Four Elms Fruit Farm

Sheltering in the quiet, patchwork countryside around Sidmouth nestles Four Elms Fruit Farm, a true labour of love.

Owned and run by Richard and Sue Smedley, numerous varieties of native apple, each with a proud and illustrious heritage, stretch over the 75 acres of rich sandy soils. Growing beside these is an assortment of soft fruit encompassing Victoria plums, Conference pears, strawberries, raspberries, tayberries, gooseberries and blackberries. Evocative varieties of apple including Red Falstaff, Egremont Russet, Spartan and Jupiter all conjure up wonderful images of blossom filled orchards and trees laden with fruit. The reality does not disappoint. In the height of Summer, the heady perfume coming from the orchard is almost intoxicating. The much loved, instantly recognisable Cox variety grows happily with Crimson splashed Discoveries, slowly sweetening and almost floral in scent.

Like many small producers, Four Elms have, with the exception of their local Waitrose at Sidmouth, turned their back on the supermarkets and invested in their own future. Less than a century ago the Westcountry was covered with apple orchards and cider was part of a worker’s wages. Now 85% of these have disappeared and only a few commercial growers still survive. Turning the bountiful crop into apple juice has given Richard and Sue some stability and helps protect against future saturated markets. A fifth of each year’s crop is now pressed into delicious apple juice and sold locally.

The flavour is intense enough that you can taste the individual varieties, whether it is the light and crisp ‘Summer Apple’ pressed from the early Discovery’s or the Bramley/Cox mix that literally flies out the door at the Jack. And it's not just us who rate what is happening down the road. Their apple juice must be some of the most accoladed in the country, previously winning both Gold and Silver in the Taste of the West Food and Drink Awards, winning the 2004 National Fruit Show Apple Juice competition and most recently Gold in both the 2006 Great Taste Awards and the Bramley Awards.

For more information please call Richard and Sue on 01395 568286.