A popular beer and cider festival takes place at Crabble Corn Mill this weekend with more than 70 diferent types of drink on offer, all of them brewed in Kent.

The festival opens on Friday from 3-11pm and continues on Saturday from noon to 11pm and Sunday from noon to 7pm.

It is the most important fund-raising event for the mill, which is in Lower Road, River, and a spokesman for the trust which runs it said it was particularly critical in these “continuing times of austerity”.

There will be 56 real ales and 18 ciders on offer, and the festival is a showcase for Kentish produce, with every one of them coming from some of the 26 breweries and 19 cider makers based in the county.

On Friday afternoon Driftwood will be playing a traditional mix of folk songs and in the evening old friends Cultured Pearl will be returning to the mill to play a variety of acoustic covers of well known and not so well known songs and original material.

Supporting the festival on Saturday afternoon are two local bands, The Cow Pats followed by Quidnunc, playing popular and well known folk music.

The headline band on Saturday evening is The Dave Ferra Blues Band, an exceptionally talented blues band with a good local fan base.

On Sunday The Bottles and invited guests will be playing their own arrangements of popular and folk music.

Volunteers at the mill will be manning a barbecue, and curry and other food and non-alcohol drinks will also be available in the mill tea room.

A traditional hog roast, provided by Alkham Valley Hog Roasts, will be available on Friday.