Cider and scrumpy

Appears in
top 1000British Regional Food
British Regional Food

By Mark Hix

Published 2006

  • About

The word ‘cider’ derives from the Latin sicera, meaning strong drink, and if you’ve experienced the real West Country scrumpy — farmhouse cider, the name comes from the dialect ‘scrump’, meaning a small or withered apple — you will know it certainly is that. Its smell alone will send your head spinning.

Cider-making was introduced to this country from France in the twelfth century, when it was produced in the fertile valleys of Kent and Sussex. The idea of making alcohol from apples soon caught on, and today we tend to associate cider production with the West Country and the West of England.