4 days ago
Meet the maverick Fife producers transforming cider from regret-filled teenage tipple to 'the new Champagne'
Nestled among the rolling hills of north-east Fife is The Naughton Cider Company. Here, hundreds of apple trees cover the grounds.
Over 50 varieties of apples are grown on the estate, and many of them are used to make cider.
This is not the cider of your youth. It doesn't taste of sugar and impending regret. Nor does it lend itself to being tanned.
Instead, the ciders produced by The Naughton Cider Company are elegant, crisp and boast a luxurious effervescence. They bear more than a passing resemblance to high-quality Champagne.
That sophisticated cider is being produced in Fife will be news to many people. And yet, Peter Crawford, founder of The Naughton Cider Company, is far from the only local producer challenging consumers' cider-based assumptions.
There is a reason why so many of us associate cider with subpar products. As Peter tells me: 'Sadly, cider has spent the last 50 years slowly bastardising itself.'
Now, most mass-produced ciders are overly sweet and offer little in terms of nuance.
Convincing people that cider can be as complex and enjoyable as fine wine is a constant battle for all local cidermakers, including Roger Howison, founder of Aipple.
'As teenagers, cider is one of our first alcoholic drinks,' Roger says. 'It's usually sickly sweet and just pretty vile. Sadly, a lot of us drink it to excess and that memory stays with us.'
At tastings, the first thing he tells people is that Aipple isn't sweet, but medium dry.
Peter adds: 'I generally say: 'Forget the cider you've drunk before. This is something different.''
Scottish cidermakers are experimenting with a variety of production techniques.
'The beauty of [making cider in] Scotland is that we haven't really got an industry,' Peter tells me. 'I sense we're at this point where we can be and make whatever we want.'
Peter has used this freedom to create Scottish cider using the 'traditional method', the technique winemakers use to produce Champagne.
'I genuinely believe there is an opportunity to create something that sits alongside really good sparkling wines,' he tells me.
The team at Aipple also employ interesting techniques. Strikingly, they have produced a cider that's finished in whisky casks.
The cider is incredibly complex with a finish that speaks of both caramel and vanilla.
Craft cider producers are popping up across Scotland, but the scene is particularly strong in Fife. This has a lot to do with the area's history of apple growing.
Apple growing in northeast Fife took off when the Tironensian monks settled there about 1,000 years ago. The industry thrived until after World War Two.
Building on this heritage is one of the key reasons why Roger decided to plant his own apple trees.
Roger's cider-making journey was also inspired by a desire to diversify his farm.
Planting apple trees and producing Aipple gives Roger an opportunity to do this while also involving him with a product from start to finish – a rarity for farmers.
'We've seen an explosion of cider producers come onto the market and deliver some wonderful things,' Peter says. 'The more we have of that the better.'
His own cider is a prime example of what can be achieved when apples are treated with care.
The flavours and aromas presented by The Naughton Cider Company's brut vintage are astounding, ranging from fudge to lemon. This is to say nothing of the liquid's mature, satisfying structure.
The world's changing climate is affecting everyone who works with food. Cider producers in Fife are no exception.
'It's very difficult to say right now what's going to work in the future,' Peter says. 'I planted some oslin, a Scottish variety, and it's failed to do anything in the last five years.
'I'm guessing the weather is just too hot.'
Warmer, dryer summers also mean that English apple varieties are now growing well in Fife.
Roger is growing 38 apple varieties on his farm, 750 trees in total. Two-thirds of these trees are cider varieties from England.
'This was a huge gamble,' Roger tells me. 'We couldn't see anybody else who'd grown these cider varieties up here.'
The gamble paid off. Roger tells me a few varieties are yielding better than the rest. All of them are English.
'This is so motivating for us,' Roger says. 'We've taken a gamble on these varieties and they are doing better than anything else.'
Roger grows his apples using an agroforestry system known as alley cropping. This involves planting rows of arable crops between rows of apple trees.
Since adopting this system, he's noticed an increase in local wildlife.
'The improvement in biodiversity is palpable. My dad had never seen barn owls despite being on the farm since the 1940s, and we've got two barn owl families now,' he says.
Thanks to the likes of Peter and Roger, Scottish cider is hitting new highs. However, producers are under no illusions that craft cider will become as popular as craft beer.
Given the cost, time and labour associated with producing high-quality, vinous cider, it is improbable that a cider-making behemoth, similar to craft beer's BrewDog, will burst onto the scene anytime soon.
That said, these are still exciting times for cider producers in Fife.
Peter is hoping to start exporting to China and the United States, while Roger is committed to making single-variety ciders in the near future.
However, what both men would like more than anything is for more local Scots to enjoy their cider.
As Peter says: 'The most beautiful thing for me would be to sell most of my cider within 50 miles of the orchards. We want to share this cider with the local community.'
