Cider and perry makers from across the country are being invited to get their entries in for Britain's biggest and best cider competition, the British Cider Championships, to be staged at the Royal Bath and West Show, May 29-31.

There are 18 classes in all, ranging from traditional farmhouse ciders, through bottle-fermented and keeved ciders, to fruit ciders and single variety ciders. There are classes as well for perry and apple juice, and the many recent starters in cider-making will have the chance to compete in the Newcomers Award. Full details can be found here: https://britishciderchampionships.com/competition

The Championships will once again be the centrepiece of the Orchards and Cider Exhibition at the show, which will again feature the hugely popular "People's Choice", where members of the public get the chance to sample and judge previous competition winners, as well as a wide range of other cider-related trade stands and entertainment.

Orchards and Cider Chief Steward, Ross Mangles, of North Down Orchard at Haselbury Plucknett, said that he was hoping for entries to exceed last year's tally of 450.

"These are exciting times in the cider world, with new makers springing up all over the place. Many are in the traditional cider growing areas like the West Country, but we are also seeing new businesses starting as far away as the North-East, Scotland and Northern Ireland, and we are particularly keen to encourage cider-makers from these areas to enter so that the full spectrum of quality British cider-making is represented. Last year's farmhouse cider champion came from Nottinghamshire, which shows that you don't need to come from Somerset or Hereford to be a champion.

"Bear in mind as well that, even if a cider or perry isn't a class-winner, it can still be awarded a gold, silver or bronze award, based on its intrinsic quality, which can be a major asset in marketing terms."