u/TrevorCidermaker

Another week of wet cold damp weather at the cider and perry orchard. Oddly the winter has not been as cold as normal for winter in the Wairarapa NZ. So far only a few days or snow on the Tararua ranges above us.
Some bulbs have responded to this and are flowering early. The crocuses and snowdrops are nearly over. The daffodils are in bloom. Interestingly the bluebells are biding their time. Buds on the apple and pear trees are tight with no sign of stirring from winter dormancy yet, but I will have to keep a close eye on it as I want to cut some perry pear scion wood for grafting later in Spring. #daffodils

During the 1950s and 1960s, Showerings ran many highly successful promotional campaigns for Babycham.
This long stickpin fawn was given away in bars, pubs, and through mail-in promotions to build brand loyalty.
It is made from molded gold-tone metal with a textured finish to mimic fur with
a bright light-blue enamel filling on the oversized bow tied around the neck. Targeting women, it is not a lapel badge, as it is mounted on a long, slender stickpin base intended to pierce through hats.

Recently I have heard a few times the statement that Bulmers and Showerings were banned from using the term ‘champagne’ for their products. This is not correct . There was a landmark case in cider and wine making. “Bulmers vs Bollinger”. Or more formally HP Bulmer Ltd and Showerings Ltd v J Bollinger SA and Champagne Lanson Père et Fils. 1974 the verdict of which was Bulmer’s and Showerings could use the term.*** ***
The initial dispute arose when French
Champagne producers sought to prevent English cider makers from using the terms "Champagne Cider" and "Champagne Perry". Bulmers produced a champagne cider and Showerings a champagne perry. The English producers preemptively filed the lawsuit on 8 October 1970.
They sought a formal legal declaration that they were entitled to use the terms "Champagne cider" and
"Champagne perry". Britain was not in the EU then. After the UK joined the EEC, in 1973 the French producers added European regulations to their legal defense. Instead of waiting for a trial, they immediately asked the trial judge to pause the case and send the European law questions to Luxembourg. The trial judge Mr Justice Whitford refused, stating he wanted to try the whole case out first to establish all the facts before deciding if a European referral was necessary. The French producers refused to wait for the trial.
They immediately launched an interim appeal to the Court of Appeal to overturn the judge's refusal.
The critical legal findings made by the Court of Appeal 1978 centred on the application of European Union. Lord Denning ruled that English courts have broad discretion under Article 177 of the Treaty of Rome when deciding whether to refer a question to the European Court of Justice (ECJ).
(A referral to Luxembourg is only permitted if it is strictly necessary to resolve the case. If the English court can solve the dispute or "incoming tide" doctrine.
The French argued that labeling Babycham as "champagne perry" constituted passing off by misusing their geographical indication. The Court of Appeal however ultimately ruled in favour of the English manufacturers, allowing Babycham to continue using the phrase "champagne perry." This was based partly on the goodwill defence. The court found that because Babycham had used the term openly for several decades without causing commercial confusion, the French producers had effectively acquiesced to its use. The product had built its own independent reputation and goodwill under that description, meaning it did not falsely deceive the public into thinking it was actual French sparkling wine.
Despite successfully defending their right to the description "champagne perry" at the Court of Appeal in 1978, Showerings (and its corporate successors) eventually stopped using the term because a changing market made it irrelevant, and subsequent European regulations made it entirely illegal. The phased removal of the term occurred over two distinct eras:
Firstly a commercial phase-out in the early 1980s. Showerings voluntarily ceased using comparisons to champagne in their marketing during the early 1980s due to shifting consumer tastes. By the late 1970s and early 1980s, the British drinks market was modernising. Women were shifting away from retro, sweet, pub drinks to wine and cocktails. And secondly due to corporate changes. Showerings had merged into a much larger conglomerate, Allied Breweries (later Allied Lyons), and the new owners chose to pivot the brand identity away from the legally contentious "champagne" framing and instead, focusing purely on nostalgia and the iconic Babycham fawn logo to combat rapidly plummeting sales.

Bulmers stopped using the word champagne and Pomagne in 1975 when they decided it was not economic making Pomagne using the expensive, time-consuming traditional champagne method. They switched to bulk tank fermentation and officially retired the brand.
This was rather a pyrrhic victory, while there are no publicly confirmed figures, a realistic historical estimate for the total legal expenses of this trademark battle would be between £50,000 and £150,000 at the time, and when adjusted for inflation to the present day, this equates to a rough modern value of £600,000 to £1,800,000+!

Any remaining legal ability to use the word champagne evaporated entirely in 1992 as Protected Designation of Origin (PDOs) were introduced.
In 1992, the European Union designed robust PDO frameworks. These rules heavily restricted geographical indications for agricultural products and beverages and under these strict EU laws, the word "Champagne" was legally reserved exclusively for sparkling wines produced via designated process within the specific Champagne region of France.
Because EU regulations by 1992 superseded domestic English common law rulings. Interestingly Lord Denning had earlier famously declared in 1978 that European law was "like an incoming tide. It flows up the estuaries and up the rivers. It cannot be held back". This recognized the supremacy of EU law over domestic English law. The drink has officially been labelled as a sparkling perry ever since and the word Babycham allowed.

Recently I have heard a few times the statement that Bulmers and Showerings were banned from using the term ‘champagne’ for their products. This is not correct . There was a landmark case in cider and wine making. “Bulmers vs Bollinger”. Or more formally HP Bulmer Ltd and Showerings Ltd v J Bollinger SA and Champagne Lanson Père et Fils. 1974 the verdict of which was Bulmer’s and Showerings could use the term.*** ***
The initial dispute arose when French
Champagne producers sought to prevent English cider makers from using the terms "Champagne Cider" and "Champagne Perry". Bulmers produced a champagne cider and Showerings a champagne perry. The English producers preemptively filed the lawsuit on 8 October 1970.
They sought a formal legal declaration that they were entitled to use the terms "Champagne cider" and
"Champagne perry". Britain was not in the EU then. After the UK joined the EEC, in 1973 the French producers added European regulations to their legal defense. Instead of waiting for a trial, they immediately asked the trial judge to pause the case and send the European law questions to Luxembourg. The trial judge Mr Justice Whitford refused, stating he wanted to try the whole case out first to establish all the facts before deciding if a European referral was necessary. The French producers refused to wait for the trial.
They immediately launched an interim appeal to the Court of Appeal to overturn the judge's refusal.
The critical legal findings made by the Court of Appeal 1978 centred on the application of European Union. Lord Denning ruled that English courts have broad discretion under Article 177 of the Treaty of Rome when deciding whether to refer a question to the European Court of Justice (ECJ).
(A referral to Luxembourg is only permitted if it is strictly necessary to resolve the case. If the English court can solve the dispute or "incoming tide" doctrine.
The French argued that labeling Babycham as "champagne perry" constituted passing off by misusing their geographical indication. The Court of Appeal however ultimately ruled in favour of the English manufacturers, allowing Babycham to continue using the phrase "champagne perry." This was based partly on the goodwill defence. The court found that because Babycham had used the term openly for several decades without causing commercial confusion, the French producers had effectively acquiesced to its use. The product had built its own independent reputation and goodwill under that description, meaning it did not falsely deceive the public into thinking it was actual French sparkling wine.
Despite successfully defending their right to the description "champagne perry" at the Court of Appeal in 1978, Showerings (and its corporate successors) eventually stopped using the term because a changing market made it irrelevant, and subsequent European regulations made it entirely illegal. The phased removal of the term occurred over two distinct eras:
Firstly a commercial phase-out in the early 1980s. Showerings voluntarily ceased using comparisons to champagne in their marketing during the early 1980s due to shifting consumer tastes. By the late 1970s and early 1980s, the British drinks market was modernising. Women were shifting away from retro, sweet, pub drinks to wine and cocktails. And secondly due to corporate changes. Showerings had merged into a much larger conglomerate, Allied Breweries (later Allied Lyons), and the new owners chose to pivot the brand identity away from the legally contentious "champagne" framing and instead, focusing purely on nostalgia and the iconic Babycham fawn logo to combat rapidly plummeting sales.

Bulmers stopped using the word champagne and Pomagne in 1975 when they decided it was not economic making Pomagne using the expensive, time-consuming traditional champagne method. They switched to bulk tank fermentation and officially retired the brand.
This was rather a pyrrhic victory, while there are no publicly confirmed figures, a realistic historical estimate for the total legal expenses of this trademark battle would be between £50,000 and £150,000 at the time, and when adjusted for inflation to the present day, this equates to a rough modern value of £600,000 to £1,800,000+!

Any remaining legal ability to use the word champagne evaporated entirely in 1992 as Protected Designation of Origin (PDOs) were introduced.
In 1992, the European Union designed robust PDO frameworks. These rules heavily restricted geographical indications for agricultural products and beverages and under these strict EU laws, the word "Champagne" was legally reserved exclusively for sparkling wines produced via designated process within the specific Champagne region of France.
Because EU regulations by 1992 superseded domestic English common law rulings. Interestingly Lord Denning had earlier famously declared in 1978 that European law was "like an incoming tide. It flows up the estuaries and up the rivers. It cannot be held back". This recognized the supremacy of EU law over domestic English law. The drink has officially been labelled as a sparkling perry ever since and the word Babycham allowed.

This souvenir button badge was primarily sold in the gift shop from the early 1980s through the late 1990s.
While an exact end date for its retail run is not documented, the timeline is defined by the museum's historical branding periods.
This badge featuring the traditional woodcut-style apple tree, cider barrel, and historical straw beehive emblem introduced at the Museum of Cider's grand opening in 1981/2 from the old Bulmers factory site.
By the late 1990s-2000s the item was phased out when the museum transitioned its gift shop merchandise to modern simplified logos, such as the current tree-and-pillar.

Sorry not directly pear related as Bulmer’s did not make a perry (or pear cider till 2007) but the Museum does sell perry. 😊

A snippet of the history of the strong glass bottle. In 1633 Sir Kenelm Digby, was experimenting with glass production, and received a visit from a former manager of Sir Robert Mansell’s glassworks, James Howell. Digby knew Howell through his acquaintance with Mansell from Navy days although they were not friends. Howell wanted Digby to apply some of his wondrous Powder
of Sympathy to a wound he had sustained breaking up a duel. Astonishingly (from today’s perspective), the powder worked its magic and a friendship was forged.
They discovered that the heat of a coal fired furnace could be increased further by using tunnels to draw in oxygen and that the higher the temperature, strong glass could be produced. After the proclamation by James 1st in 1615 banning the use of charcoal several including Mansell had tried coal fired glass furnaces but could not make it successful. (to be fair, the flues were coupled with a change in formulation of the mix).
Under licence from Mansell who had had a former glassworks here at Newnham on Severn, Digby reopened and modified the furnace, making glass bottles for cider initially. The trade soon located to larger centres but there is still an area called Glasshouses and a public house in the area called the Glasshouse

This is my review of a great book on Cider history.
"Bulmers of Hereford: A Century of Cider-making" by the acclaimed classical author L. P. Wilkinson is the definitive history that chronicles the meteoric rise of the iconic British beverage brand formed in 1887, until its float on the stock market in 1970. Published in 1987 by David & Charles to commemorate the company's centenary, the book is an engaging blend of industrial progress and social history. Wilkinson went to Kings College Cambridge with Robert Harold Bulmer son of co founder Edward Bulmer and they became friends and worked together on projects.
Wilkinson traces the company's roots to Credenhill, exploring how Percy took his mother's advice to enter the food and drink trade because it
"never goes out of fashion".
And the subsequent shift from traditional stone mills and horse-drawn presses (vividly illustrated on the book's dust jacket) to massive modern industrialisation, including the creation of the world's largest fermentation vat at the time.
Beyond just Bulmers the book explores the wider social history of Herefordshire's orchards, detailing how cider evolved from a standard form of farm labourer wages into an internationally recognized commercial product.
It is highly regarded among beverage historians and local history enthusiasts alike. Readers will appreciate Wilkinson's attention to detail, he includes invaluable primary documentation, rare archival photographs, and historical footnotes in the family archives and more in the Cider Museum . It is an ideal companion piece for me to a visit to the Museum of Cider in Hereford, which is housed in Bulmers' original vintage factory site and where I visited several yea ago.
The vivid cover jacket photograph was taken in one of the barns at Tarrington Court, where the Friends of the Museum held fundraisers as its owner was a friend of the Bulmers. Sadly the photographer is unknown.

The Babycham television commercials of 1957 made media history by becoming the very first advertisements for an alcoholic beverage broadcast on ITV Britain’s new commercial television channel.
Whilst Babycham was formulated by Francis Showering these groundbreaking advertisements which transformed the UK drinking landscape were dreamed up by Jack Showering, his brother. Jack recognised the immense potential of the newly launched ITV network to market directly to a demographic completely ignored by traditional pubs; women.
The commercials debuted the classic catchphrase, "I'd Love a Babycham,” which was specifically crafted to give women a confident, socially acceptable line to use when ordering a drink at a pub counter. Prior women ordering directly in a British pub was not readily accepted.
The adverts leaned heavily into the tagline, "The Babycham bottle fills a champagne glass”. This positioning brilliantly packaged an affordable, sweet perry as a glamorous, upper-class luxury experience. And cemented further in the 1970s by starring actor Patrick Mower, the British heartthrob in the TV advertising.

The Babycham television commercials of 1957 made media history by becoming the very first advertisements for an alcoholic beverage broadcast on ITV Britain’s new commercial television channel.
Whilst Babycham was formulated by Francis Showering these groundbreaking advertisements which transformed the UK drinking landscape were dreamed up by Jack Showering, his brother. Jack recognised the immense potential of the newly launched ITV network to market directly to a demographic completely ignored by traditional pubs; women.
The commercials debuted the classic catchphrase, "I'd Love a Babycham,” which was specifically crafted to give women a confident, socially acceptable line to use when ordering a drink at a pub counter. Prior women ordering directly in a British pub was not readily accepted.
The adverts leaned heavily into the tagline, "The Babycham bottle fills a champagne glass”. This positioning brilliantly packaged an affordable, sweet perry as a glamorous, upper-class luxury experience. And cemented further in the 1970s by starring actor Patrick Mower, the British heartthrob in the TV advertising.

Birds of Beau Vista apple cider orchard. The Kāhu or Australasian swamp harrier is a large, tawny-brown bird of prey that occurs throughout New Zealand. It arrived after Māori settlement about 800 years ago. It is an opportunistic hunter that searches for food by slowly quartering the ground with its large wings held in a distinctive shallow V-shape. Adapted to hunt in open habitats, its numbers have benefitted from widespread forest clearance and the development of agriculture. Although carrion is a major component of the harrier’s diet in winter, it also actively hunts live prey such as small birds, mammals and insects. Seen over the orchard daily it difficult to photograph even through the standard apple and pear trees. Ironically often seen perching on fence posts nearby on the side of the road. This one was feeding on a recent road kill close by this morning. #birds #ornithology #orchard

At TeePee Cidery in Wairarapa New Zealand we have an ethos of working with nature not against it, that way we can produce the best cider with the least ecological footprint.
One aspect that has concerned us to date is our energy footprint. We would love to have dug cool cellars to store our cider undergoing secondary fermentation for 2 years or so, as champagne is, in the Roman caves in Rheims, but the water table is too high. So we used chillers in insulated shipping containers instead. That uses electricity.
Now we have installed solar panels on top of the containers and generate electricity for our needs and export any surplus.

At TeePee Cidery in Wairarapa New Zealand we have an ethos of working with nature not against it, that way we can produce the best cider and perry with the least ecological footprint.
One aspect that has concerned us to date is our energy footprint. We would love to have dug cool cellars to store our cider and perry undergoing secondary fermentation for 2 years or so, as champagne is, in the Roman caves in Rheims, but the water table is too high. So we used chillers in insulated shipping containers instead. That uses significant electricity.
We have now installed solar panels on top of the containers and generate electricity for our needs and export any surplus back to the grid. #electricity #solar #cider

At TeePee Cidery in Wairarapa New Zealand we have an ethos of working with nature not against it, that way we can produce the best cider and perry with the least ecological footprint.
One aspect that has concerned us to date is our energy footprint. We would love to have dug cool cellars to store our cider and perry undergoing secondary fermentation for 2 years or so, as champagne is in the Roman caves in Rheims, but the water table is too high. So we used chillers in insulated shipping containers instead. That uses electricity.
Now we have installed solar panels on top of the containers and generate electricity for our needs and export any surplus.

William Camden (1551-1623) was a prominent English antiquarian, historian, and author during the late Elizabethan and early Jacobean eras. He is best known for his masterpiece, Britannia 1st published in 1586. Multiple further editions were published as his research continued, (unusual for the time he toured England extensively as well as drawing from reports from his extensive network) Britannia was the first comprehensive topographical and historical survey of Great Britain and Ireland. William wrote it in Latin.
He first mentions perry in the 1607 edition in the chapter on Worcestershire. He comments on pears making a "counterfeit wine called pyrry," the Latin being "....pyris adeo focundus, ut e succo expresso vinum adulterinum fiat, quod Pyrry vocant, pergratum illud quidem potu, sed frigidum & flatuosum." I guess he was not a fan of perry!
In these later expanded edition he also highlighted the apple and fruit orchards of Herefordshire and notes that the region was known for supplying London with great quantities of "Syder".
The first edition in English was 1610 translated by Philemon Holland. #perry #cider

William Camden (1551-1623) was a prominent English antiquarian, historian, and author during the late Elizabethan and early Jacobean eras. He is best known for his masterpiece, Britannia 1st published in 1586. Multiple further editions were published as his research continued, (unusual for the time he toured England extensively as well as drawing from reports from his extensive network) Britannia was the first comprehensive topographical and historical survey of Great Britain and Ireland. William wrote it in Latin.
He first mentions perry in the 1607 edition in the chapter on Worcestershire. He comments on pears making a "counterfeit wine called pyrry," the Latin being "....pyris adeo focundus, ut e succo expresso vinum adulterinum fiat, quod Pyrry vocant, pergratum illud quidem potu, sed frigidum & flatuosum." I guess he was not a fan of perry!
In these later expanded edition he also highlighted the apple and fruit orchards of Herefordshire and notes that the region was known for supplying London with great quantities of "Syder".
The first edition in English was 1610 translated by Philemon Holland. #perry #cider

William Camden (1551-1623) was a prominent English antiquarian, historian, and author during the late Elizabethan and early Jacobean eras. He is best known for his masterpiece, Britannia 1st published in 1586. Multiple further editions were published as his research continued, (unusual for the time he toured England extensively as well as drawing from reports from his extensive network) Britannia was the first comprehensive topographical and historical survey of Great Britain and Ireland. William wrote it in Latin.
He first mentions perry in the 1607 edition in the chapter on Worcestershire. He comments on pears making a "counterfeit wine called pyrry," the Latin being "....pyris adeo focundus, ut e succo expresso vinum adulterinum fiat, quod Pyrry vocant, pergratum illud quidem potu, sed frigidum & flatuosum." I guess he was not a fan of perry!
In these later expanded edition he also highlighted the apple and fruit orchards of Herefordshire and notes that the region was known for supplying London with great quantities of "Syder".
The first edition in English was 1610 translated by Philemon Holland.

Babycham’s makers Showerings were very adept at advertising and promotion. The company produced a massive wave of branded merchandise to appeal to its primary consumer base—young women. Such as** **promotional giveaways like this stick pin in the 1960s and 1970s.
Designed to be worn as novelty lapel pins, tie tacks, or hat pins, they allowed customers to wear the trendy mascot on their clothing, capitalising on the mid-century craze for corporate and pop-culture promotional badges.

Babycham’s makers Showerings were very adept at advertising and promotion. The company produced a massive wave of branded merchandise to appeal to its primary consumer base—young women. Such as** **promotional giveaways like this stick pin in the 1960s and 1970s.
Designed to be worn as novelty lapel pins, tie tacks, or hat pins, they allowed customers to wear the trendy mascot on their clothing, capitalising on the mid-century craze for corporate and pop-culture promotional badges.

I recently read an excellent post by Jane Peyton about early human alcohol consumption and was intrigued by a brief reference to one of its advantages being the drink often containing L. acidophilus or LABs ( lactic acid bacilli - there are several different species) ).
As a cider making doctor I thought I would elaborate given pre-biotics are all the rage at present. Fermented cereal drinks have been recorded back to 6000BC and there is indirect evidence of fermented fruits in the diet earlier, some of which have been found to contain L. acidophilus. Evidence has been found on pottery. Not all alcoholic drinks contain LABs. Many wine and cider makers try and keep them out. The exception is Spanish Sidra with its distinctive acetic favour.
Lactobacillus acidophilus in early human diets offers several crucial survival advantages.
Early humans scavenged and ate raw or intermittently stored meat which were frequently contaminated with pathogenic bacteria like E. coli or Salmonella. As well as meat hunter-gatherers also relied on fibrous, difficult-to-digest roots and seeds. L. acidophilus produces enzymes that broke down complex carbohydrates and tough proteins, increasing the extraction of essential calories, amino acids, and minerals (like calcium and iron). Obtaining enough calories and protein from uncooked food was difficult.
L. acidophilus binds to intestinal walls, denying space and nutrients to these harmful microbes. Also these bacteria promoted the production of protective mucus and strengthening proteins in the gut lining, preventing systemic infections from breaking through the intestinal wall.
By fermenting sugars into lactic acid, L. acidophilus lowers the gastrointestinal and food pH, creating a hostile environment for putrefactive and disease-causing bacteria.
Early humans faced constant exposure to environmental toxins and parasites.
Lactobacillus strains interacted heavily with early lymphoid tissues in the gut, stimulating macrophage function and regulating the inflammatory response.
Early human diets contained varying levels of natural toxins and mutagenic compounds found in raw vegetation. L. acidophilus produces specific enzymes capable of inhibiting the conversion of pre-carcinogens into active carcinogens within the gut lumen.

We have had some good frosts at Beau Vista orchard in the Wairarapa, New Zealand recently.
This is good in killing off unwanted bugs etc in the grass and resetting bud burst of the trees. Just like apples, perry pear trees require about 600-900 hours of winter chilling hours (these are not just frosts but hours with temperatures below about 7°C) to break dormancy and reset their spring blossom. Without enough cold, the blossoms will be sparse, delayed, or fail to open entirely - delayed foliation. And unlike apples, pears like to blossom spectacularly before the leaves appear (hysteranthous). This is a high risk evolutionary tactic to attract a lot of pollinators but puts the flower (esp. the pistils) at risk from damage from a late frost once the flower has grown out from the protective scales of the bud. (When dormant in winter they can survive temperatures as low as
-25C).