EASTRY COUPLES CIDER WORKS PLAN FOR WALDERSHARE PUB.

Andrew Wedl, 56, and wife Amanda, 42, have been given the green light by Dover District Council to have their own cider making business at the "High and Dry" pub on Sandwich Road, close to Tilmanstone.

The couple, who bought the pub last year, will run a restaurant and bar and have a country store to sell the Kentish brew and other local produce, arts and crafts.

There are also plans for a museum charting apple-growing and cider-making in Kent through the years and the planting of specimen trees on site so guests can see where their cider comes from.

The apples for the cider will also be local - grown at Andrew and Amanda's 1,500 tree orchard at their Green Oak Farm.

The exciting venture will provide five jobs with the possibility of more as business grows.

Dad-of-two Andrew, who owned "The Royal hotel" in Deal and the "White Cliffs" in St Margaret's before buying the pub, said: "We have a small farm where we have planted out an orchard purely for growing cider apples.

"We both come from the catering and hotel industry and wanted to go back and create our own produce. That way we know the history of it so it won't be organic but it is all Kentish produced with organic principles.

"We wanted somewhere to make our own cider and that has to be licensed so we bought the "High and Dry" and applied to change it to the cider works and shop and to have a sort of museum so we can show the progress of apple-picking through Kent and cider-making. We are going to get some old cider making kit and have story boards."

Once the £200,000 cider-making kit has been bought and set in place local schoolchildren will also be able to visit.

The former St Margaret's holiday park director said: "The chemical process is part of the bio-chemistry curriculum on the current GCSE programme. We hope to invite children over and they can see the process of fermentation and see bio-chemistry at work. We can also go along the lines of explaining about sensible drinking."

And if those plans weren't enough Andrew and Amanda say they are going to make Kent's first sparkling cider from their produce and will eventually expand the site for people to hold small parties and receptions. Visitors will also be able to buy their own cider-making kits, trees and produce from local farms and artisans.

Andrew said: "It's quite exciting. It's a new challenge, it's interesting and we will be making something from our own produce.

"There will be five jobs to start with but we will grow."

The couple say the store and restaurant, which will serve local produce, will be open for Christmas and, if they can get the first press of apples soon enough, The Cider Works will also open for the festive season.