Green Valley Cyder has its feet on the ground, making good local cider from good local apples. It values the tradition of cidermaking that stretches back centuries and the joy of sharing this with customers old and new. It is a founding member of Devon County’s approved origin scheme using the “Made in Devon” logo. This is your guarantee that all of the apples used to make the cider are grown on Devon soil – from a score or more of traditional farm orchards stretching from Honiton to beyond Torbay.

Green Valley Cyder was founded in 1989 following the "strategic" closure of the nearby, and once dominant, Whiteway Cyder Company. The enthusiasm of its founders to continue the best traditions of cidermaking in Devon still shows today. With a small company like this, the employees can turn their hand to all aspects of the business and readily share their knowledge, as well as their cider, with customers at the tasting counter. If you would like to spend rather more "quality time" with the cidermakers and take a short tour, then this is best arranged in advance because the little shop can get quite busy. You can learn about some of the local cider apples with their quaint descriptive names – Sweet Sheep's Nose, Fair Maid of Devon, Hangy Downs, Twos 'n Twos, Fillbarrel, Slack my Girdle, Pig's Snout – to mention but a few. See how a cider cheese is stacked and built. Find out how the ancient oak fermentation vats were moved and re-assembled. Learn how the ciders are fermented, matured, tasted and blended and follow the process through to the finished bottle. Visitors in October and November, during the cider apple harvest, can even lend a hand with the pressing if they are lucky, but remember that this is a working business – it’s for real not just for show.

Green Valley Cyder Ltd, Darts Farm Shopping Village, Clyst St George, Exeter, Devon, EX3 0QH

Green Valley Cyder has its home at Darts Farm, just outside Topsham. The original small farm shop at Darts Farm has developed out of all recognition in the last ten years and is now an award-winning outlet for West Country Food and Drink.

On top of the fruit and veg, there is a deli with a terrific cheese counter, an independent local butcher, a very pleasant café, a plant house and a rather tasteful furnishing business. Green Valley Cyder too sells rather more than you might expect. On top of its own award winning range of ciders and country wines, there is an excellent choice of local fresh-pressed apple juices, a stunning array of over 100 bottled beers (beer buff heaven) and a good selection of authentic ciders and perries from other independent producers.

Directions by road: Turn west off the A376 Exeter to Exmouth road at a mini-roundabout, towards Topsham. Darts Farm is a couple of hundred yards on the right.

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This is a large emporium, selling many other things besides cider and several other ciders besides the traditional draught. The cider I bought there tasted rather raw - maybe it was just too new. [crofter.com]

Apple Gathering at Green Valley Cyder

Cider making at Green Valley Cyder