History

Apples were not native to Britain. They were brought there by the druids for their medicinal benefits. The Romans planted the first orchards and made apple wine. After the Norman Conquest the French introduced special cider apples and farmers began to realize that in the same way that good wine couldn’t be made from table grapes, good cider couldn’t be made from sweet dessert apples.

In the early 1,900’s, the Taunton Cider Company was formed and in 1972 their Blackthorn cider became the first draft cider in the UK. This dry, yet sweet flavored cider has continued to please cider drinkers through out the world.
In 1996 Matthew Clark Brands bought Taunton and in 2002 they were bought by America’s, Constellation Brands.

In spite of all these changes, Blackthorn is still made from special locally grown cider apples and is still bottled and kegged in Somerset England and Somerset is still the same magical place that it was in the days of King Arthur, Merlin and Camelot.