No, you ‘orrible lot; not drinking cider! I know how all of your minds work – completely alcohol obsessed. (Or am I thinking about myself here?) The cider in question is actually a hair clarifier and colour sealer from John Masters Organics, a brand that has been producing organic hair and beauty products for over twenty years.

This herbal cider rinse, to be used after shampooing and before conditioning, is incredible at removing product buildup and residue – if you live in an area with hard water, it removes excess lime and helps to soften your hair. It’s a brilliant once-weekly clarifying treatment that won’t strip away the colour from your hair – in fact, it does the opposite, neutralising the pH of your hair after it has been chemically treated, and helping to seal in colour.

I used the herbal cider this week because it was my ‘first wash’ of my new hair colour and I thought that it was appropriate! I shampooed with Liz Earle’s Haircare and then diluted a capful of the herbal cider in a glass of water before tipping it over my head. There is a mild vinegar smell to the solution, but it’s not overly unpleasant – I usually hate the smell of vinegar but I was fine with this. I left the rinse on my hair for about two or three minutes whilst I washed my face and then rinsed it out. I can’t say that there was any instant difference to my hair, but boy did it show its true colours later on!

I let my hair dry naturally after conditioning with Liz Earle’s conditioner, and my hair was so, so soft and shiny. Much more so than usual. The vinegar smell disappeared completely upon rinsing and with that gone, I was a little dubious of how the rinse could possibly work when it was just a liquid, diluted in a liquid, tipped over my head, but it really did seem to add extra shine to my hair, and a surprising amount of volume. Usually if I let my hair ‘air-dry’, it will be quite flat at the roots, but this night I looked as though I had dried my hair with my head upside down!

I am extremely impressed with the herbal cider – it’s the first product I’ve tried from John Masters away from work and I’ll be trying a lot more. This will definitely be a regular treatment for me – I especially love the fact that it’s helping to seal my colour in! Vinegar (more pleasantly named ‘cider’ in this case!) is an age-old shine remedy, but the addition of other clever herbs and essential oils means that it clarifies and refreshes too, without leaving behind a strange smell. Love it.

John Masters Organics Herbal Cider is available from Lucy Rose for £17.