Worlds Top 10 Best High-End Luxury Calvados Brands

CALVADOS is an apple brandy from the French region of Lower Normandy (Basse-Normandie).

Apple orchards and brewers are mentioned as far back as the eighth century by Charlemagne. The first known Norman distillation was carried out by "Lord" de Gouberville in 1554, and the guild for cider distillation was created about 50 years later in 1606. In the 17th century, the traditional cider farms expanded, but taxation and prohibition of cider brandies were enforced elsewhere than Brittany, Maine, and Normandy. The area called "Calvados" was created after the French Revolution, but eau de vie de cidre was already called calvados in common usage. In the 19th century, output increased with industrial distillation and the working class fashion for café-calva. When a phylloxera outbreak in the last quarter of the 19th century devastated the vineyards of France and Europe, calvados experienced a "golden age". During World War I, cider brandy was requisitioned for use in armaments due to its alcohol content. The appellation contrôlée regulations officially gave calvados a protected name in 1942. After the war, many cider houses and distilleries were reconstructed, mainly in the Pays d'Auge. Many of the traditional farmhouse structures were replaced by modern agriculture with high output. The Calvados appellation system was revised in 1984 and 1996. Pommeau got its recognition in 1991; in 1997, an appellation for Domfront with 30% pears was created.

Calvados News, Reviews & Resources

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• Appellation d'origine contrÔlÉe (AOC) - Wikipedia.
• BEST CALVADOS - "Regardless of the price, the best Calvados often wear the Pays d'Auge appellation". New York Times.
• CALVADOS - Wikipedia.
• Calvados Roger Groult - Wikipedia.
• Grades of quality - "V.O." "VO", Vieille Réserve, "V.S.O.P.", or "VSOP" must be at least four years old. "Extra", "X.O." "XO", "Napoléon", Hors d'Age, or Age Inconnu must be at least six years old, but are often sold much older.

Top 10 Best High-End Calvados Brands

• Calvados Boulard - "Calvados d'excellence depuis 1825."
• CALVADOS LECOMPTE - since 1923.
• Calvados Pays d'Auge - Wine-Searcher.com.
• Calvados Roger Groult - "Une passion familiale depuis 1860." Calvados Pays d'Auge.
• CHARLES DE GRANVILLE - "The Charles de Granville Calvados are produced using the best traditional varieties of apples (Bisquet, Bedan, Petit Joly, Saint Martin), from orchards fully exposed to the elements..."
• CHÂTEAU DU BREUIL - "Two years of an aging in oaks casks give a gold color to the fruity taste of its youth.Vigorous and fresh on the palate, it’s a product carrying the “Appellation d’Origine Contrôlée Pays d’Auge”. All the fragrances of Normandy!"
• DOMAINE DUPONT CALVADOS - "The Domaine Dupont Calvados all have the "Appellation d'Origine Contrôlée Pays d'Auge". Made using double distillation in a Charente style alembic, they all receive aging in oak barrels, for periods varying between 2 to 40 years. They are only bottled when about to be sold."
• GRAND POMMIER XS CALVADOS - "The Perfect Gift for the Man Who Has Almost Everything." Comes with a cigar in the bottle.
• LE PÈRE JULES - founded 1919.
• PÈRE MAGLOIRE X.O. - "Découvrez le monde des Calvados et du terroir normand."