Whin Hill Cider is run by Jim Fergusson and Peter Lynn. It started in a small way in 1993 making cider from spare apples from the garden and what could be begged from friends and acquaintances. Initially all cider not drunk by ourselves was sold to local pubs. The cider was characteristic of that produced in the eastern counties, strong, sharp and a bit thin. We realised that in order to produce a more mellow, full-bodied cider we would have to have our own orchard.
In the spring of 1994 we ordered 1000 proper cider apple trees from Herefordshire and started looking for some land to plant them in. By August, with delivery set for December and no land in sight things were looking a bit fraught. Eventually after several failed attempts at buying land we managed to acquire enough land at Stanhoe, some ten miles from our base in Wells to plant our trees.
In 1997 we managed to buy an 18th century barn and outbuildings off the main car park in Wells to use as our cider works and shop. With a licence to sell to the public we now supply almost our entire production direct to the customer through our own shop.
