Category Archives: Smallholding

Second cider pressing day

Posted on January 16, 2026 by james

This time it was Dabinett apples, but otherwise it went much the same as for the earlier Harry Master’s Jersey. Slightly less than two hundred litres perhaps, but not by much. This juice also had a high pH of 4.4, … Continue reading →

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It seems pears don’t stick

Posted on January 16, 2026 by james

to the inside of the press cloth like apples do 😀 I had another test of the settling “tank” with the pear juice too. This is the sediment from about forty litres of juice… And the pear juice, with apple … Continue reading →

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There will be quincequonces…

Posted on January 16, 2026 by james

… if I don’t use these soon. But for what, hmmm?

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Testing apple juice settling tank

Posted on January 16, 2026 by james

To reduce the amount of sediment in bottles of apple juice I have been testing an extra step in the process — leaving the juice in a barrel or tank for twenty-four hours prior to syphoning off the juice and … Continue reading →

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I hope this breaks down before Spring

Posted on January 15, 2026 by james

I’ve pressed so many apples this season that I was running out of space to compost the pulp. I estimate that I’ve done seven tonnes of apples and I’m not finished yet, so I just had to start spreading it … Continue reading →

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A culinary masterpiece!

Posted on January 15, 2026 by james

I found some left-over bacon in the fridge, so decided to have bacon sandwiches for lunch. Whilst I was frying the bacon in a pan (the grill is too much effort for a few slices of bacon :D), I happened … Continue reading →

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First cider pressing of 2025

Posted on January 14, 2026 by james

After being so dry for so long, I think this (mid-October) was when the weather in 2025 really started to change, so I was pressing apples whilst dodging rain showers and still having to cope with gusting winds. First up … Continue reading →

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Cider apple picking

Posted on January 14, 2026 by james

Towards the end of last year I had the good fortune to be allowed to pick cider apples at a local orchard where there are many different varieties of tree. As well as collection quite large batches for a single-variety … Continue reading →

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Room for a small one?

Posted on January 14, 2026 by james

I don’t think so. The batch pasteuriser I’ve been using for bottles of apple and pear juice, absolutely rammed full. Capacity does vary however and it’s very dependent on the bottles. We’ve had batches of 750ml bottles from the same … Continue reading →

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New potatoes for Christmas

Posted on January 13, 2026 by james

When I harvested my Charlotte potatoes in the Summer there were a few green ones thanks to the blackbirds digging around in the dry compost looking for good. Rather than put them into the compost, I saved them in hessian … Continue reading →

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