Case Study Overview
Sheppy's Cider produce over 2 million litres of cider a year and have won over 200 awards. David's production aims were ...
- Treble pressing/milling output
- Increase bottling output from 2,000 to 3,000 bottles per hour
- 300,000 litres of tank capacity
We supplied, installed and commissioned an Voran automatic milling and pressing system (6000kg/hr), a CIMEC 16 valve bottling line, and 300,000 litres of Speidel stainless steel tank capacity.
The Sheppy family have been making cider for over 200 years and the awards they have won exceed this number, so the accolade of ‘craftsmen cidermakers’ is well earned. Awards include gold in CAMRA’s National Cider & Perry Awards for their Medium Draft and silver in The International Cider Awards for their Somerset Draught.
‘Quality’ is the ethos behind Sheppy’s Cider, which is owned and run by David and Louisa Sheppy. Of the 2,000,000+ litres of cider currently produced, 50% of the apples used are grown in orchards on David and Louisa’s farm, and the remainder are carefully selected from local farmers that they know. 30 different apple varieties are carefully selected to create the 15 different ciders which they craft, ranging from draft to sparkling, single varietals to blends, and a Soil Association certified organic cider. Fermentation is achieved through the natural yeasts in the skins of the apples, as opposed to added yeasts and no artificial sweeteners are used. Sheppy’s award winning cider is supplied in bottles, polyboxes and kegs.
To keep up with increased demand for their premium quality craft cider, Sheppy’s Cider upgraded their pressing equipment and bottling line.
Vigo supplied and commissioned a Voran apple milling and pressing system capable of pressing up to 6,000kg/hr (Washmodule 700 and BP1200 ExPress belt press) and a bottling line, consisting of a CIMEC automatic 16 valve counter pressure filling machine with rinsing and capping functions. Capable of filling up to 3,000 bottles per hour, this machine was supplied with change parts to accommodate 3 sizes of bottle. Vigo also supplied an additional 300,000 litres of Speidel stainless steel tanks to provide additional fermentation capacity.
Feedback
'Vigo is an excellent local company specialising in supplying machinery and services to the drinks industry, with a good reliable engineering team to back them up.
As with previous projects, Vigo offered excellent service, and managed to work around our building work requirements, so installation and commissioning could run smoothly.
Our apple milling/pressing capacity has nearly trebled, and juice extraction is on average 5% up on the old Voran press. The new bottling machine has increased hourly output from 2000 to 3000 bottles per hour, and the machine is more efficient, easier to run, and easier to clean.'
David Sheppy, Sheppy's Cider