A cold start to the day. A polar blast has reached New Zealand The culprit is the current negative SAM (Southern Annular Mode) pushing cold polar air north The Remutuka pass, the route to the orchard closed from snow on the Remutuka ranges, the southern extension of the Tararua ranges behind us.

The chill continues today at Beau Vista orchard in Wairarapa, so I thought I would post some more pictures. Photogenic but think of those apple and pear buds. Even with those scales the living tissues must be cold! #winter #ice #bud

It's a cold frosty start today N Z is in the grip of a cold snap due to a freezing polar air blast from the Southern Ocean, and a high-pressure ridge making clear skies Makes for crunchy grass in the orchard and great photos. As always I am grateful for nature setting the bloom and killing the bugs

Another week of wet cold weather at the 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 like daffodils have responded to this and are flowering early. The crocuses are over #daffodils

During 1960s, Showerings promotional campaigns for Babycham This long stickpin fawn was given away in pubs, and mail in It is made from gold-tone metal with a textured fur finish a blue enamel on the oversized bow tied around the neck. Targeting women, on a long, slender stickpin it is a hat pin .

Although the pear trees (our first fruit trees to blossom) will still be dormant for 2 months more it great to see the bumblebees are stirring on sunny winter days. We keep a variety of plants and shrubs that are early flowering to help maintain their population in the orchard. #bumblebees #orchard

Last week this orchard was underwater from flooding. The ground is still sodden and it continues to rain however these snowdrops seem happy. A great display this year. #snowdrops. #orchard

Early morning fog over the Wairarapa valley lifting. Another glorious sunny day. The cold nights are good for the apple and pear trees but with a super El Nino forming we are expecting a dry winter - not so good. Is it affecting us already? It’s been unusually dry to date. #wairarapa #weather|

Which one of you Dollies keep escaping? Who's the guilty one? And why? You have plenty of grass, water and shelter in the orchard. #sheep #orchard #cider #apples

If you are a follower of mine or cider making on social media; and a Reddit person, then please join r/perry_pearcider the only site on Reddit dedicated to perry 😊. There are also other subreddits on cider making, apples & pomme fruits.

This was the first perry pear tree we have. Back in 2014 we collected scion wood from a perry pear at Waitahuna. It is now a large prolific tree producing us a SV single tree perry. And we have now grafted on to other trees that are starting to to produce. #grafting #scion #perry #pear

Perry like cider can be made still, or method traditional. This doseage machine makes getting a consistent fill levels in the bottles easy with the gravity fed reservoir bottle, after disgorging the lees This machine is Spanish and based on a classic design from Épernay. #perry #doseage

If you are after an academic view of cider making it’s hard to go past this book. Published 2003. The chapter on cider is written appropriately by Andrew Lea as well as him being joint editor. Although 20 years old now there is little out of date. Mine is well thumbed! #cider #cidermaking #books

The old masters of perry making had the same problems with perry as now. They didn’t know the science but their remedies work well today. See Rev John Beale aphorism 14 in Pomona by John Evelyn 1664 (attached to Sylva the book). #perry #Sylva #pomona #book

Our pear trees look dormant but during autumn, these buds develop harden overlapping scales to protect the delicate meristem inside which continues to undergo microscopic growth and development whilst accumulating the required "chill hours" before Spring. 😊 #pear #perry #bud #dormancy #winter

For those in or visiting the UK, the Hartpury Orchard Centre is well worth a visit. They contain most known varieties of perry pear planted by Hartpury Heritage Trust. There are 30 acres of orchards and wetlands grazed by Ryeland sheep and Gloucester cattle. Dogs on leads are welcome #perry #pears

Autumn time in the orchard here & time for medlar harvest. Medlars ripen later than most fruit and after the frosts set in. Traders brought them to England in the 1700s. It is recorded that they were added to cider in the 1700’s so we do so to with fruit we grow ourselves. #medlar #cider #autumn

Autumn is here now in Wairarapa New Zealand. The autumnal colours are lovely. Especially on the pear trees. The orchard is still wet from the recent floods, pruning our next job delay , after burning last year’s pruning which have been providing habitats for skinks & geckos #orchard #yearlycycles

Felt badges have been used by hikers since the early 20thC to remember places. Originating from Scout movement collecting merit badges, these felt badges let hikers to personalise hats etc with emblems. I got this one from the Museum of Cider in Hereford, England. #cider #museum #badges #Hereford

Flashback time. End of the harvest 2013 I still have a few bottles left in the library. The tannins are mellowing a little but still drinks well We were using our original Vigo manual rack and cloth press then. Helped by our friend Champika Mahinda Wickramaarachchi #cider #harvest.

On this ANZAC day I commemorate it with this WW1 cartoon It was part of a series titled Fragments from France, produced by Captain Bruce Bairnsfather during the war and were first published weekly in The Bystander magazine starting in 1915 This one is called Tommy Tickler's Plum and Apple Jam #ANZAC

Well the floods are receding, it has resulted in some restoration work to come when we can work in the orchard without pugging the grass. Pruning will be later for sure. Yesterday we saw some glimpses of sunshine and the sunlight on this apple warmed my heart after days of rain. #apple #orchard #

This stained glass artwork by Alpamys Kenbayev is in the Almaly Metro station in Kazakhstan It depicts an apple tree Almaty is called the city of apples Almaty originates from the Kazakh word "alma" -apple The wild apple species Malus sieversii is native to the region. #apples #stainedglass #Almaty

A small but important piece of memorabilia. I have a first day cover letter and mugs but this is the first poster of the ‘73 Hereford Cider festival I have found. In great condition thankfully. #cider #history #Hereford

Real versus Commercial cider Copied from my fellow cider maker Tim Whale of Tutts Clump Cider It is an excellent summary of the differences Sadly the latter tends to copy the image of the former for advertising. There are a lot of small cider maker making a range of ciders for you to enjoy. #cider

Yarlington Mill cider apples being washed and processed. Lovely dark juice after scratting and pressing. pH 4.2 and SG 1.042. Not bad considering the summer. It was great this year to be working in our new poundhouse as it rained all day. #cider #apples #poundhouse

I believe in cool fermentation to preserve the volatile aromas of apple. Before having a cooled room I used these cooling snakes that circulated chilled water. They were effective esp when using a cultured yeast such as AWRI 350 which tended to heat up the vigorous ferment. #cider #fermentation

Bringing in the Yarlington Mill apples We grown the trees as standards so we can graze sheep and are harvest driven This season is late About one third have fallen now the rest dropped by hand The SG is 1.045 and the pH high at 4.2 so will add some Royal Wilding to lower it to 3.5 #cider #apples

Collecting in the last of the perry pears now, these are 'Alex' and the last of the apples in front. These are Yarlington Mill. They have built up good sugars and aromas with extra tree time in the autumn which has been good after the dismal summer #cider #perry #apples #pears #YarlingtonMill

Bracing for the storm ex tropical cyclone Viaunu is barrelling down on NZ There are power outages and flooding in the North The Wairarapa is ok at present but heavy rain and winds expected tonight The orchard should be fine. The last apples & perry pears to be picked up after 🤪 #wairarapa #Cyclone