P Produced on French soil since the 16th century, Calvados is a highly appreciated spirit that is exported all over the world. In France, it is in the process of conquering a new generation of curious and demanding consumers, thanks to the audacity of a few producers and shopkeepers-cultivators.
Going off the beaten track, they had the idea of using barrels of different origins to express all the aromatic richness of this apple alcohol. Port casks, Madeira casks, xeres casks... all pretexts are good for proposing new taste experiences. Among these, the Blanche de Normandie is an unaged expression of this apple spirit: calvados at its simplest!
Apples: There are four typical varieties of apples: bitter, bittersweet, sweet and sour. Bitter apples are rich in tannins and bring structure to the final product. Bitter-sweet apples bring fruitiness and richness. Sweet apples are mainly used for their contribution to the alcohol content of the cider. Sour-apples bring the necessary acidity. Despite a strict AOC, numerous apple varieties are planted in orchards to make up for low-yield years. A calvados is never the fruit of just one apple variety. Thus, during the 1990s, the INAO reviewed some 200 varieties. Although only about 20 of them are cultivated, the variety is a guarantee of quality.
Pears: As for pears, they must also be produced locally. Inedible due to their astringency, they mainly originate from a variety called 'plant de blanc'.
La Blanche de Christian Drouin is an eau-de-vie obtained by discontinuous double distillation before the ageing that is characteristic of a true Calvados.
Its smoothness and strong aromaticity are making it an increasingly popular white spirit in mixology, also excellent as an end of meal or in the preparation of desserts
Apart from the apple and pear varieties, the type of orchard and the soil on which these trees grow have a real influence on the end product.
HAUTES TIGES: The 'hautes tiges' orchard-meadows dominate the Norman landscape. They are characterised by meadows where Norman cows, apple trees and tall pear trees coexist. These trees bear their first fruit after 10 years and reach maturity from the age of 40. They can also reach the venerable age of 70 years.
The maximum tree planting density is 250 trees per hectare for cider apple trees and 150 trees per hectare for pear trees. Orchards are more generally made up of a hundred trees per hectare. Note: during harvest, mechanical shaking of pear trees is prohibited.
BASSES TIGES: More modern, these orchards are exclusively dedicated to intensive fruit production. The trees produce their first apples at the end of five years and can live for some thirty years. The orchard is maintained mechanically.
Density is much higher (1000 apple stocks per hectare), for an average yield of 35 tonnes per hectare. Very much in vogue in the 1980s, this type of cultivation is tending to fall into disuse, in favour of pré-vergers that bear far more interesting fruit.
Produced in a geographical area covering six departments, Calvados has three appellations of controlled origin: Pays d'Auge, Calvados and Domfrontais. For each, the apple orchards are made up of at least 20% local varieties, around 70% bitter or bittersweet varieties, and a maximum of 15% acidulous varieties.
This appellation is the largest geographically and the most scattered. It extends over a large part of Lower Normandy (Manche, Orne and Calvados) and covers a few well-defined areas in the departments of Eure, Mayenne and Sarthe.
The name Calvados meets the following criteria:
- alcohol processed from 100% APPLE
- the NATURAL FERMENTATION lasts At LEAST 28 DAYS
- the method of distillation is not imposed, although it relies more on a COLUMBICATION
- the AGEING is done in OAKEN CASKS for a MINIMUM 2 YEARS period.
Located at the junction of the departments of Calvados, Eure and Orne, the Pays d'Auge consists of a landscape of slopes with shallow clay-limestone soils.
The Pays d'Auge designation meets the following criteria:
- alcohol made from 100% apples, although the specifications authorise UP TO 30% PEAR
- the Natural FERMENTATION lasts At LEAST 24 DAYS
- this calvados is produced by a PRODUCTIVE DISTILLATION AT REPEAT
- ARRIEST AGEING is carried out in OAKEN CELLS for a MINIMUM 2 YEARS.
As with the Pays d'Auge, the Domfrontais area is concentrated on three departments: Orne, Manche and Mayenne. Its subsoil is essentially composed of granite and schist.
The Domfrontais designation meets the following criteria:
- alcohol made from a MESTRUCTURE OF APPLES AND PEARS
- the COOL FOR DISTILLATION shall be composed of MINIMUM 30% PEARS FROM "POIRÉ" (effervescent cider-like alcoholic beverage)
- the Pear fruit cultivated must contain MINIMUM 25% PEARS FROM "POIRÉ"
- the natural FERMENTATION lasts At LEAST 42 DAYS
- this calvados is made from a SIMPLE DISTILLATION IN COLUMN ALAMBIUM
- the BREAKING is carried out in OAK DRUMS for a MINIMUM 3 YEARS.
FROM APPLE TO SIDRO
Harvesting begins in late September and ends in December. Once harvested, some growers store the fruit in barns or in Paloxes to finish ripening. Others mix the fruit immediately after harvest. Once ripe, apples and pears are then ground and pressed. In order to collect the maximum amount of sugars and tannins, a final step called 'remiage' may be carried out: this involves macerating the fruit skins and pulp in water and pressing them again. Fermentation of the juice is spontaneous and natural: no additives are authorised by law.
It is carried out in cuvees for a minimum period of 28 to 42 days, depending on the AOC. At the end of this stage, the ciders to be distilled are titrated at 4.5° to 6°. Some producers distil all their cider production, known as 'frais' (fresh), in the spring. Others keep part of it until the autumn and distil a cider called 'rassis' (stale). The former will be fresh and smooth, the latter more developed and racy.
From SIDRO TO AQUAVITE
The distillation campaign begins on 1 July and ends on the following 30 June. Two distillation modes coexist within the AOC.
Obligatory for the distillation of Calvados Pays d'Auge, the pot still is composed of three elements:
1. the copper still in which the cider is brought to the boil
2. an intermediate cuvee called a 'chauffe cidre'
3. a copper coil immersed in ice water, which allows the alcohol vapours to cool and liquefy
From the first distillation, the distillation heads and tails are discarded to retain only the "brouillis" or small waters, which titre 28° to 30° . During the second distillation, distillation heads and tails are withdrawn in order to collect only the distillation heart, known as 'bonne chauffe', which titrates 72° at the most.
The column still stands to the Domfrontais as the step still stands to the Pais d'Auge: a must. It too is composed of three elements:
1. the boiler or "chauffe cidre"
2. a column known as the desiccation column, consisting of some fifteen plates through which the cider and alcohol vapours circulate in the opposite direction, to allow the vapours to become charged with aromas
3. a condensation columnThree taps separate the heads from the distillation tails and collect the distillation heart.
FROM AQUAVIT TO CALVADOS
Oak and cask: depending on the appellation, calvados will have to age for 2 to 3 years in casks or oak barrels. The ageing phase can be carried out either in new or used barrels, refreshed or not with cider. Used barrels can also be used for other spirits or wines, rums or xeres. New woods are rare, but can be used just at the start to bring in the necessary amount of tannins and aromas, then ageing in used barrels (200 to 600 litres) for several years. Barrels of 1000 to 10000 litres can also be used: they ensure not only the ageing of the young spirits but also their storage.
Beyond the designations Calvados, Pays d'Auge and Domfrontais, calvados is distinguished by the category to which it belongs: blend or vintage.
Blends: blends carry the classification mention: Fine, Extra, XO. Some labels specify an age that is that of the youngest spirit in the blend. For the classification of their blends, calvados producers refer to an age count, where the date - anniversary is the first of July of each year. The age of a calvados is determined by its distillation date.
The vintages: then there are cases of single cask calvados. These bottlings are subject to rigorous selection and give rise to non-standard spirits with a strong identity.
AGE 00 | Account associated with the date of distillation and running until 1 July following the harvest
AGE 0 | Account effective from 1 July following distillation
AGE 1 | Effective account after at least one year of ageing in wood and from 1 July
AGE 2 | Effective account after at least two years of ageing in wood and from 1 July | FINE, TROIS ETOILES, TROIS POMMES, VS
AGE 3 | Effective account after at least three years of ageing in wood and from 1 July | RESERVE, VIEUX
AGE 4 | Account effective after at least four years of ageing in wood and from 1 July | VO, VIEILLE RÉSERVE, VSOP
AGE 6 | Account effective after at least six years of ageing in wood and from 1 July | XO, TRÈS VIEUX, EXTRA, TRÈS VIEILLE RÉSERVE, NAPOLÉON
Between 'trous normands' and 'café calva', the tasting of calvados has long suffered from stereotypical modes of consumption, inherited from previous generations. Calvados is a surprising, versatile spirit that, unlike many other spirits, knows how to vary and multiply pleasures without complexes or false notes. Thus, whether tasted neat, on the rocks, in cocktails, associated with a dish or as an ingredient in a recipe, calvados unfolds an incomparable palette of flavours.
Distillates have different alcoholpercentages. So, we have defined a parameter allowing you to better understand and compare different prices. This parameter is calculated by dividing the bottle price by the alcohol content. The alcohol content (or strength) is the amount of pure alcohol (ethanol) contained in the distillate.
This parameter indicates the price of a single 4cl dosage of distillate. It is calculated by dividing the price of the bottle by its quantity (expressed in cl), then multiplying by the centilitres of the recommended single dose, as average in cocktail recipes.
