The Rise of Cider in England due to the Little Ice Age.

Prior to 1400AD grapes grew as far north as York.  We know this from monastery records as wine is needed for the sacraments. By the time of Henry the VIII th there were 139 vineyards recorded in Britain.  However the Medieval Warm period was not to last. The next few hundred years parts of the world inc Europe faved a 2C drop in temperate.

The cause of this is not certain. There was a decrease in solar activity and increased volcanic activity but its regionality is still not fully understood, However the temperatures dropped and even large rivers iced over at times. Between 1400 and 1835 the Thames froze over 24 times. 

The Thames froze and the ice was thick enough to hold fairs on the ice. The first Thames Frost Fair was in 1608 and the last in 1814. Intriguingly one of William Shakespeare's famous lines could be related to the Little Ice Age. Richard the III was written in 1593 play Richard III, and starts “Now is the winter of our discontent”.  The play is about the War of Roses but Will’s writing often had many layers of meaning, these lines was written  to his audience who like him remembered the previous  warmer weather and now were shivering through the Little Ice Age. That cause food chaos as crops failed and ushered in cider and beer as the vines died, but apples and grain grew well. Will was known to drink cider as well as beer. Soon after Richard III play was the first Thames Frost Fair of 1608