information about the Armagh Cider Company, you can visit their website here.
My favourite cider was their Maddens Orchard Bramble Cider. I hope to be having a little taste of it later for Sunday dinner !
What about you? Do you like cider or apple wine, as I might start calling it? Feel free to share in your comments below…
Whatever you are doing today, have a lovely Sunday.
Thanks for dropping by,
Paula
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Other posts from Typewriter Girl to enjoy:-
A morning at Ballylagan Organic Farm
What a beautiful orchard, their history is quite wonderful. I especially love their setup for tasting, such a gorgeous table. I can imagine they have the pie and cider recipe down to perfection. I really enjoy visiting the cider mills here in Michigan.
Yes Lisa…the table was gorgeous 😊 I imagine the cider must taste good on your side of the pond…
It looks to be a beautiful place and I did enjoy reading the history . Cider is my drink, (DH used to make it, in a small way!). The place pictured in my last post was taken from a visit we made to an apple orchard in NY State last autumn, followed by a trip to a Cider plant. It was great fun picking our own . Though we couldn’t take them home home with us as we live in the U.K. But it was a lovely day out.
Looks a lovely way of spending time. There used
To be a cider and sausage festival near me and I went to an apple press day there which was good fun. A lot of cider was consumed though! I do enjoy cider. X
Well, it’s very easy to drink 😊😊
What a fun day it looks like you had. I like apple cider but I have never tried the wine before. Great post, thanks for sharing, I really enjoyed reading about this. Wish I could visit, looks beautiful and peaceful.
Oh…Thank you. It was really lovely and autumnal 😊
Beautiful images, I do sometimes wish there were some orchards up here in the north as it must be lovely to visit them both at harvest time and at blossom time.