It all started in 1916, where Sam Inch started to make cider here at Western Barn in Winkleigh. Times were hard and apples were paid in lieu of a salary. At first this arrangement worked to Sam’s advantage but the following year a glut of apples sent prices tumbling. Faced with imminent ruin, Sam was forced to take immediate action. He recognised the potential in his only asset so he borrowed the necessary equipment and made some cider- two hogshead which eventually found their way into the cellars of the White Hart Inn.

Word of mouth was, and still is a powerful marketing agent. It was not long before other public houses were carrying Sam Inch’s cider. Over the next few years, business grew, although business was steady, he still looked at his cider making as a hobby, his first occupation as a coachman and second a postman, this was through the inter-war years.

His reputation as a cider maker grew, and his business could have taken off at this time if was not for the fact aggressive marketing was not part of the Sam Inch style.

In 1952 Inch’s Cider was first poured into bottles; the distribution network was expanding through Eggesford station. The distinctive Inch’s trademark, a tailcoated gentleman downing a glass of cider with a barrel of brew in the background soon became well known.

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