Small-Batch craft cider maker

Market and festival visitors, local pubs, farm shops, delis and people who buy direct from you.

Selling bottles, bag-in-boxes and pints at a mark-up on your costs, with the bulk of sales in summer and around Christmas.

• Patience and attention to cleanliness
• Basic fermentation and tasting skills
• Selling and talking to customers

• Alcohol duty: check HMRC's current rules and any small producer exemption before you sell
• Selling alcohol needs the right licence, such as a premises licence or Temporary Event Notices, so check with your council
• Register as a food business with your local council and check labelling and allergen rules
• Making it at home may need permission from your landlord, lender or council
• Public liability and product liability insurance
• Income is seasonal and cider needs months to mature before you can sell it

Startup costs are typically around £2,000 to £10,000, depending on your press, barrels or tanks, and bottling or bag-in-box equipment. Your choice between a hand press and a small powered one, and how many apples you buy in, will affect where you land.

Monthly revenue is typically around £500 to £2,500, depending on the markets, festivals, pubs and farm shops you sell to. Income is seasonal, and cider needs months to mature before you can sell it, so expect a gap before sales begin.

Things to check: HMRC's current alcohol duty rules and any small producer exemption, the licence you need to sell alcohol (such as a premises licence or Temporary Event Notices) via your council, food business registration, labelling and allergen rules, and permission for home production.