Tasting Note

A bright and crisp cider with crisp green apple and then brioche, spice and plum. A lovely cider. Peter Crawford's passion for Champagne, but location in Scotland, produced this wine.... sorry, cider. Made in the same method as Champagne, aged in ex Champagne barrels for ten months, with a Champagne producer as consultant... this is essentially Champagne... made of apples!

Producer 

I've known Peter Crawford for 20 years, we used to work at Oddbins together. He found a love of Champagne very early on and is one of the leading, if not THE leading, expert in Champagne in the UK. Returning to his family farm in Scotland, Peter can't make Champagne, but can grow apples and make cider, which is what he has done. All his ciders are very vinous - think of them more as apple wines than a bottle of Scrumpy!

Producer Notes

Homage to Hogg represents the purist expression of what we make. One single variety, one single vintage. No filtration. Vinified and aged in barrels previously used for Champagne and bottled on cork. With Homage to Hogg we wanted to create something unique, a true reflection of the brilliance, beauty and elegance of the apple. This is not like any cider you have had before. It is refined, elegant, delicate and pure. Robert Hogg was, rightfully known as, the father of British pomology.  Born and Educated in Scotland he contributed massively to the classification of all fruits but focused much of his attention on the apple.  Writing key texts including; The Fruit Manual and Herefordshire Pomona, he coined the term Vintage fruit referring to apples that were of good enough quality to produce vintage Cider.

The Apple

Yarlington Mill is a traditional mild bittersweet cider apple cultivar originating from the village of Yarlington, Somerset.  It was discovered just a year after Robert Hogg died in 1898 by Mr Bartlett and then propagated by Harry Masters. The cuvee: Picking occured on the 13th October 2020 with vinification commencing on the 19th October.  Primary fermentation occurred in a 228 litre oak barrel.  The barrel had previously been used to vinify Pinot Noir from Bouzy, Champagne. The cider was left to age in the same barrel until the beginning of August 2021. Bottling occurred on the 2nd August 2021. No added sugar, no filtration, no chaptilisation. Serving suggestion: We recommend standing the bottle upright to allow any natural sediment to settle to the bottom of the bottle.

_{Country: Scotland | Region: Fife | Alcohol: 7.6% | 523 bottles produced | Vegan}