Apple Brandy vs. Calvados

Fall is the time when apple harvesting is at its peak. Along with that comes fresh apple cider (and usually fresh warm doughnuts). Apple cider is a drink made from crushed apples, and sometimes fermented (hard cider).

Brandy is distilled from fruit, but if it is made from anything other than grapes, it is specified so, like apple brandy. US guidelines say this drink must be made from at least twenty percent apple brandy that has been stored in oak for no less than two years. To create a lighter profile, apple brandy is blended with a neutral spirit.

Like tequila and champagne, the French have Calvados, a legally protected appellation, which means that it must come from a specific geographic location, this is the Lower Normandy region of France. It also must be aged in oak casks for at least two years. Calvados tends to taste 'oakier' and slightly less apple than its American counterpart.

What's in a Name, Applejack

Apple brandy has been produced in the US since colonial times. Farmers would let apples ferment, then put the fermented juice in a barrel outside when it became cold. Since the freezing point of water is higher than that of alcohol, the water in the mixture would freeze. The farmers would scoop the ice out, leaving the alcohol behind. This process, known as jacking left behind a higher proof product and it was referred to as "applejack." The name eventually became synonymous with apple brandy.