'I visited a picture postcard village three hours from Yorkshire - it was well worth the drive'
To some, it's cider country. But vineyards, picture postcard towns and very British motor cars are close by the Herefordshire village of Aylton near Ledbury. Steve Teale reports.
No sooner had we parked up on the gravel courtyard outside our holiday cottage than we were off again, getting to know our patch: the cider country of rural Herefordshire.
Our landlord for the stay, Paul, offered to show Lynne and I the area with a three-mile trek which took in some stunning countryside.
We strode through an orchard or two, fed four pet pigs with apples, met farmer David who gave us his plums, chatted to another farmer Norman and passed the time of day with literary sort Sally who lives in the most idyllic of cottages.
Not bad to say we hadn’t yet removed our coats.
We were here for four days and we didn’t want to waste a moment. Plus, the weather was changing and while we would be happy to face Yorkshire-style drizzle it’s far better to walk in the evening sun.
This is Aylton, the sort of place where you might expect the Vicar of Dibley to be set.
We didn’t bump into Dawn French but we did pay homage to another star of the sit-com world, renowned producer and director Gareth Gwenlan who is buried in a beautiful churchyard en route.
You may know him for his work on Only Fools and Horses and To The Manor Born, which wasn’t filmed locally but could have been.
This is a fabulous place, full of black and white houses for which the region is known. There are more in lovely Ledbury, a most charming town.
In the countryside you can’t move for orchards but they may soon be rivalled by vineyards, one of the few pleasurable consequences of climate change.
Our home from home was exquisite. It was a two up, one down created by hiving it off from a reasonably-sized house.
It had a wonderfully equipped kitchen, cute little sitting area, a dining table and a television. Upstairs was the most comfortable bed we’ve ever slept in and a bathroom with a power shower. Low beams added character – and bruises for the unwary.
It was called Welsh Cottage and it is cute, compact, and a welcoming retreat for two. With an open plan living area, a well-equipped kitchen, a pair of comfortable armchairs and a gas-fired ‘wood burner’ stove to keep you warm.
It was, we were assured, one of areas of lowest crime in the country and I can quite believe it. Every other home, it seemed, had honey, greengage jam, marmalade and the like for sale with honesty boxes by them.
One enterprising home even provided a honesty card machine.
Aylton and its surroundings are stunning and Paul is font of knowledge for walks and attractions.
The nearest sizable town is Ledbury, a characterful place with charming buildings and the best collection of charity shops my partner Lynne had ever seen.
We visited the Morgan car company in Malvern as a sort of tribute to fellow motoring journalist the late Don Booker, one time editor of the Barnsley Chronicle and a fervent admirer of the Yorkshire Post.
I could hear Don’s Barnsley tones as we toured the ancient sheds where these magnificent motor cars are assembled largely by hand.
If the late Don’s spirit is anywhere, it will be here for he loved his Morgan which he bought from an airline pilot. He showed it to me more than once.
The 90-minute tour took nearly two hours and Cousin Nick, as our guide is known, was the perfect host. There’s little he doesn’t know about Morgans. He and Don would still be chatting now.
We couldn’t visit the Malverns without a stroll in the famous hills with views so good they could have been in Yorkshire. One way, Wales. The other, Worcestershire.
We even visited Elgar’s grave in a church perched above Worcester. Sir Edward Elgar (1857-1934), the darling of the Proms, is actually buried with a host of relatives.
Our next visit was something of a surprise. We found plenty of apple orchards and the odd pear orchard including farmer Norman’s where he also keeps four huge, friendly pigs behind a fence to protect his crop.
He’s happy for you to feed them windfall apples from his orchard. The pigs approve.
But there is more to Herefordshire than just cider apples. Wine is on the menu too, perhaps because of climate change. We spent some time at Evolution Winery in Little Marcle, a couple of miles from Aylton.
It seems wine was made around here 750 years ago.
In 1276, the Bishop of Hereford’s Red Book recorded the planting of ecclesiastical vines on the south facing slopes of Ledbury and now Evolution is bringing them back.
We met head winemaker Laurence Cocking who told how vines had been reintroduced, harnessing the micro-climate with vision and innovation.
You can book a vineyard tour and tasting session or a self-guided tour. It takes a special area to impress a Yorkshireman, but in rural Herefordshire and parts of Worcestershire we might have found our match.
Steve Teale stayed as a guest of White House Cottages whitehousecottages.co.uk. A one-bedroom cottage (Welsh Cottage*) for two people costs from between £78 - £140 per night, based on a minimum two-night, self-catering stay, dogs £20 for the stay.
Guests of White House Cottages receive two-for-one tickets (worth £15 per person) for a self-guided stroll through Evolution Winery near Ledbury. Discover its rich history, which dates back to 1276, and enjoy a glass of wine. The tour is available six days a week.
For information on visiting Herefordshire, its walks and driving routes visit www.visitherefordshire.co.uk . The Morgan Experience costs £32.50 per adult and £16.50 per child ( 5-15 years). Visit experience.morgan-motor.com/factory-tours