Shepton Mallet Cider Mill Goes Wassailing

January 18 2012

 

With its roots in an ancient Pagan tradition, the custom of wassailing is thriving once again throughout the South West and Somerset in particular.

On the official wassail night, 17^th January, (the original “Twelfth Night” of the Julian Calendar), the Shepton Mallet Cider Mill hosted its annual wassailing ceremony for its growers, customers and suppliers in its own award winning Stewley Orchard. The aim of the wassail is to awaken the cider apple trees, scare away evil spirits and ensure a bountiful harvest of fruit in the Autumn.

The Stewley Master of Ceremonies, from Taunton Deane Morris Men, led the proceedings. Remaining faithful to the traditions, the evening’s ceremony saw the Wassail Queen (Saima Nevin, an employee of the Cider Mill) crowned with a wreath of berries, dip toast in mulled cider and place it in the branches of the tree to attract robins, the embodiment of good spirits bringing fertility to the orchard.  The cider was then poured onto the roots of the chosen tree to call for a good harvest. 

The assembled crowd were instructed to make as much noise as possible - banging sticks and playing instruments to scare away evil spirits.  A volley of gunfire was sent into the branches of the tree for good measure and singing of the Wassail Carol completed the ceremony. 

The following feast plays an important part of the celebration:  it is the last big meal before Plough Sunday, which historically signalled the beginning of the year’s work on the land.  Keeping to this tradition, guests at the Stewley Orchard wassail were provided with a fantastic spread including hog roast and a winter BBQ, whilst enjoying a range of ciders from the Cider Mill, from Blackthorn to Gaymers Orchard Reserve.  The Taunton Deane Morris Men and music from the Wassail Blues Band (members of which include two Cider Mill employees ) completed the evening’s entertainment.

This is the sixth year running that Shepton Mallet Cider Mill, the largest cider maker in the South West, has held its revival of the ancient festival.  Martin Doogan, general manager of the Cider Mill, explained  “this has become a highlight of our calendar.  It is a real reflection of the importance that apple growing has in this part of the country, and provides the perfect opportunity to acknowledge and celebrate this fact with our guests.   We place great value on the cultural heritage of cider making in the South West, particularly Somerset, and are immensely proud to be playing our part in keeping wassailing alive.”

 

QUICK FACTS:

 

Wassail Facts

·         Wassail means ‘be healthy’ or ‘be whole’

·         In Pagan times Wassail was the first fertility festival of the folk calendar

·         Wassailing can be enacted to any orchard fruit-bearing tree.

·         The Wassail ceremony begins with the oldest and most venerable tree

·         The purpose of the wassail is to awake the apple trees from their winter sleep and to scare away evil spirits

·         The Wassail Queen is lifted up to the boughs of the tree where she will place toast soaked in cider from the Clayen Cup or wassail bowl as a gift to the tree spirits. This also shows the revellers the fruits of last year

·         It is thought that the placing of the cider-soaked toast onto the boughs of the tree could be where the verb ‘to toast’ comes from

·         Revellers will then assemble below the tree to sing, shout, and bang instruments until the guns men will shoot, only gunpowder, into the branches of the tree to signal the end of the wassail 

·         A ring would be placed in the Wassail bowl and the unmarried would dunk to retrieve it.  Whoever got the ring without using their hands was guaranteed to be married within one year

Wassail History

·         How far the tradition dates back is unknown but the word wassail comes from the Old English greeting “waes hael” – ‘be healthy’ or ‘your good health’ – and so is thought to predate the Norman Conquest in 1066.

·         Wassailing is steeped in tradition and history due to its long standing within the West Country. There are many well-recorded instances of the Apple Wassail in the early modern period and research suggests that many of the traditions have descended directly from pagan practices

·         The first mention of apple wassailing in the history books was at Fordwich, Kent, in 1585, groups of young men would go between orchards performing the rite for a reward. The practice was first referred to as “howling”. On Twelfth Night, men would go with their wassail bowl into the orchard and go about the trees. Bread or toast was then laid at the roots and tied to branches. Cider was also poured over the tree roots, to ‘bless’ the trees

 

-ENDS-

 

Notes to editors: 

 

Shepton Mallet Cider Mill is the largest manufacturer of cider in the South West, producing brands such as Gaymers and the West Country favourite, Blackthorn, as well as a range of specialist brands such as Addlestones, Gaymers Stewley & Newton Vale Single Orchard Ciders and Gaymers County Series Ciders.

This will be the sixth year running that the Shepton Mallet Cider Mill has hosted the wassail celebration at Stewley Orchard.  Reflecting the traditional importance of cider and apple growing in the South West, the Cider Mill takes great pride in its part in keeping this unique, ancient custom alive.

 

For further information, broadcast and interview opportunities, please contact:

Andrea Cowan

Murf Dog Ltd

Tel: 01458 833 347 / 07799 150 728

Email: 

 

 

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