Brothers Cider is a brand of fruit cider originating in

Somerset Somerset ( , ), Archaism, archaically Somersetshire ( , , ) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South West England. It is bordered by the Bristol Channel, Gloucestershire, and Bristol to the north, Wiltshire to the east ...

South West England South West England, or the South West of England, is one of the nine official regions of England, regions of England in the United Kingdom. Additionally, it is one of four regions that altogether make up Southern England. South West England con ...

. Originally available at music festivals, it is now sold 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 from the 1950s. It is based in Shepton Mallet, Somerset. Brothers' Cider is fermented and bottled at the Showerings Cider Mill and on the former site of the Anglo-Bavarian Brewery, which has been claimed as the first

lager Lager (; ) is a Type of beer, style of beer brewed and Brewing#Conditioning, conditioned at low temperature. Lagers can be Pale lager, pale, Amber lager, amber, or Dark lager, dark. Pale lager is the most widely consumed and commercially availab ...

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 b ...

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 Northwestern Europe, off the coast of European mainland, the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...

, although the claim is disputed. In 1995, Michael Eavis offered the Brothers space for a bar at the

Glastonbury Festival The Glastonbury Festival of Contemporary Performing Arts (commonly referred to as simply Glastonbury Festival, known colloquially as Glasto) is a five-day festival of contemporary performing arts held near Pilton, Somerset, England, in most su ...

, near the Jazz World Stage, but with sales restricted to

perry Perry or pear cider is an alcoholic beverage made from fermented pears, traditionally in England (particularly Gloucestershire, Herefordshire, and Worcestershire), parts of South Wales, France (especially Normandy and Anjou), Canada, Austral ...

-based drinks. When the offer of "perry" 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. 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 Babycham. On 15 February 2024, Brothers announced that they were re-launching with 4 new flavours. They are App-Solutely Pear-fect, Un-Berrylievable, Best of the Zest and Berry Sub-Lime. They will be available in 500ml cans, 330ml sleek can or 6x330ml sleek can multipacks. These 4 flavours will replace all current offerings, bringing an end to glass bottles and sweet Brothers flavours.

Flavours

References

External links

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