Ciders and Perries

Once more there will be a wide selection of makers, varieties and styles from across the UK. The Trent Bridge cider barn will be similar in size and style to last year and we hope you'll find what you seek. Preparations for this year's event are well under way and we are expecting around 100 different ciders and perries. The 2026 Cider list is now available to view and download. 2026 Cider list
East Midlands Cider Championship Once again, we are proud to be hosting the East Midlands Cider and Perry Competition. This will be in the format of a blind tasting, by a carefully selected panel of judges, on the Wednesday. All the draught ciders and perries entered in it will be on sale at the Cider Bar (with "In Competition" stickers on), so you can try them yourself to see which you think is best.
What will you see on the Cider Bar?
	Cider All our ciders are made in the traditional way from freshly pressed real apples - no concentrates or artificial flavourings are used.  They come from small independent cider-makers in England and Wales.   Some are made from just one type of apple, single-varietals, others from different types carefully blended together.    They cover a wide range of flavours and strengths - sweet, medium or dry, strongly flavoured or delicate, 4% through to over 8% - so should truly provide something for everybody.
	Perry Perry is made by the same process as cider, but using pears instead of apples.   It generally comes out rather sweeter, and paler, than the ciders.   It can be made from many different variety of pears, all of which have their own characteristics.  We always have a good selection of perries on at the Festival.
	Pider This is half-way between a cider and a perry, being made from a mix of apples and pears.  It isn't commonly seen, but we usually manage to get at least two or three on the Cider Bar.
	Key-Keg Cider After a very successful launch in 2023 Key-keg cider will be returning.  This is made by the same traditional process, from real apples, but is stored and served differently, resulting in a cooler, lightly sparkling drink.  So if you prefer sparkling to still, make sure you come and try the key keg ciders.
What won't you see on the Cider Bar?
	With so many different ciders and perries, there should be plenty of choice for everybody.  What you won't find is anything from the big multi-national companies, as you can get that everywhere, you don't need to come to a Festival for it.   You also won't find the "fruit ciders" with mango, strawberry, etc, added.   We find these extra fruits tend to drown out the flavours of the apples, and we want to showcase the wonderful variety of flavours that can be got from using apples and pears alone.

The Nottingham CAMRA Cider Team.