British cherry producers predict that this year’s crop will break all records. It’s estimated that more than 3.500 tonnes of cherries will be picked this year, perhaps more. Whilst the main cherry growing areas are found in Kent, Sussex and Herefordshire, Oxfordshire boasts a fine PYO cherry orchard too at Q Gardens, near Harwell. It’s one of the very few orchards in the country where the general public are allowed to pick their own, which I can assure you is the most satisfying of occupations. Each sun-ripened cherry you pick is a gem, something to be celebrated and not just because the cherry season is but a short six weeks. Bite into a freshly picked cherry and you are biting into one of the most sublime of fruits — sheer heaven.

After the Second World War, Britain lost most of its cherry orchards when it became impractical to harvest the tall trees that could not be protected from birds or harsh winters.

Now British cherries are enjoying a renaissance with production of fruit set to triple as growers across the country are harvesting fruit which crops heavily on smaller trees that can be picked from the ground or by using a short stepladder. These trees are producing fruit that not only tastes better but keeps longer.

Some pioneering growers in Scotland are also planting cherries to try to extend the UK season even further by bridging the gap between northern and southern hemisphere production.

This year, despite all the adverse weather conditions during the spring, which held back the blossom for several weeks, there will be more cherries than ever before. In addition, the harsh weather caused the fruit to developed more slowly. This has resulted in cherries with exceptional flavour which are sweeter, firmer and more delicious than ever. As the cherry season is all too brief, it really is worth indulging yourself and enjoying that superb flavour while you can.

Celebrity chef Gary Rhodes, who is thrilled to discover that the cherries are having a renaissance, said that he wants us all to fall back in love with the British cherry as “hardly anything sums up the British summer better than a Sunday afternoon picnic — a bottle of wine, a baguette or two, a little parcel of butter, olives, cheese and a bag full of British cherries”.

He said it was such a shame when traditional Kent cherry orchards started to be phased out in the 1960s, but is thrilled that the British cherry is coming back after decades of decline.

Although it is thought that a form of cultivated cherries were imported into England by order of Henry VIII, who had tasted them in Flanders and enjoyed their flavour, it is possible that it was the Romans who were responsible for the wild cherries that decorate our countryside. Legend has it that you can trace the route of old Roman roads in Britain by looking out for wild cherry trees grown from the stones they spat from the fruit they ate as they marched through Britain. Cherries have a very short shelf life, and are best eaten within three days of being picked. With sweet eating cherries you should look for clean bright plump shiny fruits with a reasonably firm flesh. The darker their colour the sweeter they are. Sour cherries used in cooking should be of a medium-firm flesh. The cherry varieties growing in the Q Gardens’ orchard include: Early Rivers, Hertford, Napoleon, Stella and Sunburst. Once picked they are best stored in a plastic bag in the refrigerator, but remove them an hour before eating as their flavour develops when they are at room temperature. One warning: if you do tip them into a bowl which is in full view of all the family, it’s possible that the bowl will be empty before you have a chance to serve them as everyone helps themselves. You can freeze cherries, but it is best to remove the stone first or the flesh will take on an almond flavour. That said, almond essence does bring out the cherry flavour in certain dishes.

If you are looking for an interesting and flavoursome summer cocktail to serve at a drinks party, try soaking a pound of fresh cherries that have been pricked with a sterile needle in a mix of cranberry juice and cherry brandy. If left in a cool place for several hours, the cherries will have soaked up enough of the liquor to add a further taste dimension. They can then be crammed into little shot glasses with their stalks still in place so that they can be pulled from the glass one by one.

I suggest you begin with about 400ml of cranberry juice and about 100 ml of cherry brandy, stir, taste and then adjust according to you own taste. A few dashes of Cointreau and gin can be added too to pep it up even more before pouring the liquor over the cherries.