From around 1600 many Irish traders and settlers became interested in the brandy business. These were settlers and the potential to condense wines by boiling them had a number of attractions, not least their greatly improved longevity, ease of handling and of course, their greater strength. This last benefit was a useful motivator and anaesthetic in times of war, and barrels of brandy which were in plentiful supply during the wars were kept on ships for this very purpose. During the next century The Dutch, who had been distilling their own gins and selling them in France, imported the wines… Read more

As early as the 16th century, when the English had been chased from France for more than a century, we find the expression Vin du Cognac. Wines shipped along the Charente from the town of Cognac were traded, initially for salt but later for timber, furs and wools which had been shipped from England, Ireland and Holland. The Coastal areas around La Rochelle were already developing vines as a stable crop and further south in Bordeaux the trade in wine was more advanced. Gradually vines were planted further inland in the Bois or woody areas usually on the slopes since… Read more

BNIC Statistics for March 2010 have revealed that stocks of old cognacs used by the big houses has dropped to one of the lowest levels ever, with only 2.9% of 4 and 5 year old stocks available for blending and 1.8% of stocks over 6 years old. In comparison, new cognacs, which are up to 1 year old are 64.4% This indicates that blended cognacs such as VS and VSOP from the big houses will require to be even younger to meet the increasing demands of consumers, especially in America where sales, particularly those of Hennessey have increased and are… Read more

It is common practice with most calvados producers to put the age of the spirit in the bottle on the label, but it is not a requirement and can be confusing. Some producers put the minimum age, but older calvados may be in the bottle. Vintages can also be used but whilst it normally refers to the year of distillation it can also refer to the year of the apple harvest. Some of the generic terms as used in the cognac industry are also used but they mainly refer to very young spirits; for example VO or VSOP refers to… Read more

Most of the flavours in the calvados comes from the skins of the apples rather than the pulp. The equipment required for making the cider comprises of a grater tank, a press and a vat called a “belleron”. In the press house the apples are washed, selected and then crushed or grated. The pulp is left to stand for a few hours in a vat to macerate. This softens the skins and extracts the tannins and aromas and at the same time oxidises, changing the colour of the pulp. The pulp is then pressed and the solids, known as the… Read more

The harvest of apples starts around the beginning of October and continues through to nearly Christmas since apples, unlike grapes ripen at different times and are also harvested at different stages of ripeness. Indeed one producer uses fallen apples which have a greater sugar and reduced water content thus making a sweeter cidre. The apples and pears are defined cider varieties and must be grown in the appellation zone. The amount of pears used varies between the areas but cannot exceed on third unless the calvados comes from Domfrontais. Perhaps the most important area of control is the style of… Read more

Of all the areas of France affected by the war, Normandy suffered the most . The neglecting of the farms and orchard were miner to the mass destruction and devastation of houses, factories and transport not to mention the death of civilians and famine in the area. Huge support was poured into the area by the allies and the region returned to a relatively rapid industrial recovery. In 1949 there were 29 larger cider houses and distilleries in the Pays d’Auge but even into 1950 the alcohol required by the government for munitions was more than 50% of that produced…. Read more

The German occupation of Normandy was centred around the town of Caen in the north. They set up a sort of control centre called a “Kommandantur” in the Town Hall, which was able to make systematic requisitions of alcohols produced in France. However the system bypassed cognac and armagnac as they were “Labels of Origin” – even in wartime one needs a good drink! However the calvados image was not good and in an effort to improve it and to withdraw the regionally produced calvados from the requisitions, it became recognised with an appellation d’origine in 1942. The industry was… Read more

By the turn of the 20th century calvados production had increased from 56,300 hl in 1882 to well over 300,000hl in 1900. The area of Pays d’Auge was established as the major producing territory.  Most of the cider production remained where the orchards were but several cider factories settled in larger cities. Practically every canton had a distillery making a total of around 50 at the beginning of the 20th century and rising to 70 in 1914. The quality was enhanced with new techniques such as centrifugation and filtration which was controlled by regulations. Many merchants bought calvados at the… Read more

During the eighteenth century, industrialisation had started and people had started to take jobs in the towns and in 1831 an Irishman, A Coffey designed a still that revolutionised the making of quality spirits. The “columnstill” or Coffeystill consisted of columns with a series of vapourisation chambers stacked one on top of the other. The difference from the Alembic still was dramatic as the columnstill could produce a continuous never ending flow. The French author Rousel, specified that a good part of the production of cider and brandy was intended for the navy and ships which left for fishing cod… Read more