Gloucestershire Perry

Perry or pear cider is an alcoholic beverage made from fermented pears, traditionally in England ; parts of South Wales; France (especially Normandy and Anjou); Canada; Australia; and New Zealand.[citation needed] There is growing interest in artisinal perry production in the fruit-growing regions of the northwest United States (Oregon and Washington State). The pears used to make perry are typically not the large, sweet varieties eaten as fresh fruit. Perry pears tend to be small and relatively bitter. (The distiction between table pears and perry pears is similar to the difference between table apples and crab apples). Perry pears are thought to be descended from wild hybrids, known as wildings, between the cultivated pear Pyrus communis subsp. communis and the now-rare wild pear Pyrus communis subsp. pyraster. The cultivated pear P. communis was brought to northern Europe by the Romans. In the fourth century CE Saint Jerome referred to perry as piracium. Wild pear hybrids were, over time, selected locally for desirable qualities, and, by the 1800s, many regional varieties had been identified.

Source: Wikipedia