We at Wirral Pomona had a brilliant Wassail on Saturday 6th January, to start the New Year and ensure that our apple trees, cider, orchard volunteers and cider makers are healthy, happy and flourish!
So now it’s time for another barn dance or Ceilidhe.
On 27th January from 7 -10 pm we’ll be at the Magnificent West Kirby Arts Centre in Brookfield Gardens, in the road opposite the White Lion. This one is a Supper plus a cider Ceiidhe dedicated to the Immortal Memory of Robbie Burns, as it’s close to his birthday.
The Supper gives us a chance to raise a few funds, taste our cider from last year, but mostly to hold a convivial celebration to balance with the hard work which has been involved over the last 6 months in building up the equipment, resources and expertise, cleaning, scratting, pressing, bottling, organising, sampling and tasting. Much of the work was done in the Brimstage Orchard, using apples from trees that we’ve all been looking after.
It’ll be seasonal, lots of food and drink, live music with Rosie, our expert dance caller for the barn dance to guide us through Scots, Irish and English Country dance elements which have proved great fun and surprisingly easy to join in. We’ll also have a few appropriate songs and words to give you a breather between dances
Music is provided by Anita Rochford with some of the band members from Chorley Cakes, Shindig, and Melrose Melody Makers and with John Walsh, formerly with Cream of the Barley.
Please put the date in your diary now, book and e-mail pdellwand@hotmail.com to let us know how many tickets you want and how many require food which is vegan/vegetarian.
Burns Supper 27th January 2018, with doors and paybar open from 6:30-10.00pm
Ticket price to be £10.00 to include a convivial meal – the Burns Supper
Children 6-16 : reduced price of £6.00
under 5’s free
Pay Bar and hot drinks available till 9:50pm
The included meal menu will be a simple one, in keeping with the occasion:
steamin’ Haggis wi’ champit tatties and bashed neeps – (meaty haggis with mashed potato & creamed turnip – and, if you wish, you can add to the neeps and tatties your own choice of crowdie/cream/chives/onions/butter to make either rumbledethumps o’ skirlie-mirlie. I thought you’d like to know that )
or
bare-bakit Haggis* with clapshaw o’champit tatties wi bashed neeps ( Vegan haggis with a dairy free accompaniment of mashed potato & creamed turnip)
then for all, a schele o’ aipple-tairt (slice of roasted apples with a dairy-free pastry
Timings 7.00 start with a toast to the assembled gentlefolk and then Melrose Melody Makers will give us a tune or two to liven up the feet and delight the ears, then the Selkirk Grace
7.30 pipe in and honour the Haggis then share a Burns Supper
8.00 – 10.00 Music for dancing or listening, interrupted with a few words and songs from Scotland’s only Cider Excise Tax Collector to be beloved of Cider-Makers
9:50 bar closes
10.00 event ends with the amplification off, the lights out as couples hold candle and flowers for an appropriate but notorious dance to a suitably romantic tune
10:15 time for clearing up and putting away/calling for carriages or making a getaway like Tam in the picture, who’s not fully aware that he’s pulled and is giving a lift home to the lass wearing a cutty sark (or torn skimpy shift.)
you can get your tickets by e-mailing pdellwand@hotmail.com or on the West Kirby Arts Centre webpage.
There is no parking in Brookfield Gardens, but you can park for free in the car-park behind the West Kirby Concourse and cross over the main road into Brookfield Road and procede, taking the pleasant air, for a few minutes to the Arts Centre which is the old church on your left, where Brookfield Road somehow turns into Brookfield Gardens, in the same mysterious way that Old Nick transforms the kirk in “Tam O’Shanter” into a place of bawdiness and frivolity. Just like the Arts Centre.
Ellwandery 