OUR STORY

We are Lew & Noreen. We settled in Cornwall in 2012 and with a long experience of brewing and wine making we moved into traditional craft cider making.

We have planted several small orchards using local varieties, as well as recognised classic cider varieties.

We started making cider with friends and family in 2015, and have experimented with different techniques over the years to perfect the craft product we make today. In 2022 we were awarded a Bronze Award at the Royal Cornwall Show.

We have also been keeping and breeding sheep since 2014, and currently have a small flock of pedigree White Ryelands. These are kept principally as a wool flock. We periodically have animals for sale, and as of autumn 2023 we expect to have wool for sale, professionally spun in ball format.

HISTORY

The word Stennack means “tin lands” in the ancient Cornish language, and here at Higher Stennack near Troon lies our smallholding, where there is evidence of the ancient art of “tin streaming” (the method of finding tin ore before underground mining had been developed).

In this ancient landscape we have numerous granite “Cornish hedges” surrounding our small fields, and use these to our advantage for managing our sheep. The granite also helps to hold heat from the sun and provide extra warmth to help ripen our apples.

Our position on a wild and windswept hillside means we rely on areas of mature woodland to give shelter to our orchards, whilst our best sheep grazing pastures are higher up where we have meadows for grazing and hay making.