Brothers Cider is a brand of fruit cider originating in

Somerset ( en, All The People of Somerset) , locator_map = , coordinates = , region = South West England , established_date = Ancient , established_by = , preceded_by = , origin = , lord_lieutenant_office =Lord Lieutenant of Somerset , lord_ ...

South West England South West England, or the South West of England, is one of nine official regions of England. It consists of the counties of Bristol, Cornwall (including the Isles of Scilly), Dorset, Devon, Gloucestershire, Somerset and Wiltshire. Cities and ...

. Originally available at music festivals, it is now served in pubs, bars and stores across the United Kingdom and internationally in countries such as Thailand, Singapore and China.

History

Brothers Drinks Co. Limited was started in 1992 by four Showering brothers, whose parents were involved with the production of

Babycham Babycham () is the trade name of a light (6% ABV), sparkling perry invented by Francis Showering, a brewer in Shepton Mallet in Somerset, England. The name was owned by Accolade Wines until December 2021 when it was bought back into the Showeri ...

from the 1950s. It is based in

Shepton Mallet Shepton Mallet is a market town and civil parish in the Mendip District of Somerset, England, some south-west of Bath, south of Bristol and east of Wells. It had an estimated population of 10,810 in 2019. Mendip District Council is based t ...

, Somerset. Brothers' Cider is fermented and bottled at the Showerings Cider Mill and on the former site of the

Anglo-Bavarian Brewery The Anglo-Bavarian Brewery was originally established in Shepton Mallet in Somerset, England in 1864. It has been claimed as the first lager brewery in the United Kingdom, although the claim is disputed. It closed in 1920. The building, now the ...

, which has been claimed as the first

lager Lager () is beer which has been brewed and conditioned at low temperature. Lagers can be pale, amber, or dark. Pale lager is the most widely consumed and commercially available style of beer. The term "lager" comes from the German for "storage" ...

brewery A brewery or brewing company is a business that makes and sells beer. The place at which beer is commercially made is either called a brewery or a beerhouse, where distinct sets of brewing equipment are called plant. The commercial brewing of be ...

in the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotland, Wales and North ...

, although the claim is disputed. In 1995,

Michael Eavis Athelstan Joseph Michael Eavis (born 17 October 1935) is an English dairy farmer and the co-creator of the Glastonbury Festival, which takes place at his farm in Pilton, Somerset. Personal life Eavis was born in Pilton, Somerset and grew up ...

offered the Brothers space for a bar at the

Glastonbury Festival Glastonbury Festival (formally Glastonbury Festival of Contemporary Performing Arts and known colloquially as Glasto) is a five-day festival of contemporary performing arts that takes place in Pilton, Somerset, England. In addition to contemp ...

, near the Jazz World Stage, but with sales restricted to perry-based drinks. When the offer of "

perry Perry, also known as pear cider, is an alcoholic beverage made from fermented pears, traditionally the perry pear. It has been common for centuries in England, particularly in Gloucestershire, Herefordshire, and Worcestershire. It is also made ...

" was met with little understanding the Brothers would describe it as "like cider but made from pears" and after repeating this tens of thousands of times the shorthand "pear cider" was introduced and understood. Ten years later, in 2005, Brothers was packaged and launched into pubs and the retail trade. In 2007, Brothers began bottling soft drinks for

Fever-Tree Fevertree Drinks plc, known as Fever-Tree, is a British producer of premium drink mixers, founded by Charles Rolls and Tim Warrillow in 2004. The company's name comes from its initial product, a tonic water. Their tonic was flavoured with qui ...

. 50% of Brothers' capacity is accounted for by Fever-Tree. Brothers became a minority shareholder in Fever-Tree in 2013. In 2009, Brothers Cider won a Cool Brand award at The Drum Marketing Awards. In 2013 a new range of packaging was launched, for the company with a turnover of £46 million per annum. In 2016, the Showering Brothers bought the Shepton Mallett Cider Mill from C&C Group plc but not the brands, returning ownership to the family that had founded it. Matthew Showering said "Our grandfather built the factory and so it's be great to get back there. We used to go there as children and it came out of the family business when it was sold to Allied Breweries in the late 60s so it's great to reconnect with the place." In 2021, the Showering Brothers acquired the famous brand most associated with their cider mill when they bought

.https://www.thecaterer.com/products/brothers-drinks-acquire-babycham

References

External links

*{{official website, http://www.brotherscider.co.uk Somerset ciders Companies based in Somerset Shepton Mallet English ciders