PROBIOTIC FARMING IN OUR 300-YEAR OLD ORCHARDS

I aspire to be a pioneer in biodynamic probiotic farming. Farming the land without a hint of chemicals or artificial fertilisers to create a natural, symbiotic balance within our organic apple orchards. This, in turn, encourages the all-important biodiversity to flourish. Ecology and sustainability are absolutely key to every step of our unique organic apple cider vinegar process.

WILLIAM CHASE: MY STORY SO FAR

Willy’s is my third and most exciting brand launch yet amongst Tyrrells Crisps and Chase Vodka & Gin. I find nothing more satisfying than making something from scratch at source. The farmer in me is also the reason I take pleasure from making organic apple cider vinegar myself. I love the whole process from growing to harvesting, pressing to fermenting, bottling, and even designing the products myself.

Pedigree and taste are everything to me. I want people to feel more connected to their food and appreciate that eating isn’t just a process, it’s a way of life. You will hear me talking a lot about my 300-year-old orchards at my farm and ‘The Mother’ in my raw, live apple cider vinegar – she’s 100% live and in every bottle I produce. We keep The Mother and all her goodness protected from sunlight in our brown glass apple cider vinegar bottles.

Willy's Story
live apple cider vinegar

Why Apple Cider Vinegar?

I have traded potatoes for most of my life but was fortunate to inherit 200 acres of untouched old organic orchards when I moved to The Mother Farm in 2005. It’s in a village called Little Miracle, a beautiful and fruitful place in Herefordshire where Willy’s ACV started.

I fell in love with the old trees. The sense of balance in the old orchards was incredible and I felt it was my duty to preserve it. The apples made the most incredible cider and having learnt the craft of fermenting alcohol, I soon realised that a new trend for fermented, healthy foods was gathering a momentum, and tried my hand at the next step of creating live organic apple cider vinegar with the help of ‘The Mother’.

TRIED AND TRUSTED

I love the fact that drinking apple cider vinegar with mother is a tried and trusted drink that our ancestors have been fermenting for centuries. Since Roman times, the benefits of fermenting apples into cider and further, apple cider vinegar have been recognised.

I’ve learnt that the best apple cider vinegar is made from wonky, ripe apples that come in all shades and shapes. In fact, the growing trend for natural ferments, like live Apple Cider Vinegar, means I can rescue acres of old bitter-sweet orchards which have been disregarded as cider makers favour sweeter apples to fuel the rocketing demand for sweet, sugar enhanced ciders that are now in vogue. One fruit, one county, two completely opposing trends.

300 years old apple farm

Gut health basics using apple cider vinegar

Where the magic happens

On our organic family farm in Herefordshire, we ferment raw, unfiltered, and unpasteurised apple cider vinegar with 300-year-old live mother.

We practice bio-intensive agriculture that focuses on creating healthy soil micro-organisms. We do this by farming 100% wild, with no intervention, and by growing a mixed variety of plants. This helps to retain wild yeast and preserve the soil structure, which in turn supports a diverse range of beneficial bacteria.

Our ‘live mother’ is a naturally occurring culture of friendly bacteria, proteins and enzymes. We look after her by growing our apples in probiotic soil, allowing a wild fermentation process and bottling at source.

Such love and attention results in a delicious drop that’s good for you and good for the planet.  

WHY WILLY’S?