Dunkertons Cider Mill

The smell hits you first - that warm, yeasty ferment that tells you something proper is happening inside these converted farm buildings just outside Leominster. Dunkertons is a working cider mill where they've been pressing apples and making cider the way it should be done, and they actually let you watch it happen.

Inside, you'll see the whole operation laid bare: traditional wooden presses, vats of fermenting cider, and staff who genuinely know their stuff and won't bore you with marketing speak. It's refreshingly unpretentious - this is a real business, not a theme park version of one. You can buy their cider on site, and it's worth trying because the quality is miles above supermarket stuff.

Cider enthusiasts will get the most from a visit here. If you're the type who cares about how things are actually made rather than just the finished product, you'll find it fascinating. Families with older kids who can appreciate something beyond a gift shop might enjoy it too, though younger ones could find it a bit static after twenty minutes.

Allow an hour, maybe ninety minutes if you're chatty with the staff. Check their website for opening times and whether you need to book - it's a working mill, not a visitor attraction with set hours. From Townsend Touring and Camping Park or Arrow Bank just down the road, it's an easy detour worth making if you're spending time in the area. Proper Herefordshire, this.