Ashdown Estate

Ashdown Estate has been a working landscape in East Sussex for more than two centuries — woodland, pasture, and orchards stitched into the High Weald with hedgerows older than any deed. Our juice business began when the estate manager grew tired of seeing perfect fruit leave for bulk cider contracts that stripped away origin and identity. We restored old apple blocks, planted soft fruit for summer picking, and installed a small press beside the farm shop.

Estate-grown means exactly that. Apples and pears are picked by hand when sugar and acidity balance; berries are harvested cool and pressed quickly. We never reconstitute concentrate, never bulk out with water and flavourings, and never pretend a uniform bottle can taste the same in January as in October. Some juices are single variety; others are blends chosen after tasting each tank. What matters is that the fruit led the decision.

Our cordials follow the same rule — reduced gently, sweetened modestly, preserved without losing the brightness that makes a summer raspberry worth remembering. We bottle in glass, label with harvest dates where possible, and accept that when the last crate of Katy apples is gone, it is gone until next autumn.

Estate walks pass ancient woodland we manage for wildlife, and the farm shop staff can tell you which orchard row supplied the bottle in your hand. That traceability is ordinary here, not a marketing afterthought.

Today Ashdown Estate supplies Maxwells with juices and cordials that taste of Sussex seasons rather than factory consistency. We manage woodland for wildlife, maintain orchards for the long term, and invite customers to walk the paths between trees. An estate is a responsibility as much as a privilege; we intend to steward both with the same care we give each pressing, from blossom to bottle, year on year, without compromise.

Values: Estate-grown, no concentrates