With the brothers Wells conspicuous by their abscence (are they out there right now, spreading fireblight?), Albert has an opportunity to talk to Dr Kathryn Bruce, a social historian of horticulture and plant science who recently completed her PhD at the University of St Andrews. Kathryn's PhD had the title "The Fireblight Menace: Knowledge communities and their response to crop disease in the Anglo-world, 1880-1939", which attracted Albert's fascination as rapidly as new growth in a Gin Pear tree attracts Erwinia amylovor.

Don't forget to contribute your data, tasting notes and experiences to ourpomona.org

If you are an expert on fireblight, get in touch! We'd love to spread more awareness and knowledge about dealing with this disease.

As a point of reference, the British pear varieties Albert has observed to be resistant to fireblight appear to be: Thorn, Hendre Huffcap, Yellow Huffcap, Red Pear, Butt, Winnal's Longdon, Taynton Squash, Hellen's Early and Barland. The varieties that are susceptible are Gin Pear, Moorcroft, White Bache, Oldfield, Green Horse, Turner's Barn, Bartestree Squash, Dead Boy, and Blakeney Red.

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Whilst Albert heads to Westminster, Justin and Adam recruit Little Pomona's James Forbes to chat about all things fortified in the cider category.

James has just brought out his first Mistelle, Fomo (even if he's forgotten it today) and we learn how an 'alarming' coloured cider led to one of the most hyped releases of the last couple of years. Just and Adam are both card-carrying fans of all things fortified, and we chat about styles, approaches, ways to drink them and fortifieds with food.

Plus Justin has hosted another cider supper club, this time with a Japanese-inspired vegan menu, Adam has unexpectedly won an award for Perry: A Drinker's Guide, and we learn how to tell the difference between fermentation and malolactic fermentation using just a bowl of Rice Krispies.

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An anxiety pulling up of my socks, with Martin Johnson

We continue to mine our families for quality cider content, and this time it’s Albert’s turn to provide a relative, in the shape of his fellow @rosscider maker, @yewtreepeterstow supremo and, coincidentally, brother, Martin Johnson.

We discuss the running of a perfect cider pub, and everything Martin has done to transform the Yew Tree into just that. Storage and service of cider, how to get drinkers to give new things a try and bringing cider together with food. (Stand by for a wet sandwich supper club now that Albert has rightly fallen for the mighty Italian Beef).

Featuring a swathe of Broome Farm ciders as you’d expect, we test Albert’s knowledge of his own batches and discover just how hard we can plug Ross-on-Wye.

The plight of the hapless cidermaker, with Caroline Wells

For absolutely definitely 100% the first time ever on the show, we reveal that Justin and Adam have started their own cidermaking project, Three Wells Cider, and we’re joined by their business partner, cidermaking colleague and fellow Wells, Caroline, to tell you all about it.

From being accidentally compelled to become craft drinks producers after buying a pair of blundstones to dodging storms, breaking mills, grey-faced conversations about hose fittings and vanning cider from Bromyard to Reading, this episode became part group therapy, part exposé of the lies propagated by the minimum intervention movement.

Listen along and enjoy the story of Three Wells Cider’s first ever vintage. 

Bonus ciders from Hjulsjö, Find & Foster and Little Pomona.

Liberty to Cider – with Elisha Mason

We take an apple-tinted journey into the past with our guest this week, Elisha Mason, @museumofcider Archives and Collections Officer.

Leading us into the mysterious (and, apparently, heavily haunted) archives and cellars of the magnificent Museum of Cider in Hereford, Elisha talks us through British Cider Riots, and how they inspired revolution in America, dream teapots and finding an unexpected foot in a box (different museum…)

Continuing to answer the big questions we ponder who would be the best starship captain amongst historical pomologists and orchardists, ask what an ingenio is and string out the great Cider Voice debate: Bulmer’s Norman vs Thorn Pear. Also, is Adam secretly the Scrooge of Wassailing (and can he even pronounce it?)

We loved recording this episode with Elisha. Drop us a line at [email protected] with your suggestions of people we should speak to next, or just to talk all things cider and perry.

Ciders by @aldesider @tomolivercider @rosscider

After receiving an eloquent letter of encouragement from one of our 12 listeners, we re-run our extremely thorough and official tournament for the greatest cider apple or perry pear.

Bigger, better, with no apples off the table and two bonus judges in @helenannesmith and @ratchellle, this is Pome Total War, with apples and pears judged on every factor – taste, yield, vibes, name, treacherousness and level of freckles.

Who’ll triumph in Bulmers Norman vs Thorn II? Just how perfect is Porter’s Perfection? What’s the proper pronunciation for Plant de Blanc? And just who is ’T.O.’?

Discover the answers to some of these questions and more, as well as the identity of the true greatest cider apple or perry pear. Plus drinks by @palmers_upland_cyder, @littlepomona and (shockingly) @rosscider

Once again we dive into the inspiring international scene, this time learning all about cider in Japan thanks to our guest Lee Reeve, @inciderjapan.

We talk through Japan’s cider beginnings in the 1950s, its modern movement that began around 2017 and the different styles, makers, places and inspirations behind modern Japanese cider.

From French-style keeves to English bittersweets, from Fuji apples to wild indigenous varieties found in the mountain forests, there’s so much going on here to explore. 

Lee also talks us through his journey importing the best of English, French, American, Norwegian and Australian cider to Japan, and how cider is gaining a foothold in a country with such a strong and historic drinks tradition.

Shoutouts to producers including @kamoshika_cidre @vinvie.jp @sonofthesmithhardcider and @marukame_farm_cidery

Thanks for all the messages you’ve been sending – keep them coming to [email protected]. We love hearing from the 12 of you.

It’s about time we dug into one of the world’s biggest cider cultures – and the only only outside the UK with a large concentration of bittersweet and bittersharp cider apples – France.

So who better to catch up with than Virginie Thomas of @bouscule_tes_sens – author, consultant, advocate and trainer?

We cover all things French cider, chat through some of the similarities in how the drink’s perceived in the UK and France, then talk about writing a world cider guide during a pandemic, doing tastings with blindfolds on, the mighty crêpe and Brittany’s new cider route.

Follow the link in bio to listen, or head to your favourite podcast provider – we're on them all.

Something you'd like to hear us discuss? A guest we desperately need to get on? A hot take you'd like to share? We love to hear from our 12 listeners, so give us a shout at [email protected]. We might even read it out if you're very unlucky...

We level up once again this week as we welcome international cider dignitary Darlene Hayes to Cider Voice.

One of the most important and influential figures in the American and now global cider revolution, Darlene has played a central role in expanding cider education, especially through the Certified Cider Guide and Certified Pommelier Programmes.

We talk through Darlene's introduction to cider, burrow down a rabbit hole of varietal curiosity (with a shoutout to Albert's new Sherrington Norman) and then chat all things Pommelier following the course's worldwide expansion.

If you want the inside track on these new cider qualifications; what they are, how they were put together, what's involved in taking them – and how to avoid any obvious slipups, this is the episode for you. Plus a special behind the scenes glimpse at the shape that these cider education programmes might take next.