This August marked the 25^th anniversary of Janet and Martin Harris’s move to Butford Farm in Herefordshire. As the 20^th century slipped gracefully into the 21^st, Janet and Martin were embarking on their first harvest, and very fortunately for all us cider and perry drinkers in the UK, they are still going strong today. As you’ll read in Adam’s excellent Meet your (perry)maker article from September 2022, they very considerately planted around 270 perry pear trees over 2 orchards, mostly on Pyro Dwarf rootstock, with a few on Pyro Communis rootstock too. When perusing the online catalogue of fruit tree nurseries and their stock, you’ll see that Pyro Dwarf rootstock gets you a tree which fruits after around 3-4 years, and with a final height of around 6-8ft. Whilst Pyro Communis can produce a tree of up to 20ft in height, taking a little longer to produce that initial crop of fruit. At roughly 20 years of age, all of Butford Organics’ trees are entering that real sweet spot of cropping – which I personally find incredibly exciting when you consider some of the varieties they’ve planted (Coppy and Teddington Green I’m looking at you).

Ahead of the Bristol Cider Salon this year, I saw a post on Butford Organics’ Instagram page announcing a few new releases they were intending to debut at the salon. I couldn’t make it this year due to a whisky festival clash, so wasn’t able to experience this first debut of Coppy and Teddington Green to the wider public. There’s something inherently exciting to me about bottle conditioned, single variety expressions of these ludicrously rare perry pear varietals having their caps popped to attendees of the salon. For those whom 2024 was their first cider salon experience, perhaps they thought the world of perry has always had Coppy and Teddington Green available in large format, 750ml bottle pours? How special to be getting into these drinks at a time when the decline of 95% of the total varieties available to orchardists – that merited Charles Martell to research and publish his excellent Pears of Gloucestershire book – is perhaps in reverse with smaller producers like Butfords Organics, Temple Cider, Whin Hill, and more planting these rare trees and starting to release on a regular basis, full juice perry once more. Hopefully we see more drinkers coming to the fold after the publication of Adam’s excellent Perry A Drinker’s Guide book too. One book leads to an orchard, leads to another orchard, a new perry or two, another book – the perry feedback loop grows in resonance, and everyone wins!

This article isn’t all about these two particular varietals – it’s just pretty exciting to be covering them on Cider Review for Perry Month! Ed’s paired Gorgonzola & Pear Tart with Butford’s Hendre Huffcap before; Adam’s compared that Hendre Huffcap to Butford’s Aurora blend of 11 different varieties; and we’ve looked at Tom Oliver’s Coppy single variety in a duel review alongside Ross Cider’s Flakey Bark 2020, and Fishpool’s Monmouthshire Burgundy. Before we embark on a six-bottle review, I got in touch with Martin to ask him a few questions around these releases, and how things are going in the orchards.

Cider Review: Coppy and Teddington Green…where did the inspiration come to plant these particular varieties in your orchard?

Martin Harris: Those two were the latest additions to our orchards. Coppy for the reputation and the fact I knew Tom Oliver, he’s just down the road from me and we’re good friends. We wanted to preserve these fabled old varieties, ensure they kept going for the next generation. 

Teddington Green is slightly different: we were filling up space at the top of the orchard and Tom had a dozen trees that he’d bought but had no space for. We bought them as a job lot featuring amongst others, two Teddington Green. Last year was the first time we had enough fruit to make a single pressing. All those trees are on Pyrus Communis. The older trees we have in our orchard were bought when Bulmers decided to sell off some of their nursery stock. Already about 10 years old when we planted, so around 30 years old now I’d say.

CR: With not many of these trees in existence, is there anything unusual about the growing style of Coppy and Teddington Green that you’re observing?

MH: Teddington Green acts just like all our perry pear trees growing on pyrus communis rootstock – they enjoy growing, and take a while to fruit. Coppy is just being Coppy. It’s cropped very reluctantly. Even with beehives around the orchard and lots of other willing pollinator pear trees in nearby rows.

CR: I saw your Bristol Cider Salon Instagram post about these bottlings a couple of months ago – how did they go down with the good folk of Bristol?

MH: They didn’t actually  end up going to Bristol Cider Salon, I’ve kept them a bit under wraps since then. Hopefully by the end of the year we can look to release them. Coppy has certainly moved on since Tom and I tried it back in June (as I think your review will attest to). Only 220 bottles of the Coppy, so a bit tricky to market. I’d like to be able to dispense these bottles to as wide a population of drinkers as possible. It’s nice to be able to put them out there and let as many cider and perry fans make up their minds.

CR: Pre-empting our end of year Harvest report a bit here in September but…what’s the crop looking like this year?

MH: It’s looking by far the most sparse harvest ever with perry pear trees. Very poor. Our Thorn, Winnal’s Longdon and Green Horse all have a crop, but that’s about it. I’ll be surprised if we can make 1000 litres overall. I think maybe it’s the wet spring. I’d say there are 5 Coppy pears on the 5 trees in total!

CR: One final question, any other rare varieties of perry pears that you’re looking to grace us with in the coming years?

MH: I’ve got 1 or 2 obscure Welsh Varieties Berllanderi Green and Berllanderi Red, but only 1 tree of each, none that folk haven’t heard of. When we planted the orchard, we went through Luckwill and Pollard’s Perry Pears book and identified the one’s with good reputations and that we could source relatively easily.

CR: You’re about to release 220 bottles of single variety Coppy to the world, so I think you’re doing well to help promote the cause of these fabled old varieties!

On then to the reviews!

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Butford Organics, Teddington Green 2023 – review

How I served: A couple of hours in the fridge and then out on a slightly chilly balcony for September.

Appearance: The cap pops and it’s evident straight away that this is a lively number! 5.5% abv and bottle conditioned to a semi-vigorous effervescence. Peachy gold hue, with a fair amount of suspended sediment being moved about in the currents of fizz at first, these then drop to the bottom of the glass after a minute. The second pour has no sediment whatsoever, must have dropped to the bottom of the bottle with time.

On the nose: Wax jacket and rubber wellies meets candied pear skin. As it opens up, a glorious tropical fruit salad note of lychee, papaya, and pear. Once open around 45 mins I’m getting Parma Violet sweets.

In the mouth: There’s a prickle from the effervescence which gives an initial puckering sherbet texture to the liquid. Soft tannins on the roof of the mouth. Charles Martell’s Pears of Gloucestershire refers to Teddington Green as a “seedling of Butt”, and in the scheme of things a relatively young variety having been “seeded in the early 1900s”. A side by side with a single variety Butt perry would make for an interesting comparison. Not picking up any of the natural gas element Adam mentions in his Butt review, so maybe that flavour profile isn’t passed down to this progeny. Slight rubbery note, with that minerally wet slate flavour that Cork & Crown’s Chris George references regularly in his videos.

In A Nutshell: Probably the only Teddington Green single variety perry you’re going to try on the market this year. A privilege to experience the flavours this critically rare perry pear offers.

Butford Organics, Moorcroft 2022 – review

How I served: In the fridge for 2 hours and then room temperature for 30mins before popping the cap.

Appearance: Hazy orange, light effervescence. The mousse dissipates swiftly after pouring into the glass. Looks more like a cider than a perry! (On further research of Adam’s 99 Pines Moorcroft review, it can look like this). Comes in at 7.1%abv.

On the nose: Orange peel, allspice, ginger, stewed gooseberry.

In the mouth: Grilled pineapple chunks with a slosh of mango juice. This is a full-bodied juice bomb of a perry. Soft tannins lending a grilled peach element to it too. I could see this going really well with a tomato-heavy pasta dish.

In a nutshell: For once, a perry pear variety that is not critically endangered. The drink however is a rarefied, juicy liquid dynamite in the glass that deserves seeking out.

Butford Organics, Gin 2021 – review

How I served: Day in the fridge and then 45 mins out of the fridge.

Appearance: Lemon gold, great clarity, light effervescence. There’s a small central mousse to the drink right in the middle of the glass. The bottle had a cork and crown on it, but the fizz was well-behaved and contained. Comes in at 5.5% abv.

On the nose: Nettle, borage, rosemary, it’s a herbaceous aroma, with a whisp of lemon rind running through it. And it may be auto-suggestion, but there is that element of juniper to it too.

In the mouth: Lemon prickle fizz on the tongue, a little biscuity to follow. Quite taut and fleeting on the initial sip, medium dry, will wait to see how a few minutes to acclimatise evolves the liquid in the glass. After 10mins, stewed gooseberries and elderflower arrive and linger longer on the palate.

In a nutshell: Aromatic , floral and fun. Bring your cava and prosecco-enjoying friends into the world of perry with this bottling!

Butford Organics, Hendre Huffcap 2023 – review

How I served: A day in the fridge and then half an hour out on a very warm balcony after a hot day.

Appearance: Lemon gold, very light effervescence (perhaps a bit more time to bottle condition will increase this as only from last season). Great clarity!

On the nose: Juicy pears, it’s that aroma from Williams pears in can, hinting at an elderflower blossom, syrupy, honeyed element. Very fragrant, a freshly opened lightly set jar of honey is ricocheting through my olfactory senses.

In the mouth: The absolute sweetest of the bunch so far, I’d say at 5.7% abv there’s a fair amount of residual sugar left in this juice. Just enough citric acid to balance it and stop it becoming clawing on the palate. I wouldn’t even describe this as Medium-Sweet, it’s a fully signed up member of the sweet perry brigade. Mildest hint of an acetone note as it warms up to ambient temperature, but not enough to be off-putting.

In a nutshell: The sweet tooth fairy called: they want their Hendre Huffcap back! Sorbitol anyone?

Butford Organics, Yellow Huffcap 2021 – review

How I served: As with the Hendre Huffcap, day to chill, 30mins to acclimatise.

Appearance: Golden peachy yellow, ever so slightly more Pikachu than the Hendre Huffcap. Tiniest bit of effervescence bubbling up from the glass, and an equally brilliant clarity. Comes in at 8.1% abv.

On the nose: A grassy, wildflower meadow nose. Sun on a cornflower aroma, when the plant really just wants a water. I’m getting aroma memories of bringing a few sacks of over-ripe Yellow Huffcaps back in the boot of my partner’s car and by the time I got home, they had started to press themselves in-sack and there was juice EVERYWHERE in the boot. I’ve always found with Yellow Huffcap there’s an underlying satay sauce/crushed peanut vibe going on really low down in the fruity mix – it’s here too.

In the mouth: A harmonious blend of sugar, acid, and a smidgen of tannin. Foam Banana sweets mixed in with some kind of sour plum bonbon. Lovely long finish that lingers in the mouth and reminds you why this is one heck of a respected perry pear varietal.

In a nutshell: Full-bodied, rewarding and oh-so-moreish! This should be on every fine dining restaurant’s drink list in the UK in 2024.

Butford Organics Coppy 2023 – review

How I served: A day in the fridge and then half an hour to acclimatise to an admittedly not particularly warm September evening.

Appearance: Brilliant clarity to it, radiating a pastel orange hue up close. Light effervescence and no mousse to speak of. I poured carefully, but it appears the sediment has successfully cold crashed in the fridge. Comes in at 6.1% abv.

On the nose: Orange rind and mango juice initially. Elderflower cordial mixed with a faint dank, hoppy note. After 5 mins sat in the glass and yes again, it’s that freshly pressed orange juice note. Very appealing.

In the mouth: Wow! It’s all freshly pressed mango and orange juice on the palate too! Soft tannins for a bit of body. It’s playing a magic trick of coming from one fruit but tasting like two completely different ones from warmer climes. Medium dry. It’s quite a quick finish, but the juiciness of it makes you good back for a sip again and again. Thank goodness for Martin Harris and Tom Oliver (and Charles Martell and Jim Chapman) for ensuring this uber rare tree still has the chance to shine in 2024 and make perry this good!

In a nutshell: First described in 1886 but still here in 2024. Seek out this bottle on release, you will not be disappointed.

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Conclusions

Wow! What an amazing experience to taste through these single variety perries from Butford Organics. The presentation is top notch – those colourful labels on those elegant 750ml bottles work so well. How could you ignore something like that smiling at you from the shelves of your local bottle shop? I bought these 6 bottles directly from Martin back in early August, around the £65 mark which seems excellent value for such a range of flavours. The website gets updated every so often with new bottlings, so it’s well worth checking out. Alternatively, Chris George over at Cork & Crown keeps a good selection available on his online webstore, with a few rarities from previous seasons still on-sale.

As Martin mentioned, the Coppy and Teddington Green are being held back as of now, but a release date is imminent (this side of the new year hopefully). I think the Coppy has already made it to my list of top ciders and perries of the year – I hope as many of you as possible are able to get a bottle and enjoy in the colder, darker months ahead (that orangey, mango note could work so well with an end-of-year celebration). As we all know with perry pear varieties it’s a case of use em’ or loose em – we came so close to losing these two perry pears, let’s hope their popularity grows and grows in the coming years!