> 1. Whats the ethos behind Artistraw cider?

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Lydia: Here at Artistraw cider we are passionate about making natural cider (no added sugar, water, yeast or sulphites- just apples). We hand pick our fruit from unsprayed, low intensity traditional standard orchards. This guarantees juice suitable for the attenuated fermentation technique we practice (not to mention being very beneficial to biodiversity and entirely aligned with our own permaculture principles). 

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Tom: I started making cider because I like cider and in particular Normandy style (keeved) ciders first sampled in my youth turned me onto the fact well made cider could be delicious. Previous experience of acetic 'farmhouse scrumpy' hadn't been particularly inspiring. I was also attracted by the low carbon footprint of cider, like wine, just a fermented fruit juice. No need for boiling, processing etc that uses energy.

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> 2. What steps do you take to farm in a sustainable manner?

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Lydia: Artistraw cider is our way of living a more sustainable life. We are incredibly picky and passionate about where our fruit comes from and are currently planting our own traditional orchard, adding hand grafted trees each year as we track down rare and interesting scion wood. We currently have around 60 different varieties. Our orchard will never be sprayed with horrible chemicals and will flourish naturally, providing important habitat for all sorts of birds, beasts and plants. Whilst we are waiting for our own orchard to grow we handpick our apples from local orchards managed in the same way. We’re very lucky to access to some truly beautiful orchards full of life and interesting varieties of apples. 

  The labels on our bottles are printed onto recycled paper and hand stuck on using a natural, water soluble glue that we invented ourselves. I also grow and forage plants to make paint and ink to create our label designs.

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Tom: Sustainable agriculture is a mindset as much as a practice.  Since 1999, when I cofounded a permaculture/forest garden in London while at University, I have been interested in techniques to produce quality, environmentally safe food.  Having moved to an agricultural career (previous was in science resesarch) we have been able to put it into practice, with a no dig vegetable garden, a nascent traditional orchard, and a commitment to only consume organically produced food. (Our cider is organically produced, but not certified, as the certification costs are excessive and complicated to administer especially where some of the fruit comes from a disparate range of traditional orchards that don't belong to us).

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> 3. What led you to become cider makers?

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Lydia: I hadn’t really considered a career in cidermaking but Tom’s enthusiasm, my own love of the great outdoors and environmentalism, paired with meeting many of the passionate folk involved in this industry (some of whom I now count amongst some of my dearest friends) did a lot to inspire me to get involved. These days, I couldn’t imagine doing anything else! From harvest to blending, designing our labels and sending out stock, I’m involved in every part of our small business and could not be happier!

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Tom: 2003 it all started on a visit to my cousin in Herefordshire. She put me in touch with a local neighbour of hers, the late Brian Jones, who had a press and orchards. He helped me press my first vintage in 2003 which I took back to London as fresh pressed juice and fermented there. I was making cider in Camberwell long before Hawkes or one of our favourites, DuckChicken were conceived as urban cidermakers!  After visiting Brian a few more times (sadly he died in 2012) my fourth vintage was entered into a the 2016 London Amateur Cidermakers Competition (by CAMRA) and was placed second.  At the time I was at a juncture in my professional life and the idea of becoming more commercial developed. Only a few months previously I had toyed with the idea of becoming a brewer, but suddenly the obvious choice of cider dawned upon me, and I could tell from the activity in California, that like “craft” beer before it, well made, authentic proper cider was about to get a lot more popular this side of the Atlantic too.

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> 4. What excites you about the modern cider movement in the UK?

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Lydia: The range of brilliant new cider makers exploding onto the cider scene is super exciting! This can only mean more orchards or at the very least, more of our current orchards being used. According to the People’s Trust for Endangered Species, we have lost 90% of our precious traditional standard orchards since the 1950s. I really hope that increasing interest in the provenance of well-made cider might mean that some of the damage might start to be repaired.

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Tom: The focus on cider as it should be. The focus on apple varieties. The focus on quality and juice content. The focus on winemaking techniques being applied to cider. In short, the reversal of the decline of cider that set in in the 1970s with the steady consolidation of the industry post-war and the industrialisation of cidermaking into concentrate based, alchemical methods and away from its simple honest roots.  I was born four years after Bulmers made their last vintage of Pomagne in 1975.  Since then, industrial cider morphed into a homogenous blob of samey products and untraceable provenance.

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> 5. What challenges do you think cider makers have to face in the UK - both now and potential ones in the near future?

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Lydia: Whilst things have improved massively, I don’t think we are yet fully rid of the old fashioned view of cider as a cheap, high ABV drink. Also as a co-founder of Cider Women, I feel deeply frustrated when I see sexist imagery still being used to promote cider.

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Tom: Current challenges. The biggest challenge to small, honest cidermakers is that to expand above 7000l annual production, we have to compete on a level playing field with multinational corporations from a duty point of view. Because the accepted definition of cider from the HM Treasury's point of view includes drinks made from: 35% reconstituted apple juice (from concentrate), sugar, flavourings and water (up to 65%) it means the additional cost of making cider from 100% fresh apple juice only make it impossible for us to compete at a price point the same as that of the larger players in the cider scene. 

  The other big worry on the horizon is the deposit return scheme. I am all in favour of reducing our packaging impact on the environment, we already accept empty bottles back from customers for reuse, and are plastic free in our packaging (especially the labels), but unless the new DRS gives small producers exemptions or fair treatment, I fear many small drinks producers will be unable to comply with the new regulations in a cost efficient manner. Also only drinks producers are targeted, so if you produce jam in jam jars you can continue to sell glass packaging that may or may not be recycled with no return requirement, but we will be compelled to register with a scheme and a scheme administrator, and find a lot of extra space to accept all the packaging we sell back for recycling or reuse.

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> 6. What other ciders do you like to enjoy beyond your own?

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Lydia: I love anything made by Bartestree, likewise the fabulous work of Skyborry cider and The Ross on Wye Cider Co.  A new favourite is Smith Hayne, whose ciders never hang around long when we’re lucky enough to have them in our possession! 

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Tom: There are some fantastic small French producers, I can't name them all here but love a Breton or Norman keeved cider (like the UK there are larger and smaller exponents, but unlike the UK in France cider can only be made from fermented apple juice). I also highly rate Skyborry, Bartestree, Smith Hayne, Cwm Maddoc, Gregg's Pit, Kevin Minchew's perry (if you can get hold of a bottle!). Anyone who make a good quality, low intervention cider basically. Not really a fan of filtering.

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